Appart from the the ground floor (for business), it wasn't until the invention of elevators that the top floors were made prestige floors. The bel étage or piano nobile [1] was the first floor above ground level (for relative privacy from the street level). Top floors were not penthouse flats they were attics or lower class housing [2]
The first proto skyscrapers were built in the late 19th century. The Equitable Life Assurance Building (1870) and the Home Insurance Building (1885) were office buildings.
The idea of a Penthouse appartment [3] dates from the 1920s. And as buildings are only slowly built and renovated, the first floors were still prestige floors well into the 20th century.
The first proto skyscrapers were built in the late 19th century. The Equitable Life Assurance Building (1870) and the Home Insurance Building (1885) were office buildings. The idea of a Penthouse appartment [3] dates from the 1920s. And as buildings are only slowly built and renovated, the first floors were still prestige floors well into the 20th century.
1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_nobile
2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chambre_de_bonne
3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penthouse_apartment