New York Life Building

New York Life Building

Location 51 Madison Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York
Coordinates 40°44′34″N 73°59′8″W / 40.74278°N 73.98556°W / 40.74278; -73.98556Coordinates: 40°44′34″N 73°59′8″W / 40.74278°N 73.98556°W / 40.74278; -73.98556
Area 2.5 acres (1.0 ha)
Built 1928
Architect Cass Gilbert[1]
Architectural style Gothic Revival[2]
NRHP Reference # 78001876[3]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP June 2, 1978[3]
Designated NHL June 2, 1978 [4]
Designated NYCL 2000

The New York Life Insurance Building, New York, located at 51 Madison Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, across from Madison Square Park, is the headquarters of the New York Life Insurance Company.[5]

History

The building's roof from the north

Designed in 1926 by Cass Gilbert,[6] who also designed the landmark Woolworth Building, the massive building, which was inspired by Salisbury Cathedral,[7] rises forty stories to its pyramidal gilded roof and occupies the full block between 26th and 27th Streets, Madison Avenue and Park Avenue South, a rarity in Manhattan. The building stands 615 feet (187 m) tall and contains 40 floors.[8] It was the last significant Gilbert skyscraper in Manhattan.

From 1837–1889, the site was occupied by the Union Depot of the New York and Harlem and the New York and New Haven Railroads, a concert garden, and P.T. Barnums Hippodrome.[9] Until 1925, the site housed the first two Madison Square Gardens, the second one designed by architect Stanford White.

The building was completed in 1928 after two years of construction at the cost of $21 million.[7] It combines streamlined Gothic details and distinctly Moderne massing. The gold pyramid at the top consists of 25,000 gold-leaf tiles.[7] The building was designated an official New York City landmark by the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission in 2000, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as a National Historic Landmark, designated in 1972.[2][4][10] In 1995, after the pyramid was restored with new tiles and lit, the building received a Merit Citation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy.[11]

The New York Life Insurance Company still maintains its headquarters in the building. They have leased extra office space through Cushman and Wakefield since 2004.[12]

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ White, Norval & Willensky, Elliot (2000), AIA Guide to New York City (4th ed.), New York: Three Rivers Press, ISBN 978-0-8129-3107-5, p. 200
  2. 1 2 ""New York Life Building", February 1977, by George R. Adams (National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination)" (pdf). National Park Service. February 1977.
  3. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  4. 1 2 "New York Life Building". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. 2007-09-16.
  5. ↑ "NY Life Insurance Company Building". A View on Cities. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
  6. ↑ "New York Life Building". Vertical Access. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 Event Horizon: Mad. Sq. Art.: Antony Gormley installation guide, published by the Madison Square Park Conservancy (2010)
  8. ↑ "New York Life Building". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
  9. ↑ New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission; Dolkart, Andrew S. (text); Postal, Matthew A. (text) (2009), Postal, Matthew A., ed., Guide to New York City Landmarks (4th ed.), New York: John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 978-0-470-28963-1 p. 75.
  10. ↑ "New York Life Building--Accompanying 5 photos, exterior and interior, from 1976, by George R. Adams. (National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination)" (pdf). National Park Service. February 1977.
  11. ↑ Mendelsohn, Joyce (1998), Touring the Flatiron: Walks in Four Historic Neighborhoods, New York: New York Landmarks Conservancy, ISBN 0-964-7061-2-1, OCLC 40227695
  12. ↑ Siwolop, Sana "Big Spaces Are Opening Up In Madison Square Park Area" The New York Times (March 24, 2004)

Bibliography

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