Tag Archives: financial district

Post Towers

Post Towers, built in 1926 as the New York Evening Post Building, is a residential conversion in New York’s Financial District. The 21-story Art Deco building was the Post’s second headquarters, after the landmark building on Vesey Street.

Post Towers’ architectural distinction is the colorful geometric terra cotta design in the crown. This was recently cleaned and restored, and is best seen from across West Street.

When built, this (and all buildings on the east side of West Street) was on the waterfront. Battery Park City is built on landfill from the excavation for the original World Trade Towers.

Post Towers Vital Statistics
Post Towers Recommended Reading

Google Map

Financial District

The Financial District is where New York City’s architectural diversity started, and where it still flourishes thanks to preservation. From West Street east to Water Street, Cedar Street south to Battery Park, it seems that every other building is a past or future landmark. Nothing that I write here even comes close to doing the district justice.

Recycling seems to be a big part of the area’s preservation: Office buildings that might otherwise have been razed have been converted to condos, hotels and even schools. Notable examples include 21 West Street, Whitehall Building, Delmonico’s, Cipriani Club Residences, Bank of New York Building, Downtown by Philippe Starck, and Empire Apartments. I suppose that if you’re a top exec in the Financial District, it’s nice to be able to walk to work. But where do you shop for fresh food? I didn’t notice any supermarkets….

Photographers will find lots to snap – and lots of challenges. The “canyons” metaphor is so appropriate for the Wall Street area – tall buildings and very narrow streets: Some building facades are in almost perpetual shadow; some of the most interesting architectural details can only be seen from blocks away. Post-9/11 and Occupy Wall Street barricades limit your viewpoints. Last but not least, this is a huge tourist attraction, so resign yourself: A photo of the George Washington statue or the Bull at Bowling Green will include goofy strangers in sometimes weird poses.

NOTE: This gallery has 200 images.

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84 William Street

84 William Street was originally the headquarters of Royal Insurance Company (before it moved to 150 William Street). Now, it’s a residence hall shared by The New School and Pace University.

The base of the building – three stories now clad in polished black stone – were originally rusticated white marble; the clock over the rounded corner entrance was originally surrounded by ornate terra cotta.

In the photo gallery above, the black & white photos are from bound copies of Architecture (May 1907) in the Princeton University Library, digitized by Google Books. You can get a pdf version here (pdf link at far right on Google Books page). The century-old issues of Architecture are fascinating. The bookplate in this volume says it was donated by Mrs. Michel LeBrun – whose husband was part of the eminent architectural firm Napoleon LeBrun & Sons.

84 William Street Vital Statistics
  • Location: 84 William Street at Maiden Lane
  • Year completed: 1907
  • Architect: Howells & Stokes
  • Floors: 17
  • Style: Classical with English Baroque
84 William Street Suggested Reading

Google Map

90 West Street Building

The 90 West Street Building is an extraordinary building – for its architecture, and for surviving 9/11.

But to begin at the beginning: The West Street Building was built as an office building for shipping and rail companies – West Street in 1907 was on the Hudson Riverfront. The architect, Cass Gilbert, was a master of the tripartite design commonly used for tall buildings, but the West Street Building was different. Gilbert de-emphasized the base, emphasized the vertical lines of the shaft, and finished with a “Gothic fantasy” capital, including a three-story mansard roof. (Gilbert’s initial plans included a five-story tower at the top.) Where Gilbert’s earlier Broadway Chambers Building used terra cotta ornament in its upper stories, the West Street Building was almost entirely clad in terra cotta. Even the inside of the building used terra cotta, for fireproofing.

The building changed hands in 1923, and was modernized in 1933 – including a new Gilbert-designed lobby. In 1998 the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the West Street Building a landmark. It was still in use as an office building on Sept. 11, 2001, when debris from the South Tower of the World Trade Center rained down on 90 West Street.

The north (Cedar Street) facade was gashed, the roof was destroyed, and eight floors of the building were gutted or heavily damaged by fire. Although the building changed hands several times and was in limbo until 2003, the new owners were able to restore the shell thanks to the terra cotta fireproofing.

The three-year restoration converted the offices to 410 rental apartments. Contractors had to replace 75 percent of the north facade’s granite, and 7,853 pieces of terra cotta. Explore the Suggested Reading links for the full story on the restoration.

90 West Street Building Vital Statistics
  • Location: 90 West Street between Albany and Cedar Streets
  • Year completed: 1907
  • Architect: Cass Gilbert
  • Floors: 23
  • Style: Gothic Revival
  • New York City Landmark: 1998
  • National Register of Historic Places: 2007
90 West Street Building Suggested Reading

Google Map

Standard Oil Building

The Standard Oil Building began as a 10-story, 86-foot-wide structure in 1885 – just 21 years after the Civil War. But as Standard Oil grew, so did the building: In five stages, it extended north by 27 feet and south by almost 400 feet to Beaver Street and grew to 29 stories. The piece-by-piece construction was dictated by the pace of acquiring and demolishing adjoining properties. The building expanded again in 2011-2012 with the addition of a two-story gymnasium, which filled in a portion of the Beaver Street light court. The gymnasium was needed by one of the three NYC public schools that now occupy seven lower floors.

The shape of the Standard Oil Building is as complex as its construction history – the 16-story base is five-sided, with a curved transition to follow the curve of Broadway as it joins Whitehall Street. The 13-story tower seems misaligned with the building when viewed from the southwest (the best view), but it is actually aligned with the original building’s northern edge.

Material and stylistic details also reveal the piece-by-piece construction. For example, the original brick and granite shows on the New Street (eastern) facade; newer sections are clad in limestone. Some limestone blocks have rounded edges, others are sharply angled; different styles of columns and pilasters are used in the upper stories.

Standard Oil Building Vital Statistics
Standard Oil Building Recommended Reading

Google Map

Financial District Revisited

The Financial District is where New York City’s architectural diversity started, and where it still flourishes thanks to preservation. From West Street east to Water Street, Cedar Street south to Battery Park, it seems that every other building is a past or future landmark. Nothing that I write here even comes close to doing the district justice.

Recycling seems to be a big part of the area’s preservation: Office buildings that might otherwise have been razed have been converted to condos, hotels and even schools.

Photographers will find lots to snap – and lots of challenges. The “canyons” metaphor is so appropriate for the Wall Street area – tall buildings and very narrow streets: Some building facades are in almost perpetual shadow; some of the most interesting architectural details can only be seen from blocks away. Post-9/11 and Occupy Wall Street barricades limit your viewpoints. Last but not least, this is a huge tourist attraction, so resign yourself: A photo of the George Washington statue on the steps of Federal Hall will include goofy strangers in sometimes weird poses.

Included Buildings