Chief Architect of the World Trade Center. Minoru Yamasaki was born on December 1, 1912 in Seattle, Washington. He was an excellent student and entered the University of Washington. After graduating, he earned a Masters Degree from New York University and immediately began working for several architectural firms. He developed impressive credentials working for New York firms Shreve, Lamb and Harmon who designed the Empire State Building and Harrison, Fouilhoux and Abramovitz, the designers of Rockefeller Center. Over the years he helped design some 20 buildings including the U.S. Consulate in Kobe, Japan and the Federal Science Pavilion in Seattle, Washington. In 1962 Yamasaki was commissioned by the New York and New Jersey Port Authorities to construct the World Trade Center complex. The project was immense; 7 buildings spread out over a 16 acre lot and the 2 largest buildings Tower 1 and Tower 2 would reach heights of just over 1,360 feet. Yamasaki's engineering plan for the 2 large Towers would be based on his Seattle I.B.M. building in that the strength and rigidity of the Towers would be on the outside rather than the inside (using high strength steel). The interior would have a central core but would mainly be composed of lightweight trusses. Also, the trusses would be constructed on the ground and hoisted into place which would greatly reduce building time. Construction on the complex began in 1966 and was finally completed in 1976. The Towers and the complex were met with some criticism but was for the most part hailed as an engineering triumph and made for a magnificent New York skyline. After the World Trade Center, Yamasaki continued to design many more buildings including the Performing Arts Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the Federal Reserve Bank in Richmond, Virginia.