One Canada Square Facts for Kids

One Canada Square is a very tall and famous building in London, United Kingdom. It's located in an area called Canary Wharf, which is known for its many modern skyscrapers. For many years, it was the tallest building in the UK!

Quick facts for kids One Canada Square
One Canada Square, Canary Wharf; the second-tallest building in the United Kingdom
Record height
Tallest in the United Kingdom from 1990 to 2012
Preceded by	Tower 42
Surpassed by	The Shard
General information
Type	Commercial
Location	Canary Wharf London, E14 United Kingdom
Coordinates	51°30′18″N 0°01′10.6″W / 51.50500°N 0.019611°W / 51.50500; -0.019611
Construction started	1988
Completed	1991; 34 years ago (1991)
Cost	£624 million
Owner	Canary Wharf Group plc (current majority shareholder is Songbird Estates plc)
Management	Canary Wharf Group plc
Height
Architectural	770 ft (235 m)AGL 800 ft (240 m) ASL
Technical details
Floor count	50
Floor area	1,748,296 sq ft (162,422.0 m²)
Lifts/elevators	32 + 3 freight + 2 firemen
Design and construction
Architect	César Pelli & Associates Adamson Associates Frederick Gibberd Coombes & Partners
Developer	Olympia & York
Structural engineer	MS Yolles & Partners Winston Group Waterman Partnership
Main contractor	Sir Robert McAlpine Ellis Don Lehrer McGovern Bovis Balfour Beatty Olympia & York + approximately 40 sub-contractors

One Canada Square: A Tall London Landmark
Images for kids
See also

One Canada Square: A Tall London Landmark

One Canada Square is a huge office building located in Canary Wharf, a busy business area in London. It's one of the most recognizable buildings in the city, especially because of its unique pyramid-shaped roof.

How Tall Is It?

This impressive building stands about 235 meters (or 770 feet) tall. That's like stacking over 50 double-decker buses on top of each other! It has 50 floors, and you can imagine how many stairs that would be. Luckily, it has 32 elevators to help people get around quickly.

A Record-Breaking Building

When One Canada Square was finished in 1991, it became the tallest building in the United Kingdom. It held this record for 21 years! Before it, the tallest building was called Tower 42. In 2012, a new building named The Shard became even taller than One Canada Square.

One Canada Square also became the tallest building in London in 1991, holding that title until 2012 when The Shard was completed. However, it is still the tallest building in Canary Wharf itself, a record it has kept since 1991.

The pyramid roof at night.

Who Designed and Built It?

The main architect who designed One Canada Square was César Pelli. He worked with other companies like Adamson Associates and Frederick Gibberd Coombes & Partners. Building such a huge skyscraper is a massive project, and many different companies worked together to make it happen. The main builders included Sir Robert McAlpine and Olympia & York. It cost about £624 million to build!

What's Inside?

One Canada Square is mainly used for offices. Many different businesses have their headquarters or branches here. It's a very busy place during the week, with thousands of people working inside. The building is also famous for its shiny stainless steel exterior, which reflects the sky and clouds.

A view from the top floor in May 2000.

Images for kids

The pyramid roof at night
Canary Wharf: Aircraft warning lights
One of the tondi of The 20th Century–Thames (Keith Milow, 1998)
A view from the top floor, May 2000
View from Canada Square
Street view
View from London Underground station
Side view
Building clad
Side angle
Side clad
Clad with window washing machine
Upper floors with the window washing machine at the top
Cladding at night
Night view
Street view showing canopy
Outside view of canopy
Street view on North Colonnade
Clock artwork outside One Canada Square
One Canada Square lower level entrances
Lobby
Lobby ceiling
Lobby facing towards street
Lobby art
Pyramid roof
Night view with pyramid roof lit up
View from top floor (May 2000)
View from One Canada Square looking west towards central London
Airplane leaving London City Airport on the flight path near One Canada Square
Stainless steel clad having a reflective shine on cloudy days
View with neighbouring towers
Canary Wharf Tower from Westferry Circus - geograph.org.uk - 1052733.jpg

View from Westferry Circus
View from West India Quay
View from Limehouse and the River Thames
Aerial view
One Canada Square pyramid top standing out on the skyline
Skyline view from Greenwich

One Canada Square facts for kids

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