Built in 1871, the livery stable at 224 East 38th Street was one of a row of similar buildings on what was known as a stable block. Three stories tall and faced in red brick, it was a fetching commercial example of the Italianate style. Perhaps to save costs, almost no stone was used in its decoration. The elliptically arched lintels were executed in brick, as were the double-height piers of the upper section. They morphed into a handsome corbel table that smacked of a row of icicles hanging from the cornice.
In 1941, the original appearance of the structure survived. A plaque below the gable announces the date of construction. image via the NYC Dept of Records & Information Services.
M. Jordan & Co. operated the livery stable in the 1890s. By World War I, however, horses were almost completely replaced on the streets of Manhattan by motorized vehicles. In 1918, the building was converted to a garage and repair shop for the Dearborn Truck Sales Company, Inc. (The firm also leased the building next door at 220-224 East 38th Street, presumably as its showroom.)
New York Herald, June 16, 1918 (copyright expired)
The Dearborn Truck Sales Company, Inc. was based in Chicago. The New York Herald, on June 16, 1918, called it, "among the pioneers in the manufacture of one and two ton truck units that convert Fords and other makes of cars into substantial one and two ton trucks."
The firm placed an advertisement in The New York Times on September 22, 1918 looking for a salesman "of ability to sell motor trucks; strictly commission; live, wide awake organization; prompt deliveries and efficient services. Dearborn. 224 East 38th St."
The Dearborn Truck Sales Company's residency here would be extremely short-lived. On April 6, 1919, an advertisement in The New York Times offered,
Auto repair shop, service station, fully equipped machine shop; excellent location; satisfactory four-year lease; entire building, three floors, 6,000 square feet; quick action; immediate possession. 224 East 38th St., near 3d Av.
The building was leased by the printing and publishing firm Cameron & Bulkley. It occupied the upper portion while sub-letting the ground floor to Eifler Brothers, "high grade automobile painting and upholstering." That firm had a second location in Brooklyn. Both companies would occupy the building until 1932, when the architectural firm of Bruno Berger & Sons converted the ground floor to a private garage and the upper two to factory space.
Karl P. Billner, a Swedish-born inventor and engineer, established his laboratories on one of the upper floors. In 1935, he invented vacuum-processed concrete here. His vacuum chamber removed a significant portion of the water from newly-mixed concrete, resulting in its setting more rapidly. The U.S. Government tested it for bridge decks, canals and such. At a "gathering of builders and construction men in his laboratory at 224 East Thirty-eighth Street," according to The Chemistry Leaflet in 1937, Billner suggested that the process offered "a possible solution of one phase of the low-cost housing problem."
In February 1946, Anna R. Crossin sold the former stable to "an electrical contractor [who] intends to occupy part of the premises for his business," according to The New York Sun. The contractor was the Telephone Answering & Radio Paging Company, which did business as Telanserphone.
It was possibly at this time that the brick was painted and the roofline altered to a triangular gable that stretched end-to-end.
The new owner took one floor, and leased the others to the sales offices of the Gold Seal Company, and Experiment in International Living. The Chicago-based Gold Seal Company manufactured "Glass Wax," advertised as a "Wartime Chemical Discovery! Nothing like it anywhere for cleaning glass and metalware." The Experiment in International Living described itself in 1948 as "a non-profit educational organization which has been promoting mutual understanding among the young peoples of 20 countries since 1932."
Telanserphone performed a much-needed service for professionals like physicians. In its March 1951 issue, Popular Mechanics explained, "New York doctors who are relaxing at the beach or ball game are kept on continuous call by means of a new radio service." The subscribers were issued a "small receiver that looks like a hearing aid." When they were urgently needed, Telanserphone would broadcast a code which was repeated until the subscriber responded by telephone.
An operator working at the Telanserphone offices here in 1951. Popular Mechanics, March 1951
The firm was still operating here as late as 1971 (although it was now known as Aircall Radio Paging). An advertisement that year sought "telephone operators for answering service." The round-the-clock enterprise required three shifts of operators working eight-hours. The ad noted that they would have "alternating weekends" off.
The building as it appeared in 1983. image via the NYC Dept of Records & Information Services.
Leasing space in the building that year was Aviation Charter Corporation, a leasing agent for various charter companies. By 1983, Guest Informant advertising agency operated from the address.
Today, the 153-year-old building is vacant. The Fire Department has marked the façade with white X's to warn firefighters that the building is in such bad condition that they could face a safety risk upon entering.
photographs by the author
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