30 West 56th Street
Building in Manhattan, New York / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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30 West 56th Street (originally the Henry Seligman Residence) is a building in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It is along 56th Street's southern sidewalk between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. The five-story building was designed by C. P. H. Gilbert in the French Renaissance Revival style. It was constructed between 1899 and 1901 as a private residence, one of several on 56th Street's "Bankers' Row".
Henry Seligman Residence | |
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General information | |
Location | 30 West 56th Street, Manhattan, New York, US |
Coordinates | 40°45′46.0″N 73°58′34.2″W |
Current tenants | Aeffe USA |
Construction started | 1899 |
Completed | 1901 |
Client | Henry Seligman |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 6 |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | C. P. H. Gilbert |
Designated | July 24, 2007[1] |
Reference no. | 2227[1] |
The main facade is largely clad with limestone, while the side facades are clad with brick and have limestone quoins. It is divided vertically into three bays. The ground story contains three openings within a wall of rusticated blocks; the center opening was the original main entrance. The second floor contains wood-framed windows and the third and fourth stories have window openings containing three panes; there are ornamental balconettes at the second and fourth stories. A cornice and mansard roof rises above the fourth floor. The interior was ornately decorated, with a marble reception hall, Japanese-style smoking room, and Gothic style library.
The house was commissioned for banker Henry Seligman, of J. & W. Seligman & Co., and his wife Adelaide. The couple was involved in numerous clubs and organizations and hosted events at the house until they both died in the early 1930s. Afterward, the house was leased to the Beethoven Association in 1934 and divided into apartments in 1941. The ground floor housed numerous restaurants starting in 1940, and modifications were made to the building in subsequent years. In 1994 it was purchased by Alberta Ferretti's firm Aeffe USA, which has occupied the building since 1996. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the house as an official landmark in 2007.