From Silk Goods to Art - 104 Franklin Street

In the first half of the 19th century the block of Franklin Street between West Broadway and Church  Street was lined with the elegant brick homes.  At No. 104 was the residence of Major Joseph Delafield and his wife, the former Julia Livingston.   A son, Maturin Livingston Delafield, was born in the house on February 17, 1836.

Delafield was a veteran of the War of 1812.  He was president of the Lyceum of Natural History (later named the New York Academy of Sciences) when he held a meeting of the group in the house in 1845.  The Delafield family was still in residence as late as February 1855 when "a dangerous lunatic," as described by the New-York Enquirer, was caught attempting to break into a rear window.

But change overtook the Tribeca neighborhood following the Civil War.  In 1866 Philadelphia dry goods merchant Isaiah Vansant Williamson demolished the Delafield house to make way for a modern loft building.

If Williamson, who was described by John Wanamaker decades later as "the city's foremost dry goods merchant," originally intended No. 104 Franklin Street as the New York branch of his business, it never came to pass.

He was almost undoubtedly involved with two other wealthy Philadelphians, Joseph Frailey Smith and Henry Lewis, in the speculative project.  As No. 104 rose, its identical twin was being erected by Smith and Lewis.  The carbon-copy designs and the triple Philadelphia connection suggest that the projects were cooperative, the details lost to time.

The buildings were completed in 1868--sandstone-fronted Second Empire-style lofts with cast iron storefronts.  The pilasters which separated the openings of the upper floors echoed the Corinthian columns of the storefront.  Sill courses separated each floor and a prominent cast iron cornice crowned the whole.

Stone carvers created paneled piers, ornate capitals and delicate moldings.

Well before No. 104 was officially completed the store of William J. Best opened in the ground floor space.  Best dealt in imported Irish linens, the sort of high quality items that graced the tables and bedrooms of wealthy families.  The pricey goods were a temptation for Charles Miller on February 14, 1867.

The twenty-one-year old sauntered into the shop, "under the pretence [sic] of making a purchase," according to The New York Times.  Suddenly he jumped into action, grabbing up 14 pieces of linen valued at more than $5,100 today, and about three dozen handkerchiefs.  The newspaper said "His greed for plunder proved his ruin."

A man running down Franklin Street with his arms laden with tablecloths and handkerchiefs drew the attention of pedestrians.  He was subdued and turned over to Officer Stevens who "forthwith" conveyed him to court.

William J. Best's shop remained here until 1872 when it moved down the block to No. 119 Franklin Street.   In the meantime, Dexter, Lambert & Co. had moved into the newly-completed No. 104 from No. 294 Broadway in 1868. 

Now composed of George R. Dexter, Catholina Lambert, and Charles Barton, the firm was founded in 1849 by Anson Dexter for the manufacturing "dress and mantilla trimmings." 

Dexter, Lambert & Co. was, according to the 1882 A History of Industrial Patterson, the first firm to engage in silk ribbon weaving in this country.  "To this house belong the credit of being the pioneers in this branch of the silk industry."  The book's author, Levi R. Trumbell pointed out that Dexter, Lambert & Co. obtained its raw silk from John Ryle's mills in Paterson, New Jersey.

John Ryle was known as the "father of the United States silk industry" and in 1869 would be elected as Mayor of Paterson, New Jersey.  One of 17 children, he had started out in the silk industry in his native England as a "bobbin boy" at the age of five.  By now his was among the largest silk mills in the country.

It was probably not coincidental that John Ryle & Co. moved into the newly completed No. 104 at the same time as Dexter, Lambert & Co.  An advertisement in The New York Herald on December 21, 1868 sought "Skein Silk Dyer--To take charge of a dye house; regular employment to a sober and competent man.  Apply to John Ryle & Co., 104 Franklin st."

The size of the both operations had been documented in The New York Herald's article on silk production on October 26 that year.  "The mill of John Ryle & Co. keeps 300 operatives employed, whose aggregate wages amount to $50,000 per annum."  The article listed the New Jersey mill's 3,256 silk-winding spindles, 952 doubling spindles and 8,663 other spindles and spooling frames."

The same article said "A very beautiful branch of manufacture is that carried on in the factory of Dexter, Lambert & Co.--ribbons, fringes and gimps.  The machinery required is of the most complicated kind and varies in the different departments from the dyeing room, with its odorous vats and compounds, to the upper floor, a very labyrinth of looms--ninety-six in number."

The looms were capable of producing $1 million in product per year--nearly 18 times that much by today's figures.  Dexter, Lambert & Co. employed 202 workers in the Franklin Street building at the time, "half of whom were young boys and girls, all making good wages."  The article noted "This establishment is only ten months in operation, and has apparently a prosperous future before it."  The firm's Patterson mills, incidentally, employed about 1,000 workers.

The Sun revisited Dexter, Lambert & Co. in July 1869, reporting that it was making "60,000 to 70,000 yards of dress trimming per month."

At the time Peter Turner was a foreman in the Paterson facility.  His name appeared in newspapers later that year for a tragic accident and a subsequent eerie "visitation."  On Monday, August 30 Turner was killed on his way home from a picnic.  His death soon prompted a mystery.

Turner had been paid "a considerable sum of money recently," according to The New York Herald, which he had hidden inside his house.  A search was made "from garret to cellar" but the cash could not be found.  Then, two days later, neighbor John Howarth knocked on Mrs. Turner's door "and informed her he had a dream in which the deceased had appeared to him."

According to Howarth, Turner told him to look under a pile of rubbish in the cellar, where he would find a "blacking  box" (a wooden shoe polish crate) containing $140, about a third of the total.  Several men joined in the search and, indeed, in the exact location the box and the $140 were recovered.  The New York Herald vouched, "Mr. Howarth, the dreamer, is said to be a conscientiously veracious man" who would never lie about previously knowing the location.

In the meantime, with no ghosts in the firm's New York offices, business continued as usual.  On September 20, 1870 it advertised for "Good power loom ribbon and trimming weavers and pickers up at our factory in Paterson, New Jersey.  Apply to Dexter, Lambert & Co., 104 Franklin st."

In 1872, the same year that William Best relocated, Dexter, Lambert & Co moved to No. 466 Broome Street.  The Franklin Street building saw a variety of tenants, including skirt manufacturer J. Schoenhof, here by 1880; and Joseph Walker & Co., "stamped linen" merchants.

Jacob Schoenhoff was a colorful figure who began business in 1855 as a partner in Hoeber & Schoenhoff.  That firm and the subsequent business, Rosenheim & Schoenhoff both failed.  In 1872 Schoenhoff started on his own in the Franklin Street building.  His bad luck in business continued, the skirt firm failing in 1888.  Rather stunningly, President Grover Cleveland almost immediately appointed him Consul "to a small town in the pottery district of England," according to The New York Press.

Isaiah V. Williamson died in Philadelphia on March 7, 1889.  His death prompted accolades nation-wide that recounted his vast philanthropies, including the founding of the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades a year earlier.  Eight months later his estate sold No. 104 Franklin Street to Samuel Inslee for $75,000--more than $2 million today.  Inslee made a hefty profit when he resold the building on January 2, 1891 for $82,500.

Tenants at the time were John E. Quintance, commission agent, and Ambrose Wood who operated the American branch of James Wood & Co., one of the largest woolen mills in England.  Upon Ambrose Wood's death on March 14, 1897, The New York Press called him "prominent in the dry goods trade as an extensive importer of woolens and dry goods for the last thirty years."

While dry goods firms--like the American Knitting Mills Co. which manufactured underwear and "Men's fancy seamless half hose"--continued to occupy the building after the turn of the century, other industries were soon represented.  Among them were the Warren Chair Seat Mfg. Co., makers of the Met-Cane and Warren brand seats, here by 1904; and Henry K. Barnes, "oak and mineral tanned belting," firm.

In 1914 the drug firm J. J. Bigelow & Co. moved into the second floor, and in 1916 John Hood, the Boston-based dental equipment company took the third.  Following World War I the wholesale produce district was edging up to the dry goods district.  By 1929 Simone Saitta operated his fruit importing business in the building.

Velveray Corporation of America was here during the Depression years.  Like the original tenants, it dealt in silk goods; but it carried the new synthetic fibers like rayon, as well.   Its founder and president branched out in December 1939 by forming the Central Processing Corporation in the Franklin Street building.  The New York Times announced it would "engage in the business of novelty printing."

On September 19, 1944 the Hanover Bank & Trust Company sold No. 104 to a seemingly unlikely buyer, St. Luke's Hospital.  The transaction was purely an investment, however, and within three weeks the building was sold to the Continental Converters Corporation.  The textile firm called No. 104 home until 1957.

The change in Tribeca from a gritty, industrial neighborhood to one of galleries, restaurants and loft residences was first evidenced at No. 104 when The Loft Gallery opened around 1961.  It was followed in the 1980's by the Poole Willis gallery.

By 1985 the store where Charles Miller had tried to make off with an armload of linens in 1867 was home to Aesthetics a boutique shop.  Upstairs was Pentacle Dance Works, dance performance space and non-profit arts promotion organization.

The store became home to the antiques store Antik around 1997.  The New York Times noted on September 6, 1998 that it specialized "in modernist design."  Run by Juliet Burrows and Kim Hostler, it featured items like the pottery of Danish ceramist and painter Axel Salto.  In 1999 they offered 40 vases and 20 drawings by the artist.

A renovation completed in 2005 resulted in one residence each on the second and fifth floors, offices on the third and a dance studio on the fourth.  The 20th century fire escape that zig-zags down the front and droops its extension across the top of the storefront unfortunately distracts from the handsome 1866 design.

photographs by the author

The 1911 Charles Lane Poor Mansion - 35 East 69th Street

photograph by Gryffindor

Born in Hackensack, New Jersey in 1866, Charles Lane Poor formed a partnership with his brother, James Harper Poor in 1900 to form the J. Harper Poor & Co. dry goods commission firm.  It was an unlikely move for Charles, who had earned his Ph.D. in astronomy from Johns Hopkins University in 1892.  His appointment as a professor of astronomy at Columbia University in 1903, however, ended his involvement with the dry goods firm.

The split did not affect the close relationship between the brothers, however, and in 1910 they planned side-by-side mansions on East 69th Street, between Madison and Park Avenues.   In January that year the Union Theological Seminary sold its property which engulfed the the block front of Park Avenue from 69th Street to 70th Street.  It did not take long for millionaires to snatch up the four parcels.

On January 12 The Sun reported that "The fifty foot plot on Sixty-ninth street was sold to Prof. Charles Lane Poor."  The brothers split the lot into 25-foot building plots for their homes.  Their close relationship did not extend so far as choosing the same architects.  James Harper Poor hired Howells & Stokes, while Charles commissioned Walker & Gillette.

Walker & Gillette designed the four-story No. 35 East 69th Street in the sedate neo-French Renaissance style.  Faced in limestone, its rusticated base held arched openings, which continued around the eastern elevation, made possible by a service alley.   The bowed Juliette balconies which fronted the full-length, second floor French windows were cast in bronze, rather than the more expected cast iron.  A prominent stone cornice (which lined up perfectly with that of the James Poor mansion) was upheld by substantial modillions.  The cost of construction was $50,000, or around $1.36 million today.

Charles Lane Poor had married Anna Louise Easton on April 19, 1892 and the couple had three children, 14-year old Charles, Jr.; Alfred Easton, who was 12; and 7-year old Edmund Ward.  By the time the family moved into the East 69th Street house Lane was internationally known in the scientific community.  He was an associate fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a fellow in the New York Academy of Sciences, a member of the Astronomische Gesellschaft in Leipzig, and a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in London.

His academic work did not interfere with his other passion--yachting.  The year his new home was completed he invested in another costly project.  The Sun reported on March 1, 1911 "Prof. Charles Lane Poor of Columbia, a prominent member of the New York and other yacht clubs, has ordered a 45 foot day cruiser to be built by the Holmes company from designs by William Gardner."

Charles Lane Poor (original source unknown)

The family's summer home, Eastward, was in Shelter Island on Long Island.  There Poor was highly involved in the yachting sport and was secretary of the Manhasset Country Club.  In the summer of 1912, for instance, ten yacht clubs, some as far away as Chicago and Maine, competed in what the New-York Tribune described as a "series of three races for the Manhasset Bay challenge cup."  A special committee was formed with a representative of each club and Charles Lane Poor was chosen from the American Yacht Club.

The Poors did not restrict themselves to Eastward.  On May 8, 1910 the New-York Tribune's Newport correspondent reported that "Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt is here inspecting The Breakers, and Mrs. Hermann Oelrichs arrived to-night to make an inspection of Rosecliff.  Both are at the Muenchinger King cottage.  Other guests at the same house are Mr. and Mrs. Charles Lane Poor."

When in town Anna was active in charitable causes.  She was a director of the St. Luke's Home for Aged Women and took an active role in fund-raising for New York School of Applied Art.  

The mansion was originally four stories tall, like the James Harper Poor home next door.  photograph via www.episcopalschool.org

World War I had its effects on the Poor household.  Charles was tasked with solving a problem of air navigation.  In July 1918 Aerial Age wrote "The most difficult problem that was considered as facing the pilot...was that of keeping posted on his latitude and longitude...The matter of keeping to a course has been almost entirely solved by the invention of a radio receiving instrument by which it is possible to tell the exact direction from which radio waves are given forth."  That invention was Poor's "position line indicator."

The conflict more directly affected Charles, Jr.  A student at Harvard, he left school in 1917 to join the Navy.  On April 28, 1918 The Sun announced his engagement to Janet Sheppard.  As well as saying that the bride-to-be had not yet been introduced to society, the article noted that Charles "is now an ensign in the United States Navy and is awaiting orders for foreign service."

Those orders came more quickly than thought.  Two weeks later, on May 12, the New-York Tribune reported that the couple had been married "last evening in the chantry of St. Thomas's Church...Only relatives and a few intimate friends were present."  The article explained that the wedding "was hurriedly arranged on account of the bridegroom's war plans."

The unusual social conditions caused by war prompted a few allowances to social norms.  One of the first rites of passage for newly introduced young women was acceptance into the Junior League.  On December 14, 1918 that exclusive group made an exception to tradition.  In reporting on the new members, The New-York Tribune reported "Two recent brides, Mrs. Elliott D. Phillips and Mrs. Charles Lane Poor, who were married before making their formal debuts, were also elected to membership."

Charles Lane Poor was a recognized authority on matters celestial; so when in 1919 when Amherst College Professor David Todd announced he would attempt to communicate with Martians by using a wireless apparatus attached to a hot-air balloon, a reporter called on Poor for his thoughts.  And Poor was not reluctant to respond.  "I am not interested in such foolishness.  Any man who is has more imagination than science."

Poor's outspoken opinions became more notable--bordering on notorious--when he vocally attacked Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity as well as the theories of other well-established experts.  On November 28, 1922, for instance, the New-York Tribune reported "Charles Lane Poor, professor celestial mechanics at Columbia University, who has just completed a book in which he seeks to disprove the Einstein theory of relativity, interrupted his labors long enough yesterday to do the same thing with the conclusions of Professor Thomas Jefferson Jackson See, government astronomer at Mare Island, Calif., that he had discovered the secret of gravitation." 

Poor told the reporter "I know nothing whatever about the cause of gravitation nor, so far as I am aware, does anybody else."  He went on, "To prove his statement, Professor See would have to show either that all observations for the last thousand years are wrong, that the earth and moon are not what they seem, and have not been where they have always been seen, or else prove that the mathematics of...a whole line of eminent astronomers are faulty."

Alfred Easton Poor graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's architecture school in 1923.   He would go on to a celebrated career and in 1946 would establish a partnership with A. Stewart Walker, previously a partner in Walker & Gillette, which had designed the Poor mansion.  

Alfred was still living with his parents in 1927 when he receiving a traffic ticket in Lyndbrook, Long Island for "passing a red traffic signal."  He paid a $5 fine.

On October 20, 1927 Charles, Jr. died in Boston at the age of 30.  Two years later his widow, Janet, married her former brother-in-law, Alfred Poor, in the All Saints Church in Locust, New Jersey.

Charles and Anna continued on in the 69th Street house and at Shelter Island.   On April 19, 1942 they hosted a dinner party to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.  Included on the guest list, according to The New York Times, were "the original wedding party" from the 1892 ceremony.

Charles died in the residence on September 27, 1951 at the age of 85.  His obituary notice published by the Royal Astronomical Society did not overlook his passion for sailing.  Calling him "an ardent yachtsman," it noted "He wrote books on the measurement of yachts and several books on navigation."  

Anna died in No. 35 almost six years later, on May 8, 1957 at the age of 88.    The mansion shortly became home to the nonprofit Medical Passport Foundation, Inc.  Cruising World explained its services to travelers saying "For a small fee this organization will provide you with a passport-size packed for storing a succinct medical summery, including pertinent history, physical findings, and laboratory data."

The former Poor mansion was purchased by The Episcopal School in 1972.  After renovations it opened in September 1974.  Founded in 1961 by representatives of six Episcopal parishes, the goal was "to offer a developmentally appropriate early childhood program for children in the neighborhood," according to the school's website.

photo by Gryffindor

In 1986 the building was enlarged by adding two stories.  The period appropriate addition took the form of a fifth floor and mansard.  A stone balustrade was added to the cornice and the openings of the fifth floor were given arched pediments which tied them to the original architecture at the second floor.  The steep mansard, while admittedly a bit out of proportion, features French oeil-de-boeuf dormers.

The Wm. W. Dashiell House - 848 St. Nicholas Avenue

The glass in the bowed bay was originally curved, to conform to the shape.

Architect John C. Burne had worked with developer Frederick Aldous several times before the spring of 1893.   The employee-employer relationship would be slightly changed now, with the Real Estate Record & Guide reporting on April 22 that year "A company of capitalists has been formed under the name of Aldous Taylor Building Co., with Frederick Aldous as president, for the purpose of building a large number of first class cut stone private dwelling houses."  Partnering with Aldous in the new firm was another prolific developer, William H. Taylor.  The article noted that John C. Burne was already "engaged on the drawings" for several of those houses, "on St. Nicholas avenue, north of 152d street."

The Sugar Hill neighborhood was already developing into one of impressive rowhouses and splendid free-standing residences.  The Aldous Taylor Building Co.'s project would slip seamlessly into the upscale district.

Completed in 1894, the 21-foot wide homes were identical; their only differences found in the elaborate Renaissance-inspired carvings and the stained glass transoms.  Like the others, No 848 rose three stories above a high English basement.  Clad entirely in brownstone, it featured a rounded, full-height three-window bay.  The parlor level, including the entrance flanked by fluted, engaged columns which supported a prominent hood, bore a profusion of ornate carvings.

What the upper floors lost in somewhat diminished carvings, they made up for with striking neo-Renaissance pediments, and a half-bowl element beneath a third-floor opening.  The pressed metal cornice featured diminutive brackets and a decorative frieze. 

No. 848 was purchased by the estate of Philip Detar, apparently as an investment property.  Administered by Susie T. Lyons, it initially leased the home to druggist John Ewing, a member of the American Pharmaceutical Association.

John and his wife, Grace, had two daughters, Eleanor and Katharine.  Grace was highly involved in the Burnham Farm, an independent facility where delinquent New York City boys were sent in lieu of a reformatory.  The socialites with whom she worked came from the top levels of society, with names like Townsend, Goodridge, Oothout and Choate.

The Ewings were possibly given the opportunity to purchase the house in 1897; but if so they declined.  Instead Susie T. Lyons sold it on October 5 to William Wailes Dashiell and his wife, the former Katherine Townsend Keynton (who was known as Kittie).  

Born in 1856 in Maryland, Dashiell earned his engineering degree in 1879 from the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey.  He had held a series of important engineering positions--including mechanical engineer on the Croton Aqueduct--before becoming president and general manager of the New York Lubricating Oil Company.  By the time he purchased No. 848, he was also vice-president of the Bayway Refining Company and a director of the Manhattan Rubber Manufacturing Company.

The couple had four children, 10-year old Marie Fielding; 8-year old William Allair; Katherine Keynton, who was four; and two-year old John Jay.  The Dashiell's 44-acre country estate, Croftleigh, was in Greenwich, Connecticut.  The New-York Tribune described Croftleigh as consisting of "a residence, a model concrete stable, included in which is a ballroom with musicians' gallery, a large garage with extensive servants' quarters and the usual other outbuildings.  Among the features of this place is a lake of about one acre, fed by springs on the property."  

Kitty Dashiell, of course, had a domestic staff to maintain the household.  Chambermaids took care of the dusting, sweeping and polishing.  But the cleaning of the Oriental rugs in the days before efficient vacuum cleaners required outside help.  And so Kitty hired rug beater Christopher Robertson to come by on February 6, 1903.  

Robertson had not gotten very far along before a neighbor peered out her window and witnessed a crime.  February 6th was a Friday and city laws specifically outlawed carpet beating on Fridays.  She ventured onto the street and found Policeman Minogue and had Robertson arrested.

The tranquil St. Nicholas Avenue block was nearly traffic-free around 1910.  photo by Thaddeus Wilkerson from the collection of the Museum of the City of New York

The culprit was taken before Magistrate Crane in the Harlem Court.  The judge found the entire affair exasperating and confessed that, technically, he was guilty of the violation as well.  He announced, "I have my carpets beaten every Friday.  There are lots of laws that can't be enforced and this is one of them.  It would cost the city millions of dollars to enforce it.  What's a person to do if he can't beat his carpets?  He can't leave them on the floor until they are filled with dust and then throw them away."  He turned to Robertson and declared "You are discharged."

By 1914 well-heeled citizens were replacing their horse-drawn carriages with automobiles.  That year William Dashiell registered a new Lozier.  His purchase was not inexpensive.  The list price of a Lozier touring car that year was $2,800, or about $72,600 today.

The Dashiell family rode about in a touring car similar to this 1914 Lozier model. (copyright expired)

Growing older and with their children all grown, in 1919 William and Kittie apparently rethought the need for their sumptuous summer estate.  Following the summer season that year the Dashiells sold Croftleight.  The New-York Tribune reported on November 13, 1919 that "The buyer, who is from Texas, withholds his name for the present."

It may have also been Kitty's health that prompted the decision.  Three months later, on February 25, 1920, she died in the St. Nicholas Avenue house.  Her funeral was held in the drawing room three days later.  

William Dashiell remained at No. 848 at least through 1922.  He died on August 2, 1947.  By then the St. Nicholas Avenue neighborhood had noticeably changed and No. 848 was being operated as a rooming house.

The Dashiell house is second from the right in the row.

Among the tenants in 1940 was 27-year old Gordon Osborne.  On the night of November 14 he was passing the home of Harold Furchein at No. 141 West 150th Street when Furchein's automobile caught his eye.  And so he drove off with it.

Osborn picked up some friends and took them on a ride.  But when he ran two red lights on Broadway, he was arrested.   He admitted stealing the car and his friends were released after he vouched that they were unaware it was a stolen car.

Leroy Frederic Florant took a room here around 1943.  Born in 1920 he had graduated cum laude from Howard University's School of Engineering and Architecture.  He went on to study at the graduate level at Columbia University.  While living here he was working for the Government on the now-famous Manhattan Project, which developed the United States' first nuclear weapons.

In 1946 Florant left New York to work at the Rocket Research Laboratory at Ohio State University.  While there he developed the first successful hydrogen-liquid oxygen rocket fuel pump.

By 1964 the basement level of No. 848 had been converted to Ann's Beauty Salon.  Ann Johnson advertised her shop as being air-conditioned and in a "choice location."

In the meantime attorney Isaac G. McNatt operated his office in the former parlor level.   Born in North Carolina in 1916, he had graduated from the Hampton Institute and St. John's Law School, and served in the Navy in World War II.  

The multi-faceted lawyer, who lived in Teaneck, New Jersey, used his office space for a myriad of other activities.  It was the headquarters of the New York Hampton Alumni Club, for instance.  He was, as well, a leader in the Martin Luther King, Jr., Association.  The N.Y. Amsterdam News noted on July 12, 1969 that those interested in membership should write Mr. Isaac McNatt, 848 St. Nicholas Avenue.

That year the house was officially converted to an apartment house and business.  The completed renovations resulted in the now-legitimate beauty salon in the basement, McNutt's legal office on the first floor, two apartments on the second, and one apartment and three furnished rooms on the third floor.

The indefatigable Isaac G. McNatt maintained his office here into the 1980's.  In the meantime, in 1962 he was one of a group of Black attorneys who formed "The Barristers," the goal of which was "to address how to project a positive image of the African American attorney in the community, as well as expanding and building their practices."  McNatt was that group's first president.  Its name was changed to the Garden State Bar Association in 1975.

McNatt's dizzying career continued when, in 1966, he became the first Black Teaneck City Councilman, was elected that city's deputy major in 1970, and in 1982 was appointed by Governor Brendon Byrne to serve as a judge in the Worker's Compensation Court.

Isaac McNatt's former office was offered for rent in March 1985.  An advertisement in the N.Y. Amsterdam News described it as a "Beautiful spacious office space, ideal [for] lawyer."  It was not an attorney who signed the lease, but Gordon R. Watkins, president of Root Sights & Sounds, Ltd, a private foundation.  

That firm soon moved to Flushing, Queens, and the space became home to the headquarters of The Renaissance Concert Series.

Through it all, other than replacement windows, the exterior of the Dashiell house has survived nearly unchanged since the time when wealthy families hired professional rug beaters--occasionally to the annoyance of nosy neighbors.

photographs by the author

The 1st United Presbyterian (now Southern Baptist) Church - 12-16 W 108th Street

The First United Presbyterian Church was organized in 1889, an offshoot of the Charles Street United Presbyterian Church.  The congregation worshiped in the former Westminster Presbyterian Church building on West 22nd Street near Sixth Avenue before erecting a new church on West 34th Street in 1899.  But within only a few years the plans for the massive Pennsylvania Station forced the trustees to look once again for another location.  The substantial compensation the congregation received from the railroad for the 34th Street property was more than sufficient to erect an impressive new home.

The Pennsylvania Station plans exemplified the significant changes taking place in the district that the church had served.  Therefore, as the New-York Tribune explained "As the majority of the congregation had moved north and it was felt that possibilities for growth in the lower West Side were limited," three building plots on West 108th Street, between Central Park West and Eighth (later Manhattan) Avenue were purchased in 1903.

Architect Frank E. Wallis was commissioned to design the building.  He projected the construction cost of the two-story "brick and stone church" at $100,000--just under $3 million today.  Construction began early in 1904 and Wallis's design quickly drew the attention of architectural critics.

On March 20, 1904 The New York Times pointed out that the design would "combine several unusual features of construction, not the least of which will be three great windows with a combined open space of more than 2,500 square feet.  As in the case of the new Madison Square Presbyterian Church, no attempt at the usual lofty steeple will be made in this structure, the extreme height of the front elevation being only sixty-three feet above the sidewalk."

The site was a bit problematic for the writer, who called it "anything but favorable to this type of building."  Sitting at mid-block, "it is bounded on either side by lofty apartment houses, which necessarily prevent any view being had of its side elevations.  Because of this the two side walls will be plain brick, with a four-foot alley running along either side to give the maximum amount of light and air to the interior of the auditorium."

An element he did not have a problem with was the massive dome that would dominate the auditorium.  The article said it was made possible by a "comparatively new system...invented by a Spaniard and named for him."  Raphael Guastavino's patented "Tile Arch System" was based on the ancient Catalan vault.  Interlocking tiles enabled incredibly strong arches and domes which needed few (or no) columns for support.

"This dome covering the auditorium, which is sixty-four feet square, will be broken by eight penetrations, doing away with all possibility of an echo.  One hundred and twenty electric lights in the 'eye' of the dome will be bunched in six enormous holophane globes, the light from which is said to be similar to moonlight, due to a peculiar quality of the glass."

Wallis's exterior design was a blend of Tudor and Gothic.  A Tudor-style porch with three arches sat below the massive Gothic stained glass window.  Flat-headed Gothic lintels capped the understated windows on either side, and the roofline took the form of crenelated ramparts, ready to fight off attack.   The Real Estate Record & Builders' Guide was impressed, promising in June 1904 that "The church, when completed, will be one of the finest in the city."

Frank E. Wallis released this rendering in the spring of 1904.  Real Estate Record & Builders' Guide, June 11, 1904 (copyright expired)

As construction proceeded, the congregation numbered about 300; a fact that prompted The Christian Nation to take a veiled swipe at the project on March 30, 1904:

The First United Presbyterian church, formerly in West 34th street, New York City, and now worshipping in a hall, has bought lots in 108th street near Eighth avenue, and is beginning the erection of a church which will seat ten or eleven hundred.  They sold their property to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, at a very high figure--$258,000--and were able to put up a fine structure.  But it requires great faith to erect a church so large that you could put your audience in it six times, and still there would be room.

The Architectural Review, 1905 (copyright expired)

On May 27, 1905 the New-York Tribune reported on the progress of construction, noting that the building's "white front is conspicuous among the surrounding apartment houses.  The little building is fitted with every modern improvement without a stick of inflammable material."  The article made note of the still-developing neighborhood.  "This also is another step in the solution of the problem of the big 'neglected' district of the Harlem West Side...The opportunities for growth in the new field are unlimited.  It is the only church of its denomination between 44th-st. and Washington Heights.  In fact it is the only completed church between the Hudson and Lenox-ave. from 105th-st. to 115th-st."

The dedication took place on September 24, 1905.  Several ministers from other congregations assisted in the ceremony and one of them, Rev. Madison C. Peters, was taken with one modern element.  The New-York Tribune reported "Dr. Peters also said in walking about the new church he had observed a kitchen.  That was a good thing, he thought, as it promoted good fellowship, and he for one did not believe in Christianity being served on ice."

The Architectural Review, 1905 (copyright expired)

The First United Presbyterian Church quickly became an important element in the community.  According to the New-York Tribune, "The church has a good sized active Sunday school and has had a strong hold on the neighborhood."  The strong moral lessons imparted in that Sunday school were not lost on James Fyle.

The youth was 17-years old and a choir boy in January 1913 when he fell victim to temptation.  He stole $125 from his employer, but quickly regretted his transgression.  On January 28 The Evening Telegram reported that he had walked into the Central Police Station and announced "The better man in me has possession of my conscience and I want to be punished."  He was.

Rather surprisingly, the church was in financial troubles at the time.  The mortgage was held by real estate mogul William A. Martin and the following year, in October 1914, he lost patience.  The Record & Guide listed the church property among those being sold at foreclosure auction on October 30.

Martin regained full ownership and it appears the building sat vacant until after his death five years later.  His estate offered it at auction in October 1919, the announcement describing the property as a "limestone building formerly occupied as a church."

The Roman Catholic Church of the Ascension, located nearby at 221 West 107th Street, paid the Martin estate $20,576.78 for the building.  The bargain price would translate to just over half a million today.  The trustees did not intend to worship in the structure, but to convert it to a parish house and recreation space.

The congregation paid architect W. E. Anthony more than twice as much to convert the building as it had spent on acquiring it.  The Record & Guide reported on July 24 that the alterations would cost "about $50,000."

The conversion included at least one apartment for staff.  The manager of the youth basketball team, called the Ascension Five, lived here, for instance.  On October 31, 1921 The Evening World reported that the "Harlem Five suffered a defeat at the hands of Ascension Five last Thursday evening at Ascension Parish House."  The article said the Ascension boys "proved too much for them" and that "Manager Degenhardt of the Ascension club is anxious to book some more games with leading teams."

Sports were a major tool used by churches to detract neighborhood youth from the lures of idleness and evil.  The parish house not only had a basketball court but a boxing ring.  On October 25, 1922 The Daily Star announced that "Ascension Parish House will run its first amateur boxing tournament at the Ascension Parish House 12-16 West 108th street, Manhattan, on November 1, with the finals on Saturday November 4."  The article added "Valuable prizes are to be offered in each event."

And the activities were not solely for the boys.  The girls took over the basketball court every spring the girls' Free Throwing Contest.  1924 was not an especially good year for the Ascension Lassies, the Brooklyn Standard Union reporting on April 3 that "The Xavier Girls, of Brooklyn, carried most of the prizes away in the free throwing contest held at the Ascension Parish House, 12 West 108th street."  It was the second year in a row that the Xavier girls had taken the team prize, a silver cup.

By 1924 the boxing tournaments were held once a month.  One newspaper that year said "Many of the leading amateurs are entered in the various classes to compete for the valuable prizes to be awarded the winners of the semi-finals and final event."

In 1932 the first of a far different annual event would take place here.  The Irish-American newspaper The Advocate announced "This Friday night, Dec. 16, will be an eventful one for the Irish residences and friends in Ascension parish.  On this occasion we are going to present one of our greatest Irish radio shows."  The event was preceded by a parade of the Armagh Pipers through "the local thoroughfares."

The article noted "The auditorium of the Parish Clubhouse is a large one and can easily seat nine hundred people...There will be Irish and American dancing after the performance."  The two-and-a-half hour program featured well-known Irish singers, dancers and musicians.

Mayor John P. O'Brien was not only Irish-American, but a congregant of Ascension.  The following year The Advocate announced that he would be attending the "grand Irish radio performance" in the Ascension Parish Club House.

In 1953 the 108th Street building was returned to a house of worship.  The Southern Baptist Church had been organized by the Rev. Macon Osborne in 1922.  It moved here from its former home at No. 103 Morningside Avenue.

The church was the annual venue for the commencement exercises of the Apex Beauty College.  Sarah Spencer had founded the Apex News and Hair Company in 1919, having developed and received patents for a system of straightening the hair of Black women.  Spencer became one of the first African American millionaires and by now there were 11 beauty schools in the United States.  The graduation exercises were large events, its dozens of graduates wearing the same caps and gowns of academic colleges.

On June 21 1969 the N. Y. Amsterdam News reported on that year's exercises, noting that attorney Cora T. Walker, "prominent professional, civic and community worker and only woman president of the Harlem Lawyers Association," gave the commencement address.  The article added "The audience was thrilled by the voice of Samuel R. Canady, a rising young baritone who sang at former President Lyndon B. Johnson's inaugural dinner."

Neighborhood youth were occupied during the summer months by camp-like activities within the church.  In an article entitled "Teaching Independence," the N. Y. Amsterdam News reported on August 25, 1973 that the children had created items like decorative waste baskets, knitted belts and floor mats.

Southern Baptist Church continued to focus attention on the needs of its youth.  The youth chorus performed an annual concert, for instance.  It remains in the 108th Street building after more than half a decade, still a vibrant presence in the neighborhood.

The Lost Charles Schumann Sons Store - 716 Fifth Avenue

The Architectural Record, May 1912 (copyright expired)

In the first years of the 20th century the family of Andrew C. Zabriskie lived in the brownstone-fronted home at No. 716, one door away from West 56th Street.  Next door was the imposing corner mansion of wealthy cabinetmaker and decorator Charles Baudouine.  

At the time the commercial section of Fifth Avenue was still mainly below 34th Street.  Charles William Schumann's upscale jewelry store, for instance, was located in the Mortimer Building at the corner of 22nd Street.  But before long, one-by-one the homeowners along Millionaires Row would be pushed northward.

In 1910 the Zabriskie house (with the second floor bay), was the last house on the block still unaltered for business.  from the collection of the New York Public Library

In his 1891 book Art and Gems, Charles William Schumann took the opportunity to boast about his opulent store and business.  "Messrs. Schumann's Sons carry at all times a superb stock of diamonds, watches and jewelry...They cater to the very best class of trade and carry none but strictly fine goods.  They number a large proportion of the wealthiest and most aristocratic families of New York among their regular customers."

Charles Schumann died on November 4, 1903 at around 78-years old.  His three sons, Charles, Jr., George H. and William took over the operation of the store.  Although William was disabled, using a wheelchair to get around, he played a role in the business for several years.

As posh art galleries, jewelry shops and restaurants invaded the mansion district, Charles Schumann's Sons followed suit.  In April 1910 the Real Estate Record & Builders' Guide reported that Andrew C. Zabriskie had leased his high-stooped home to Charles Schumann's Sons.  Included in the deal was another house at No. 2 West 56th Street--effectually forming an L-shaped plot.

The New-York Tribune explained on June 19 "The five story building on the Fifth avenue frontage of the plot will be replaced by a building for the exclusive use of the lessees.  The store and basement of the 56th street house are to be connected with the Fifth avenue structure, and its upper floors will be used for living purposes."

It did not take the Schumann brothers long to act on their project.  Within a month of signing the lease they had hired the architectural firm of Maynicke & Franke to design "a two story marble building at No. 716 5th av." and to renovate No. 2 West 56th Street around the corner.  Maynicke & Franke was well-known for its commercial designs; but this jewel of a structure would be like nothing they had done before.  In fact it would be like nothing in New York City.

The Art Nouveau style had first swept Europe in the 1890's.  Its sinuous flowing lines, inspired by natural forms like vines and flowers, found its way into all areas of decorative arts--from jewelry, textiles and pottery to furniture and architecture.  New Yorkers mostly shied away from the full-blown Art Nouveau structures like those found in Paris.   But now Maynicke & Franke would create an exception.

Writing in The Architectural Record in May 1912, critic C. Matlack Price preferred the American translation of the style's name.  "Departing from the traditions of earlier French architecture, and exemplifying with remarkable accuracy of feeling the type known as 'Modern French' is a jeweler's shop at 716 Fifth avenue, designed by Maynicke and Franke.  It is difficult, indeed, to realize that a facade so thoroughly and essentially 'Modern French' could have been produced in this country, for every detail is in accord with the feeling of that much-discussed and much-abused type of architecture."

To be sure, the Charles Schumann Sons building could have been plucked from the boulevards of Paris.  The ground floor show window, slightly curved at the upper corners, was divided by a wave of bronze which erupted into a sweeping glass marquee reminiscent of swirling can-can dancer's skirt.

Directly above it an undulating iron railing sat upon a marble balcony which fronted a commodious set of French doors.  They were crowned by an ambitious arched pediment.  The French motif was completed by two marble urns that perched upon paneled pedestals.

The store had barely relocated into its new home before it was the intended target of two clever thieves and the scene of considerable excitement.  At around 3:00 on July 12, 1912 two men walked into the jewelry store of Dreicer & Co.  The New York Times described one as "wearing a shepherd plaid suit and carrying a silver-headed cane" and the other as "less distinctively dressed, but carrying the same kind of a cane."  One man asked to see rings while the other looked over necklaces.  "A minute or two after they had gone," reported the newspaper, "the clerk who had been showing the necklaces found that two of them were missing."

Detectives were called in.  Armed with descriptions, they "hailed the nearest unoccupied taxicab and ordered speed."  They canvassed the avenue until the two culprits were spotted.  In a possible attempt to avoid being followed, the men ducked into the Central Park Menagerie, where they casually looked at the animals.  But then one made a critical mistake.  "Finally they saw one take a necklace out of his pocket and weigh it in his hand."

The detectives followed the pair down Fifth Avenue to Charles Schumann's Sons.  After waiting a few minutes, they followed them in.  "They found the pair looking over a tray of rings and placed them both under arrest."  When one protested, the policemen asked one how much money he had--the answer was $14.  "Well, how do you come to be buying $500 rings?"

The man was searched and had on him two necklaces, "one of platinum and pearls, worth $375, and the other of platinum, worth $42."  The stolen items would be worth more than $11,000 in today's money.

On October 23 that same year George H. Schumann died.  The jewelry business that his father had founded in 1849 would not last much longer.  On August 30, 1914 The New York Times reported that "The small white marble building at 716 Fifth Avenue...formerly occupied by Schumann's Sons, jewelers, has been leased by the French perfumery firm of D'Orsay, Incorporated."

The Parisian-style building could not have been more appropriate for a French perfume store.  But, sadly, it did not work out.  After exactly one year into D'Orsay's 15-year lease, The Metropolitan Trust Company took it over.  In announcing the deal the Record & Guide reminded readers "The D'Orsay firm rented the building last fall from Schumann & Sons who had originally leased the property from the Zabriskie Estate for twenty-one years."  The article added that the financial firm intended to open an uptown branch in the building.

But that was not the only intention for the building.  The Art Nouveau style was not only falling from fashion, but it most definitely did not reflect the serious business of banking.  The Metropolitan Trust Company commissioned the architectural firm of Holmes & Winslow to convert the structure to what The New York Times, on October 24, 1915, said would be "an artistic two-story structure."  The article noted "The facade of the building will be extensively altered and work is now under way.  The front will be of white marble in a classic design."

The trade journal Trust Companies published Holmes & Winslow's rendering in its July 1915 issue. (copyright expired)

Sadly, while New York City had had essentially only one exuberant Art Nouveau building, it had dozens of bank buildings of "classic design."  The remodeled facade, while attractive, was in no way special.  Classical pilasters rose two stories beside the entrance and great arched window.  A Roman parapet sat above the cornice.  Inside, the banking room rose the full height, lighted both by the Fifth Avenue window and a "decorative skylight."

The remodeled building opened on March 6, 1916.  The Metropolitan Trust Company announced the new branch saying that "Personal accounts of men and women residing in the uptown district, will receive special attention at our new Fifth Avenue Office."

Nine years later on May 10, 1925, The New York Times announced that the Chatham and Phoenix Bank had "absorbed the Metropolitan Trust Company and acquired its branch at 716 Fifth Avenue."  It would retain a branch at the location only for three more years.

On January 19, 1928 the New York Evening Post reported that the bank had subleased the building to the Ming Sun Company, "Chinese art goods."  But once again, it was a short-lived residency.  In July 1931 auctioneers Brill & Brill sold the entire stock of imported Chinese items.

Next to lease the building was Pillori, Inc., which signed a lease in April 1932.  The firm imported goods like "Italian linens and laces, Venetian glass, Florentine hand tooled leather."  But it too failed to make it at No. 716 Fifth Avenue.  Bing & Bing was back in February 1933 to liquidate the stock.

Long Sang Ti tried its hand at selling Chinese art objects here.  The store lasted until June 1939 when, once again, Brill & Brill was at the familiar location to auction off the entire collection of "Imperial jade, coral, amber, ivory, agate, rock crystal, carnelian, amethyst, apis lazuli, screens, bowls, silks, teakwood furniture, embroideries, Mandarin coats and wood carvings."

Frances H. Zabriskie now leased the building to James Robinson, Inc., dealers in old English silver.  Before moving in the structure was remodeled again.  Architect Van G. Pruit created a neo-Classical facade with carved swags within recessed panels and a blind balustrade along the roofline.  

Pruitt's rendering was slightly different from the finished product.  The New York Sun, September 7, 1939

As always, the Fifth Avenue Association annually judged the architectural changes along the Queen of Avenues.  On March 22, 1940 No. 716 Fifth Avenue was awarded a gold medal.  But the architect may have been just a bit miffed at the association's presentation.  The gold medal was given to Frances H. Zabriski, while Pruitt received a certificate of merit.

The little building survived for four more decades; home to the executive offices of the Custom Shop Shirtmakers by 1980.  

Then, on February 15, 1985 Michael Blumstein, writing in The New York Times said "They are two small, dignified buildings on the west side of Fifth Avenue, Nos. 712 and 714.  Pedestrians pay them little heed, as their stores are shuttered and their offices empty.  But these buildings, between 55th and 56th Streets, are at the center of an enormous battle being fought by two of Manhattan's most powerful interests: its real-estate developers and its preservationists."

Steadsol Fifth Associates had assembled the parcel of Nos. 712 through 716 along with the No. 716's rear lot to 56th Street with the intention of erecting a 44-story office and residential tower.  The plan would involve the demolition of Nos. 712 and 714.

No. 716 is second from right.  photo by Keith Meyers for The New York Times February 15, 1985

The facade of the former Coty Building at No. 714 was preserved thanks to its three-story art glass windows by Rene Lalique.  No. 716 was demolished.  A new stone, four-story facade that pretends to be a remodeled mansion stands on the site of one of New York City's most remarkable architectural treasures, sadly not recognized as such in 1915.

No. 716, at the right, is designed to appear to be a converted Gilded Age structure. photo via 6sqft.com