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146-597: 4 Park Avenue (formerly known as the Vanderbilt Hotel ) is a 22-story building in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City . Designed by Warren and Wetmore , the structure was built for Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt and opened in 1912 as a hotel. It is along the west side of Park Avenue between 33rd and 34th Streets . Following a renovation by Schuman, Lichtenstein & Claman between 1965 and 1967,

292-519: A reproduction of a classical oil painting . The decorative patterns extended to small details, such as cameo heads on the cast-iron balustrades of the staircases. The rooms also had Wedgwood doorknobs, which guests stole repeatedly. The hotel also included other features for guest comfort. Each unit had its own bathroom with hot and cold taps. An electric bell in each room allowed patrons to call for room service without leaving their rooms. These bells were themselves placed within iron boxes to prevent

438-521: A 19-story hotel on the site. Existing tenants were asked to leave the site by June 1909. Part of the hotel was to be within the Murray Hill restricted zone. However, the neighborhood's residents did not file any lawsuit against his plans in the year after he filed them. The law firm of Carter Ledyard & Milburn (who represented financier J. P. Morgan Jr. , a supporter of the restricted zone) told Vanderbilt that it might file an injunction against him if

584-551: A 6 by 9 ft (1.8 by 2.7 m) tapestry for the lobby, which was unveiled in 1967. The tapestry depicts a scene from the American Revolutionary War in which Mary Lindley Murray, an 18th-century resident of the site, distracted British troops during the Landing at Kip's Bay , giving American troops time to escape. The basement originally contained a double-height grill room with a vaulted ceiling and elevated gallery. It

730-775: A Loyalist general in the Revolutionary War, jointly ran Willett & Murray with Susannah's uncle John Murray. Willett bought the farm from the New York City government in 1799 for 907 pounds. His business shuttered the next year and, as part of the bankruptcy settlement, John Murray bought the farm from the Willetts. John Murray and his wife Hannah Lindley had four children. After John Murray's death in 1808, Hannah Lindley and their children moved into Inclenberg. Two of their children, Mary and Hannah, did not marry and instead lived in apartments that were specifically created for them at

876-536: A beard. Another 18 sculptures, along with the parapet, were removed in 1966 when four penthouse apartments were built on the top floors. Renovation architect Peter Claman, an unnamed art dealer, and the Brooklyn Museum each took some of the busts, which ended up as far away as Fort Lauderdale, Florida . The mechanical equipment was placed in the hotel's subbasements. There were several Babcock & Wilcox boilers, which were fed by automatic stokers . Each stoker

1022-485: A brick and limestone facade; the remaining floors would have been made of brick and terracotta. The building would have had a metal roof 300 ft (91 m) high. At the time, the site was diagonally across from a trolley depot. The New York Times said: "Mr. Vanderbilt would not do this unless he had definite knowledge as to the future of the Fourth Avenue car barn block." In December 1908, Vanderbilt filed plans for

1168-490: A capacity of 80 short tons (71 long tons; 73 t), for the refrigeration and cooling systems. The iced water was then pumped to pantries on seven stories. There was also a machine capable of filtering 14,000 cu ft/min (6.6 m/s), which cleaned the air for the Della Robbia Room in the basement. The original boilers were removed in the 1960s. There were six elevators in total, each with crimson tapestries and

1314-564: A children's playroom opened on the hotel's first floor that October. A. G. Vanderbilt lived at his penthouse apartment for only three years, dying during the sinking of the RMS ; Lusitania in 1915. The Women's City Club of New York leased Vanderbilt's apartment as a clubhouse early the next year, but it only occupied the apartment until 1918. The Vanderbilt penthouse was occupied in the 1920s by figures such as tenor Enrico Caruso and politician William Gibbs McAdoo . The Vanderbilt soon became

1460-477: A clubhouse within the top three stories of the hotel in 1933. In March 1935, the New York Life Insurance Company moved to foreclose on the hotel's second mortgage loan of $ 200,000. Marshall, who had directed the hotel from its opening, remained in his position as its general manager. New York Life acquired the hotel that May at a foreclosure auction in which it bid $ 2.419 million. By November 1935,

1606-656: A combined 5,489 rooms from the market. A group led by John Marqusee bought the Vanderbilt from Manger Hotels in April 1966 for $ 3.625 million. The lowest three stories and the basements were converted to offices, while the upper 18 stories would be modified into residences. Setrick Construction Corporation was hired as the main contractor. The project also involved architectural firm Schuman, Lichtenstein & Claman; structural engineers Jerry Belcher and Associates; and mechanical engineers Larry Mayer and Associates. Marqusee chose to convert

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1752-490: A decline north of 37th Street. During the 19th century, modern-day Murray Hill was "uptown" with the city ending with the reservoir at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street covering what today is the New York Public Library Main Branch and Bryant Park . To the north was for the most part farmland. A stream called t'Oude Wrack (Dutch for "Old Wreck") ran across the area, emptying into Sunfish Pond, located at

1898-540: A higher rate of college-educated residents than the rest of the city as of 2018 . College-educated residents comprise 82% of those age 25 and older, while 15% are high school graduates or have some college education, and 3% have less than a high school education. By contrast, 64% of Manhattan residents and 43% of city residents have a college education or higher. The percentage of Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town students excelling in math rose from 61% in 2000 to 80% in 2011, and reading achievement increased from 66% to 68% during

2044-640: A historically notable private institution, the Union League Club of New York . Just outside Murray Hill's western border is the Art Deco skyscraper at 10 East 40th Street . The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission has designated several buildings in Murray Hill as landmarks, including 2 Park Avenue , 275 Madison Avenue , the Daily News Building , the Madison Belmont Building , and

2190-420: A parlor. The units in the hotel's southern wing were designed as long-term residential apartments and had their own bank of elevators. The other wings were used as short-term transient accommodations and were served by a central bank of elevators. The top two stories contained a private apartment for A. G. Vanderbilt's family and had nine rooms, served by their own elevator. There were also several dressing rooms on

2336-481: A popular meeting place for companies in the textile and women's apparel industries. A syndicate bought the hotel in 1925, and the New York Life Insurance Company foreclosed on the hotel in 1935. Manger Hotels acquired the hotel in 1941 and continued to operate it until the hotel closed in 1965. A group led by John Marqusee bought the building in 1966 and spent the next year converting the hotel into residences and offices. The building has undergone minor renovations over

2482-506: A popular meeting place for companies in the textile and women's apparel industries. In its early years, the hotel hosted events such as luncheons, meetings for the private Paul Jones Club, and a party for Warren G. Harding 's 1920 presidential campaign . The hotel's guests included businessman Diamond Jim Brady , actor Rudolph Valentino , philosopher Henri Bergson , ballroom dancer Irene Castle , and actresses Maude Adams , Dorothy Gish , and Lillian Gish . Even after Caruso's death in 1921,

2628-464: A private garden at 433 East 58th Street in Sutton Place, Manhattan . The entrance to the apartments on the upper floors is directly on Park Avenue and carries the address 4 Park Avenue. The offices on the lower floors are accessed from 33rd and 34th Streets and originally carried the address 6 Park Avenue. Above the base, the building is designed with two light courts facing Park Avenue. These divided

2774-530: A rare Bible, and a stamp-issuance ceremony. The hotel was known as the Manger Vanderbilt by the mid-1950s. The Della Robbia Restaurant continued to operate within the Manger Vanderbilt, and the hotel also had other eateries such as the Purple Tree. The architectural firm of Finn and Jenter filed plans in 1956 for the installation of a central air conditioning system at the hotel, which was to cost $ 500,000. By

2920-519: A single boat, he grew his fleet until he was competing with Robert Fulton for dominance of the New York waterways, his energy and eagerness earning him the nickname "Commodore", a United States Navy title for a captain of a small task force. Fulton's company had established a monopoly on trade in and out of New York Harbor . Vanderbilt, based in New Jersey at the time, flouted the law, steaming in and out of

3066-420: A site at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport the following year, in an act that New York City mayor Ed Koch called a "betrayal" of New York City. For more than 60 years, the offices of William F. Buckley Jr. 's journal of opinion, National Review , were located in the neighborhood, at 150 East 35th Street and then at 215 Lexington Avenue. In 2017 the magazine relocated to West 44th Street. Due to

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3212-415: A slightly humorous vein"; they contained fretwork at their corners and capitals . The gallery was placed behind the piers and had an Adam-style balustrade. This gallery was used by the grill room's workers. At the top of the room was a golden cornice. The two southernmost bays of the gallery remain largely intact and are used as the rear of the modern restaurant space. A wooden platform has been placed above

3358-486: A spot between Madison and Fifth Avenues . The great square house, west of the Eastern Post Road , was approached by an avenue of mixed trees leading from the road. It was flanked on three sides by verandas and contained apartments on either side of a large hall. The mansion was at approximately the present location of Park Avenue and 37th Street. Near the house were a barn, kitchen, and stable. The Murray farm

3504-439: A wooden veneer. The elevators were hydraulically powered , with hydraulic cylinders in the basement. In the 1960s, the elevators were converted to cable-hauled cabs, but the old hydraulic cylinders were left in place. The Vanderbilt Hotel was erected with a steel superstructure , which was then reinforced with masonry. The outer walls of the building contained masonry walls that tapered in thickness from 2 ft (0.61 m) at

3650-489: Is 0.0102 milligrams per cubic metre (1.02 × 10  oz/cu ft), more than the city average. Twelve percent of Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town residents are smokers , which is less than the city average of 14% of residents being smokers. In Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town, 10% of residents are obese , 5% are diabetic , and 18% have high blood pressure —compared to the citywide averages of 24%, 11%, and 28% respectively. In addition, 7% of children are obese, compared to

3796-634: Is 42% in Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town, compared to the boroughwide and citywide rates of 45% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018 , Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town are considered to be high-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying . The neighborhood is home to St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral , Stern College for Women of Yeshiva University , the Morgan Library & Museum , Scandinavia House–The Nordic Center in America , The Mexican Cultural Institute of New York, and

3942-649: Is attributed to the precincts' high number of property crimes. As of 2018 , with a non-fatal assault rate of 35 per 100,000 people, Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town's rate of violent crimes per capita is less than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 180 per 100,000 people is lower than that of the city as a whole. The 17th Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 80.7% between 1990 and 2018. The precinct reported 0 murders, 13 rapes, 63 robberies, 91 felony assaults, 80 burglaries, 748 grand larcenies, and 26 grand larcenies auto in 2018. Murray Hill

4088-460: Is higher than the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are adults: a plurality (45%) are between the ages of 25–44, while 22% are between 45 and 64, and 13% are 65 or older. The ratio of youth and college-aged residents was lower, at 7% and 12% respectively. In 2017, the median household income in Community District 6 was $ 112,383, though

4234-683: Is included in the NRHP's Murray Hill historic district. For much of the 20th century, Murray Hill was a quiet and rather formal place, with many wealthy older residents. In 1905, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt lived close by Franklin's mother Sara Roosevelt in the Murray Hill neighborhood. Since the late 1990s, many young people in their twenties have moved to the area from the suburbs of New York. As reported in The New York Times in 2011, "...recent college graduates can find themselves among fellow alumni, meet up for familiar drinking rituals and flock to

4380-648: Is located in Stuyvesant Town . Murray Hill is located in two primary ZIP Codes . The area south of 40th Street is located in 10016, while the area north of 40th Street is in 10017. There are also three smaller ZIP Codes for individual buildings: 10158 (605 Third Avenue), 10165 ( One Grand Central Place ), and 10168 ( Chanin Building ). The United States Postal Service operates three post offices in Murray Hill: Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town generally have

4526-461: Is now Third Avenue was opened between 1815 and 1821. John Murray's children confirmed title to the land in 1816, and Mary and Hannah Murray were given the responsibility of renting out the Murray farm. In 1818, they ran advertisements for the farm, which was only 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from the developed portions of Manhattan. A fire destroyed Inclenberg in 1835 and the lots were split up. The route of

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4672-569: Is part of Manhattan Community District 6 , and its primary ZIP Codes are 10016 and 10017. It is patrolled by the 17th Precinct of the New York City Police Department . Murray Hill derives its name from Robert Murray (1721–1786), a Scottish-born merchant, whose family had a large estate in what is now the modern-day neighborhood. The modern neighborhood was once an abrupt, steep-sided mound of glacial till typical of Manhattan Island 's still-unmodified post-glacial terrain. It

4818-551: Is served by the New York City Fire Department (FDNY)'s Engine Company 21 fire station, located at 238 East 40th Street. As of 2018 , preterm births and births to teenage mothers in Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town are lower than the city average. In Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town, there were 78 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 1.5 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide), though

4964-418: Is situated on a steep glacial hill that peaked between Lexington Avenue and Broadway . It was named after Robert Murray , the head of the Murray family, a mercantile family that settled in the area in the 18th century. The Murray farm was formed before 1762 and existed until at least the early 19th century. Through the 19th century, Murray Hill was relatively isolated from the rest of New York City, which at

5110-557: Is the largest house in the United States . While some of Cornelius Vanderbilt's descendants gained fame in business, others achieved prominence in other ways: In 1855, Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt donated 45 acres (18 ha) of property to the Moravian Church and Cemetery at New Dorp on Staten Island , New York. Later, his son William Henry Vanderbilt donated a further 4 acres (1.6 ha). The Vanderbilt Family Mausoleum

5256-589: The Zagat Survey defined all of the area bounded by East 30th and 40th Streets between the East River and Fifth Avenue as part of Murray Hill. Summarizing the conflicting boundaries, Muschamp said that a then-recent survey of residents found many were unable to distinguish Murray Hill by its name. What is now Midtown Manhattan was first settled by the Munsee Native Americans. With European colonization in

5402-692: The Duke of Marlborough James Spencer-Churchill . The progenitor of the Vanderbilt family was Jan Aertszoon or Aertson (1620–1705), a Dutch farmer from the village of De Bilt in Utrecht , Netherlands , who emigrated to the Dutch colony of New Netherland as an indentured servant to the Van Kouwenhoven family in 1650. The name of Jan's village, in the genitive case , was added to the Dutch " van " ("from") to create " Van der Bilt ", which evolved into "Vanderbilt" when

5548-555: The Kips Bay Brewing Company , and Con Edison's Waterside power plant . In the 1980s some of these blocks were rezoned to allow for residential development, which led to the construction of the Rivergate , Manhattan Place , and Horizon high-rise apartment buildings. Con Edison's lots were placed for sale in 1999. The billionaire developer Sheldon Solow purchased the blocks between 38th and 41st Streets in 2000 and demolished

5694-522: The Knott Management Corporation had taken over the Vanderbilt's operation for New York Life. Knott then appointed Oscar Banse as the hotel's new general manager. During the late 1930s, the hotel hosted exhibitions such as the Pottery and Glassware Show. A guide in 1939 described the Vanderbilt as "one of the hotels in New York that has kept its popularity for many years". Manger Hotels bought

5840-492: The Moravian Church to his death. The Vanderbilt family lived on Staten Island until the mid-1800s, when the Commodore built a house on Washington Place (in what is now Greenwich Village ). Although he always occupied a relatively modest home, members of his family would use their wealth to build magnificent mansions . Shortly before his death in 1877, Vanderbilt donated US$ 1 million (equivalent to $ 29 million in 2023) for

5986-513: The New York City Subway 's 33rd Street station is directly outside the building's southeast corner. The building is on the same block as the Madison Belmont Building to the west. Other nearby buildings include 2 Park Avenue to the south, 3 Park Avenue to the east, B. Altman and Company Building to the northwest, and 29 East 32nd Street to the southwest. The adjacent portion of Park Avenue slopes upward from south to north. The site

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6132-659: The Socony–Mobil Building . The Whitney Museum of American Art opened a branch gallery at the Philip Morris headquarters opposite Grand Central Terminal in April 1983; it closed in January 2008, after 25 years. In addition, for around fifty years, the neighborhood had been home to National Review , the conservative journal of opinion founded by William F. Buckley, Jr. , most of that time at 150 East 35th Street and 215 Lexington Avenue at 33rd Street. 150 East 35th Street

6278-563: The Vanderbilt family , who built Grand Central Depot (later Grand Central Terminal ) for the New York and Harlem Railroad several blocks north in 1871. The Vanderbilt family moved uptown in 1880 but retained ownership of the site. Just before present-day 4 Park Avenue was developed, the land had been occupied by six buildings. 4 Park Avenue was designed by Warren and Wetmore in the neoclassical style and developed by Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt in 1912. Numerous other contractors were involved in

6424-525: The 17th century, the site was called Belmont and was part of the common lands of New York City. Robert Murray (1721–1786) moved from Philadelphia to New York City in 1753. During that decade, he became a prosperous merchant, purchasing three vessels and obtaining an ownership stake in another. Murray had a townhouse on Pearl Street in Lower Manhattan , which was close to his wharf on the East River at Wall Street , as well as to his retail store. By

6570-517: The 1960s renovation and is made of glass and steel. Above that, the building retains its original facade and has two light courts facing Park Avenue. The building has a steel superstructure and had mechanical equipment in its basements. The hotel's lobby was designed in the Adam style and is partially preserved as the modern residential lobby. The first basement had a grill room known as the Della Robbia Room, decorated ornately with Guastavino tile ; part of

6716-572: The 1960s, patronage at the Vanderbilt had dropped significantly from its heyday, and there was also rising demand for office space in Manhattan. The New York Daily News announced in December 1965 that the Vanderbilt Hotel would close to make way for an office building. Manger closed the Vanderbilt on January 1, 1966. The Vanderbilt was one of several hotels in New York City to close that year, removing

6862-638: The 2010s, 4 Park Avenue contained the offices of property manager Charles H. Greenthal & Co., as well as a Crunch gym. The building underwent a capital renovation in the late 2010s and early 2020s. In 2021, the State University of New York 's Empire State College leased the mezzanine and second floor; the Feil Organization still owned 4 Park Avenue. At the time, the building's other commercial tenants included ground-level stores for Duane Reade and Wolfgang’s Steakhouse, as well as two companies within

7008-413: The 34th Street end, the men's bar and writing room were enclosed with partitions. The women's writing room was housed within a long alcove off the lobby. The space also contained black furniture. Next to the lobby, there was a cashier's office with a bronze screen designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany . This room had a Numidian-marble floor. A children's playroom was added to the lobby in 1913. A "Far East Room"

7154-460: The 6th- through 18th-story windows have a simpler design. The western frontage was designed as a fireproof barrier without any windows. The light courts, combined with the narrowness of the site, required that the hotel be taller than most others in New York City at the time of its construction (with the exception of the Belmont Hotel ). The brick and terracotta facade was preserved when the building

7300-587: The American shores". Early in 1773, and again in 1774, advertisements for the Inclenberg estate were circulated, positioning the house and farm as a summer mansion. During the American Revolutionary War , Mary Lindley Murray is credited with delaying William Howe and his army during General Washington's retreat from New York following the British landing at Kip's Bay , September 15, 1776. The most common version of

7446-650: The British Army occupied New York, British soldiers often visited Inclenberg. After the end of British occupation, the Murray family was associated with unpatriotic acts during the war, and one son, Lindley Murray , moved to England. Robert Murray died in 1786 and bequeathed different portions of his estate to his five children. His daughter Susannah was bequeathed the farm, along with some lots in Gold Street in Lower Manhattan. Her husband Gilbert Colden Willett, once

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7592-449: The Della Robbia Room was "an example of the most successful work of this kind that has been accomplished by American potters". Christopher Gray of The New York Times described the Della Robbia Room as a "vast double-height grotto of ceramic art", comparing the columns to trees and the ceiling to a forest canopy. Following the building's 1960s renovation, Richard Peck of the Times wrote that

7738-892: The East Coast and began operations in New York City in 1930, it moved its corporate headquarters from Los Angeles to the floors above its main hub at 331 East 38th Street in Murray Hill. The headquarters remained at the site until 1964 when the company moved into a new facility in Hell's Kitchen . In 1959, the United States Olympic Committee purchased 57 Park Avenue—the former Adelaide L. T. Douglas House —to serve as its headquarters, which it called Olympic House. The committee moved its headquarters from New York City to Colorado Springs in 1978. American Airlines opened its headquarters at 633 Third Avenue in 1975. Three years later, American announced that it would move its headquarters to

7884-566: The Eastern Post Road from 23rd to 31st Street was closed in April 1844, and the section of the road from 31st to 42nd Street was closed in June 1848. In 1833 the railroad cut was begun, to carry the New York and Harlem Rail Road through Murray Hill; the route under the most prominent obstacle in its right-of-way was opened on May 1, 1834. The locomotives, which had met the horse-cars that ran through

8030-547: The English took control of New Amsterdam (now Manhattan ). The family is associated with the Dutch patrician Van der Bilt. His great-great-great-grandson, Cornelius Vanderbilt , began the rise of the Vanderbilt dynasty. He was the fourth of nine children born into a Staten Island family of modest means. Through his paternal great-great grandmother, Abigail Southard, he descends from Republic of Salé President Jan Janszoon and his son Anthony Janszoon van Salee . They were among

8176-634: The Murray Hill Committee), the neighborhood encompasses the 10016 zip code—bounded by 27th Street to the south, 40th Street to the north, Fifth Avenue to the west, and the East River to the east. By this definition, Murray Hill overlaps with Rose Hill , which is also known as Curry Hill and Little India . This section of Murray Hill was formerly also known as Little Armenia . The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission has described Murray Hill's boundaries as roughly 34th Street on

8322-774: The Murray Hill Historic District to the National Register of Historic Places in 2003, with 88 contributing and 12 non-contributing properties. The NRHP district was extended in 2013 with another 150 contributing and 21 non-contributing buildings. The NRHP district's expansion includes several structures built in the 1940s and 1950s, as well as rowhouse with facade modifications. The expanded NRHP district includes about 16 blocks bounded by Madison Avenue, 34th Street, Third Avenue, and 40th Street. The defense contractor L3 Technologies has its headquarters in Murray Hill. Sumitomo Corporation operates its New York Office,

8468-402: The Murray house was used for purposes other than farming. According to historians Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace , while some of these farms were for-profit enterprises, "their primary purpose—besides providing refuge from epidemics—was to serve as theaters of refinement". One descendant wrote that Robert Murray "entertained at various times almost every foreigner of distinction who came to

8614-471: The New York City government classifies Murray Hill as part of a larger neighborhood tabulation area called Murray Hill-Kips Bay. Based on data from the 2010 United States Census , the population of Murray Hill-Kips Bay was 50,742, a change of 2,323 (4.6%) from the 48,419 counted in 2000 . Covering an area of 334.93 acres (135.54 ha), the neighborhood had a population density of 151.5 inhabitants per acre (97,000/sq mi; 37,400/km ). The racial makeup of

8760-680: The Rathskeller at the Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky , the Della Robbia Room contains one of the few extant examples of Rookwood tiles in the world. The space is also one of the few interiors in New York City with Guastavino tiles. Placed along the Della Robbia Room's length were double-height square piers, which divided the room into bays. The room was generally decorated in a cream and blue color scheme. The piers were covered in tiles, decorated with tropical birds, fish, flowers, and foliage "in

8906-458: The Vanderbilt Hotel from New York Life in February 1941, though the hotel's management was retained. Plans for minor alterations to the hotel building were filed in 1948. The next year, the Vanderbilt's general manager Thomas J. Kelly II announced that air-conditioning would be installed in 100 of the suites. During the 1950s and 1960s, the hotel hosted events like an exhibit of furniture, a showcase of

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9052-570: The Vanderbilt fortune. He built the first of what would become many grand Vanderbilt mansions on Fifth Avenue , at 640 Fifth Avenue. William Henry appointed his first son, Cornelius Vanderbilt II , as the next "Head of House". Cornelius II built the largest private home in New York, at 1 West 57th Street , containing approximately 154 rooms, designed by George B. Post . He also built The Breakers in Newport , Rhode Island. Cornelius II's brother, William Kissam Vanderbilt , also featured prominently in

9198-468: The base was designed by the Hartford Faience Company . The ornament consisted of cream-colored low reliefs , while the walls were made of mottled, semi-glazed brick in blue-grey and plum colors. Originally, the base of the building contained large windows with semicircular lunette windows at their tops. The lunettes were surrounded by Adam style frames that resembled fans. The entrance was at

9344-449: The basements. When the hotel opened, one writer said: "The Hotel Vanderbilt [...] shows so liberal an appreciation of the modern spirit applied to hotel needs. It shows also an understanding of up-to-date construction and of refinement of decoration." Another magazine called the hotel "one of the most distinctive and imposing buildings in New York, and its position is commanding", as it was close to Grand Central. A contemporary observer said

9490-513: The bottom to 8 in (200 mm) at the top. During the 1960s renovation, the thickness of the exterior walls was reduced by up to 4 inches. The masonry was not laid on a perfectly straight axis. In some of the intermediate stories, the masonry was misaligned by as much as 4 in (100 mm), requiring the installation of custom plumbing fixtures for each of the upper-story apartments, rather than mass-produced fixtures. The upper stories contain floor slabs made of concrete arches. The ceilings of

9636-446: The building, the contractors removed the statues on the roof in June 1966. During the renovation, workers also discovered a room with women's clothes and shoes, which had been sealed off with brick and was not in the building's blueprints. Even after the Vanderbilt's conversion had been completed in 1967, people sometimes visited the building in the belief that the hotel and its restaurants were still operational. M. H. Lanston leased one of

9782-416: The ceiling. In the lobby was a frieze created by Beatrice Astor Chanler in relief . The frieze was a dull gold color, while the reliefs were designed in the style of Italian ceramic artist Luca della Robbia . The rugs were designed specifically for the hotel. Two such rugs were ordered for the lobby entrance, each measuring 27 by 48 ft (8.2 by 14.6 m). Each rug was decorated with Chinese motifs and

9928-455: The center of the Park Avenue elevation and contained a canopy. There is a sealed service entrance on 49 East 33rd Street, leading to a tunnel. In 1967, the lowest three floors were redesigned with a glass and travertine facade. Some of the original ornamentation from the lowest floors, including three medallions measuring 3 ft (0.91 m) and twenty-four pieces of relief, are preserved in

10074-588: The city's streets at the station at 27th Street, could pass the reduced hill. By an act of 1850 the city permitted to roof over the cut for the passage of steam locomotives. This Park Avenue Tunnel , enlarged and relined, has been devoted to automobile traffic since 1937. In mid-century, the rich temporarily, and the upper middle class more permanently, filled the brownstone row houses that filled Murray Hill's streets. The Brick Presbyterian Church followed its congregation; after selling its site facing City Hall Park , it rebuilt in 1857 closer to its congregation, on

10220-638: The citywide average of 20%. Ninety-one percent of residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which is higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 90% of residents described their health as "good", "very good", or "excellent", more than the city's average of 78%. For every supermarket in Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town, there are 7 bodegas . The nearest hospitals are the Bellevue Hospital Center and NYU Langone Medical Center , located in Kips Bay . In addition, Beth Israel Medical Center

10366-402: The citywide average of 75%. Vanderbilt family The Vanderbilts were once the wealthiest family in the United States. Cornelius Vanderbilt was the richest American until his death in 1877. After that, his son William Henry Vanderbilt acquired his father's fortune, and was the richest American until his death in 1885. The Vanderbilts' prominence lasted until the mid-20th century, when

10512-453: The concrete floor slabs, to which the hotel's custom-made rugs were attached. The walls were paneled, and the baseboards were made of marble. On the upper floors, each room was designed in an Adam or Georgian style; each floor was designed differently. American Architect magazine said the hotel had an "Oriental flavor and a Renaissance grace to be seen everywhere", with furnishings inspired by Chinese architecture . Each guest room's salon had

10658-465: The construction process. As built, it was 22 stories high and contained three full basements, as well as a partial fourth basement level. Emporis cites the building as being 20 stories and 225 ft (69 m) high. The building's modern appearance dates to a renovation by Schuman, Lichtenstein & Claman between 1965 and 1967. When the building was constructed, it was decorated with gray brick and white architectural terracotta . The terracotta at

10804-403: The current building, was renamed Park Avenue in 1924, at which time the building gained a Park Avenue address. Even before the renumbering, the Vanderbilt Hotel had marketed itself as being at "East 34th Street and Park Avenue" despite technically being on Fourth Avenue. Fourth and Park Avenues in Murray Hill had been developed with upscale residences by the 1870s. The residences included those of

10950-474: The earliest arrivals to 17th-century New Amsterdam . In a number of documents dating back to that period, Anthony is described as tawny, as his mother was of Berber origin from Cartagena in the Kingdom of Murcia . Cornelius Vanderbilt left school at age 11 and went on to build a shipping and railroad empire that, during the 19th century, would make him one of the wealthiest men in the world. Starting with

11096-436: The east. The New York Times states that commonly used boundaries of Murray Hill are 34th Street to the south, 42nd Street to the north, Madison Avenue to the west, and the East River to the east. Additionally, "the younger, more bar-centric area south of the neighborhood in the upper 20s and lower 30s" is sometimes held to be part of Murray Hill. Times architectural critic Herbert Muschamp , writing in 1997, said

11242-521: The establishment of Vanderbilt University in Nashville . The Commodore left the majority of his enormous fortune to his eldest son, William Henry Vanderbilt . William Henry, who outlived his father by just eight years, increased the profitability of his father's holdings, increased the reach of the New York Central Railroad , and doubled the Vanderbilt wealth. He was the only heir to increase

11388-507: The estate to the City Leasing Company, which planned to erect a building on the site. Later that month, Warren and Wetmore filed plans for a 21-story office and loft building, to be built on the west side of Park Avenue between 33rd and 34th Streets. The building would have cost $ 1 million. There would have been stores on the ground floor, manufacturing lofts on the next four stories, and offices above. The first six stories would have had

11534-456: The estate. In the winter of 1808 during the embargo that closed New York Harbor, a work relief program kept out-of-work dock workers busy reducing the height of Murray Hill. Between twenty and forty feet were sliced off its summit and used for fill. Around that time, the area was subdivided into a regular street grid with the enactment of the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 . Under the plan, what

11680-401: The existing building rather than replace it because, under zoning laws, a new building would have been restricted to a smaller floor area. The project was one of several mixed-use buildings being developed in Manhattan at the time. Marqusee planned to market the apartments to office workers who lived in the suburbs and needed to stay in the city during weekdays. To make way for penthouses atop

11826-439: The fact that settlers of New Amsterdam used fire beacons to give notice of armed Native American groups. The Murray farm's total area was just under 30 acres (120,000 m ). The farm began a few feet south of modern-day 33rd Street and extended north to the middle of the block between 38th and 39th Streets. At the southern end, the plot was narrow, but at the northern end it extended from approximately Lexington Avenue to

11972-609: The family's 10 great Fifth Avenue mansions were torn down, and most other Vanderbilt houses were sold or turned into museums in what has been referred to as the "Fall of the House of Vanderbilt". Branches of the family are found on the United States East Coast . Contemporary descendants include American art historian John Wilmerding , journalist Anderson Cooper (son of Gloria Vanderbilt ), actor Timothy Olyphant , musician John P. Hammond , screenwriter James Vanderbilt , and

12118-796: The family's affairs. He also built a home on Fifth Avenue and would become one of the great architectural patrons of the Gilded Age , hiring the architects for (the third, and surviving) Grand Central Terminal . He also built Marble House at 596 Bellevue Avenue in Newport, Rhode Island. George Washington Vanderbilt II , the 3rd and youngest son of William Henry Vanderbilt and youngest brother of Cornelius II, hired architect Richard Morris Hunt and landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted to construct Biltmore Estate on 125,000 acres (51,000 ha) near Asheville , North Carolina. The 250 room mansion, with 175,856 sq ft (16,337.6 m ) of floor space,

12264-420: The first through third stories above ground. The parking garage, accessed from 33rd Street, spans four levels and can fit 150 cars. By the first decade of the 20th century, the upscale residences along Fourth and Park Avenues were being replaced with commercial structures. The area bounded by Madison Avenue , 34th Street, Lexington Avenue , and 38th Street, including both sides of Park Avenue within that region,

12410-545: The former Vanderbilt Hotel was eligible for city-landmark status. The LPC found that, because the lower section of the facade had been substantially altered, the exterior did not hold as much architectural significance as the remaining parts of the interior. In 1987, Italian restaurant Fiori opened within the former Della Robbia Room. After the demolition of the Art Deco -style Marine Grill at nearby Herald Square in 1991, preservation group Friends of Terra Cotta started advocating for

12556-527: The frozen-yogurt shops and sushi bars that help them stay fit and find a mate for the next stage of life". On weekends, the raucous restaurant-and-bar scene along Third Avenue, beyond the traditional eastern limits of Murray Hill, particularly reflects this change. In the late 1990s, Murray Hill began to attract an influx of young college graduates, leading to a "work-hard, play-hard" atmosphere, which has since been referenced in several media sources such as The New York Times and New York Post . Though housing in

12702-728: The general manager Walton H. Marshall, and the hotel's architect Charles D. Wetmore bought the hotel in October 1925. The hotel continued to host events and meetings by groups like the New York Newspaper Woman's Club , the National Council of Women of the United States , and the United States Lawn Tennis Association . Harper's Bazaar magazine described the hotel's Della Robbia Restaurant in 1929 as having "never lost its popularity". The Park Avenue Club opened

12848-497: The grill room was replaced with a parking garage in 1967, but the Crypt and a portion of the grill room remain in their original condition. The remaining section is less than one-fifth the size of the original grill room. The extant portion of the Della Robbia Room is designated as a New York City interior landmark , one of a few restaurants in the city with such a designation, and has contained Wolfgang's Steakhouse since 2004. Along with

12994-529: The harbor under a flag that read, "New Jersey Must Be Free!" He also hired the attorney Daniel Webster to argue his case before the United States Supreme Court ; Vanderbilt won, thereby establishing an early precedent for the United States' first laws of interstate commerce . While many Vanderbilt family members had joined the Episcopal Church , Cornelius Vanderbilt remained a member of

13140-666: The headquarters of the corporation's United States operations, in the same building as the headquarters of L-3. Industries supported by the office include Aerospace and Defense, Agricultural Commodities, Agrochemicals, Business Investment, Chemicals, Fertilizer, Information Technology, Latin American Operations, Living Related Products, Media and IT Venture Group, Meat Products, Presidio Venture Partners, Ship, Real Estate, Transportation Systems and Equipment, and Tubular Products. China Airlines operates its New York branch office on Third Avenue. When United Parcel Service expanded to

13286-504: The hotel continued to serve his favorite casserole for decades. The hotel was the subject of the United States' first skywriting advertisement in 1922, when Royal Air Force captain Cyril Turner spelled out "Hello USA", followed by "Call Vanderbilt 7200" (the hotel's phone number), over Times Square . The hotel received 47,000 phone calls in the three hours following the stunt. A syndicate led by Edmund L. Baylies , William A. Chanler ,

13432-427: The hotel had been "stripped of much of its former effulgence". According to architect Norval White , "the ravages to the ground floor have taken it off the preservation list". The Vanderbilt Hotel has been shown in some works of media. As the building was being constructed in 1910, Alfred Stieglitz took a picture entitled Old and New New York , contrasting the growing steel frame of the emerging Vanderbilt Hotel with

13578-639: The hotel in March 1910. That July, Warren and Wetmore filed plans for a two-story structure at 45–47 East 33rd Street, directly to the west, to protect westward views from the hotel. That building was used as a ventilation shaft for the Pennsylvania Railroad 's East River Tunnels . The bricklayers' unions went on strike in September 1910, temporarily halting all work on the hotel. Work was again paused in September 1911, when all laborers went on strike in support of

13724-551: The hotel plans proceeded, but Vanderbilt proceeded anyway. By August 1909, the buildings on the site were being cleared. The New York Times said the Vanderbilt Hotel, along with the Cameron Building at Madison Avenue and 34th Street, was evidence of the "weakening" of the Murray Hill restricted zone. The United Hotels Company of America , which was formed in 1910, agreed to operate the Vanderbilt Hotel as one of its first properties. The William L. Crow Company started constructing

13870-511: The island, before Howe was able to overtake him. The 3,500 men led by Washington were able to escape safely. James Thacher, a surgeon with the Continental Army , wrote in his journal: "It is a common saying among our officers that Mrs. Murray saved this part of the American army." According to later scholarship, the Murrays did not have such a large influence on the landing at Kip's Bay than

14016-546: The kitchen, where a staircase led down to the main grill room. The bar was three steps below the corridor to the south, while the gallery was three steps above the corridor to the north. A staircase also led from the grill room to the lobby, and the bar also had its own door from 33rd Street. The restaurant was extensively decorated with ceramic Guastavino tiles manufactured by the Rookwood Pottery Company ; these tiles depicted motifs such as flowers and faces. Most of

14162-399: The late 1750s, Murray was relatively successful and wished to build his own mansion. Before 1762, Murray had leased some land in a sparsely populated portion of Manhattan island for use as for his large house and farm. Murray's house was built on a since-leveled hill at what is today Park Avenue and 36th Street. The hill was named Inclenberg , or "fire beacon hill" in Dutch, referencing

14308-492: The light courts at this level. On the top two stories, there are double-height round arches made of terracotta. The windows at the 21st story contain pediments above them. Instead of a protruding cornice , the Vanderbilt Hotel was topped by a curved parapet that contained classical heads and lace decorations, as well as electric lights. The hotel was one of the first buildings in New York City to illuminate its roof at night. The parapet measured 7 ft (2.1 m) tall. The roof

14454-522: The marble polishers' union, which had gone on strike for several weeks. At the time, the marble was being installed in the hotel. Most laborers returned to work shortly afterward, but the marble laborers continued striking until the end of the year. By the end of 1911, the hotel was ready to receive guests. The hotel cost $ 4 million, of which $ 700,000 was spent on furnishings alone. The hotel opened to guests on January 10, 1912, under general manager Thomas M. Hilliard and assistant manager Walton H. Marshall. At

14600-405: The median income in Murray Hill individually was $ 117,677. In 2018, an estimated 10% of Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town residents lived in poverty, compared to 14% in all of Manhattan and 20% in all of New York City. One in twenty-five residents (4%) were unemployed, compared to 7% in Manhattan and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent,

14746-485: The mezzanine level for guests who wanted to attend a formal function, such as a dinner, without actually using a room at the hotel. The third floor contained servants' suites, as well as pipes and electrical ducts. When the hotel opened, its general manager said the hotel's design sought to "eliminate the red and gold idea in hotel decoration". The rooms were mostly decorated in stone; the tops of each wall were decorated with stone friezes. There were metal sockets embedded in

14892-438: The neighborhood is slightly cheaper than in fashionable nearby parts of Manhattan, prices for apartments here rose greatly during the boom of the late 1990s and early 2000s—as much as 500 percent in a decade. The eastern part of Murray Hill, between FDR Drive and First Avenue from 34th to 41st Streets, formerly contained industrial uses including a Coca-Cola bottling plant, Consolidated Edison 's Kips Bay Generating Station ,

15038-518: The neighborhood was 66.6% (33,818) White , 4.8% (2,423) African American , 0.1% (55) Native American , 16.2% (8,233) Asian , 0% (16) Pacific Islander , 0.4% (181) from other races , and 2% (1,008) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.9% (5,008) of the population. The entirety of Community District 6, which comprises Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town, had 53,120 inhabitants as of NYC Health 's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 84.8 years. This

15184-475: The north, Madison Avenue to the west, and the East River to the east. This definition explicitly excludes Tudor City , just north of 40th Street between First and Second Avenues, which the community board's chairman said in 2021 "is considered its own neighborhood". For its entry on Murray Hill, the American Institute of Architects ' AIA Guide to New York City uses the area bounded by 32nd Street to

15330-424: The northern half is a flat black ceiling. Brass and glass lamps are suspended from the ceiling. The gallery's ceiling was designed similarly, but the vaults were shallower. The main grill room's ceiling also contained cut glass chandeliers. Originally, the Vanderbilt Hotel had 585 or 600 rooms. The total included 457 bedrooms and 57 parlors . The rooms could be rearranged into suites with several bedrooms leading off

15476-419: The old low-rise blocks of the street below. The hotel was also used as a filming location for So Young, So Bad in 1950. Murray Hill, Manhattan Murray Hill is a neighborhood on the east side of Manhattan in New York City . Murray Hill is generally bordered to the east by the East River or Kips Bay and to the west by Midtown Manhattan , though the exact boundaries are disputed. Murray Hill

15622-399: The original floor. These remaining bays are accessed by a staircase that leads from the bar area. The main floor of the restaurant, now the parking garage, has been stripped of most decoration except for some small patches of marble. The former Crypt, now the main dining room, consists of nine bays in a three-by-three grid. The ceiling is supported by freestanding square piers in the center of

15768-457: The original hotel measured 11 ft (3.4 m) high. During the 1960s, these were lowered by as much to 2 ft (0.61 m) to accommodate utilities in the ceiling. In the service hallways, the floor slabs are of cement and the walls were wainscoted with thin iron plates. The partition walls are made of gypsum. Like the lower part of the facade, the lobby was designed in the Adam style. The lobby

15914-538: The present-day Park Avenue South and 31st Street in Kips Bay . The stream originated at what is now Broadway and 44th Street in the middle of Times Square . A glue factory polluted Sunfish Pond heavily during the 1820s; it was infilled in 1839 after most of its water was used to extinguish a fire at the New York House of Refuge . According to the Murray Hill Neighborhood Association (formerly

16060-605: The proximity of the headquarters of the United Nations and the availability of old mansions, many countries operate diplomatic missions and consulates in Murray Hill, including: Missions to the United Nations in Murray Hill include: Murray Hill and Turtle Bay are patrolled by the 17th Precinct of the NYPD , located at 167 East 51st Street. The 17th Precinct and neighboring 13th Precinct ranked 57th safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010. The high per-capita crime rate

16206-446: The remaining section of the room, the onetime Crypt, to be designated as an interior city landmark. The group started a petition and collected 500 signatures in support of this designation. The Crypt was designated as a New York City interior landmark in 1994. By 1999, the Crypt was occupied by a restaurant called J. T.'s American-Italian Grill, operated by National Integrated Food Services. In 2002, Israel Berger & Associates restored

16352-421: The room and bar were made of Guastavino tiles in a blue, tan, and aqua color scheme. The ceiling of the bar is about 8 ft (2.4 m) tall, lower than that of the grill room. The vaults of the bar's ceiling are separated by arches with blue terracotta bands on their soffits . The underside of each arch has ivory-colored flower motifs, some of which have grotesque heads placed atop them. From outside to inside,

16498-425: The room survives and is designated as a New York City interior landmark . The upper stories had close to 600 rooms, and the top two stories originally contained a private penthouse apartment for A. G. Vanderbilt and his family. After several years of planning and construction, the Vanderbilt Hotel opened on January 10, 1912, as one of the first large commercial developments in Murray Hill. The Vanderbilt soon became

16644-408: The same time period. Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is lower than the rest of New York City. In Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town, 8% of elementary school students missed twenty or more days per school year , less than the citywide average of 20%. Additionally, 91% of high school students in Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town graduate on time, more than

16790-537: The sites in anticipation of the construction of a multi-building complex. However, these plans stalled with the financial crisis of 2007–2008 , and the land lay unused. Solow later sold the 35th–36th Streets plot, and the American Copper Buildings were built on that site, opening in 2017–2018. As of 2018 , the 38th–41st Streets plot was still unused, but Solow intended to construct a four-building condo and office complex on that site. For census purposes,

16936-422: The smoothed brow of Murray Hill, at Fifth Avenue and 37th Street. However, when J. P. Morgan built his conservative brownstone free-standing mansion in 1882 on Madison Avenue at 36th Street (later part of The Morgan Library & Museum ), it was considered a fashionable but slightly old-fashioned address, as the rich were filling Fifth Avenue with palaces as far as Central Park . Instead stylish merchandising

17082-416: The sound from disturbing other guests. There were telephones on the desk of each room, as well as pneumatic tubes connecting each room with the hotel's main office. As a fireproofing measure, the rooms did not contain wood decorations, except for small wooden shelves in the rooms. The building also contained hollow metal doors, trim, and window frames. After 1967, the hotel was converted into 364 apartments on

17228-412: The south, 40th Street on the north, Fifth Avenue on the west, and Third Avenue on the east. The city's Planning Department has described the boundaries as roughly 34th Street on the south, 40th Street on the north, Madison Avenue on the west, and Second Avenue on the east. Manhattan Community Board 6 —of which Murray Hill is part—has defined the boundaries as 34th Street to the south, 40th Street to

17374-407: The south, 40th Street to the north, Madison Avenue to the west, and Third Avenue to the east. In AIA Guide , Murray Hill abuts Midtown to the north and west, Kips Bay to the east, and Rose Hill to the south. Robert A. M. Stern 's book New York 1960 defined the area as being bounded precisely by 34th Street to the south, 42nd Street to the north, Fifth Avenue to the west, and Third Avenue to

17520-425: The space, with wooden wainscoting . The walls contain engaged pilasters and formerly included lighting sconces . The bar room has a freestanding counter on the eastern wall, and several doorways on the walls have been modified or removed. The bar's original floor was made of marble, but this has since been covered by multiple types of materials, including carpets and hexagonal ceramic tiles. The vaulted ceilings of

17666-482: The storefronts, using a portion of the Della Robbia Room as a storeroom, while Lerner Parking leased another portion of the restaurant space as a parking garage. Other early commercial tenants included Childs Restaurants , a branch office of stock brokerage EF Hutton , and United Cerebral Palsy . By the 1980s, Louis Feil of The Feil Organization owned the building. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) conducted studies in 1984 to determine whether

17812-452: The story is that Mrs. Murray invited the officers to tea and succeeded in delaying the British troops for a period sufficient to allow a successful American retreat. The Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage said she saved American independence by detaining Lord Howe long enough to permit Israel Putnam to pass up the Greenwich road from the city and join the forces of George Washington in the north end of

17958-426: The teenage birth rate was based on a small sample size. Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town have a low population of residents who are uninsured . In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 3%, less than the citywide rate of 12%, though this was based on a small sample size. The concentration of fine particulate matter , the deadliest type of air pollutant , in Murray Hill and Stuyvesant Town

18104-463: The terracotta on the facade for $ 700,000. Afterward, architectural historian Mosette Broderick said the ground-floor alteration was old enough to be designated as a landmark, but Broderick did not believe that the modified facade still carried historical significance. The Crypt became the Vanderbilt Station restaurant in 2002. Two years later, Wolfgang's Steakhouse opened within the space. During

18250-448: The time was centered in Lower Manhattan . Murray Hill became an upscale neighborhood during the 20th century. Today, it contains several cultural institutions such as the Morgan Library & Museum , as well as missions and consulates to the nearby United Nations headquarters . The neighborhood also contains architectural landmarks, some of which are in the Murray Hill Historic District, a city and national historic district. Murray Hill

18396-427: The time, the furnishings were incomplete. Three days after the hotel opened, the third floor was damaged in a fire, though the hotel's fireproof construction limited the extent of the damage. The Vanderbilt Hotel originally contained New York City's first women-only bar; barely any women used the bar, so it was converted to a men's bar two weeks after the hotel opened. All work at the hotel was completed by March 1913, and

18542-421: The top 18 stories have been used as residential apartments. The lowest three stories above ground, as well as three basement levels, are used as commercial space and carry an alternate address of 6 Park Avenue . As of 2021, the building is owned by The Feil Organization . 4 Park Avenue's facade was originally made of gray brick and white architectural terracotta . The facade of the lowest four stories dates from

18688-434: The upper stories into three wings, arranged in an "E" shape. When the building was used as a hotel, this allowed each guest to have an exterior window. Each wing measures three bays wide, while the side elevations measure five bays wide. There is a band course of brick and stone above the 4th story, as well as balustrades in front of the light courts on that story. The 5th-story windows contain ornate terracotta frames, while

18834-402: The upper stories, ranging from studios to three-bedroom units. Three of the apartments, each with two to three bedrooms, were fully furnished units for residents' overnight guests. Six office floors were created below the apartments, and there were also storefronts and a garage. The office floors measure 80,000 sq ft (7,400 m) and consist of three of the basement levels, as well as

18980-407: The vaults are surrounded by ivory-colored moldings; a blue tile band; a frieze with red, yellow, and green tiles and ivory-colored rosettes ; and an aqua tile band. Each of the ceiling vaults is made of textured tiles with a meander motif. The tiles are laid in a herringbone pattern . The ceiling of the northwestern bay is divided into two sections; the southern half retains its original vault while

19126-491: The years. 4 Park Avenue (formerly the Vanderbilt Hotel) is in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City , bounded by 33rd Street on the south, Park Avenue on the east, and 34th Street on the north. The building's land lot has a total area of 15,800 sq ft (1,470 m). It measures 197.5 ft (60.2 m) from north to south and 80 ft (24 m) from west to east. An entrance to

19272-454: Was bounded to the north by Thomas Bridgen Atwood's farm, which was on the western side of the Eastern Post Road between modern-day 38th and 41st Streets, and to the east by Jacobus Kip 's farm, along the eastern side of the same road from 28th to 39th Street extending to the East River. The site overlooked the East River and Kips Bay . Like the other grand projects created by distinguished residents upon Manhattan's prominent rises of ground,

19418-553: Was changing the neighborhood; Madison Square Park , at this time considered a part of Murray Hill, was bordered by the fashionable ladies' shops of the day on Fifth Avenue. In 1925, the architectural firm Margon & Glaser designed the Griffon, a residential building at 77 Park Avenue and 39th Street. The Griffon which was converted into a condominium in 1969 and is known for its stunning lobby as well as its oversized apartment layouts with original details and fireplaces. The Griffon

19564-399: Was coated with asbestos as a fireproofing measure. The terracotta at the pinnacle was made by New York Architectural Terra Cotta . The roof has 36 sculpted terracotta heads, each measuring 5 ft (1.5 m) high and weighing 500 lb (230 kg). Each sculpture depicts either the grinning classical god Bacchus , who had a beard, or a smiling face of unclear gender, who did not have

19710-465: Was colored a "royal Chinese blue", with central medallions. The piers on the walls contained shelves with blue vases, within which were placed lighting fixtures. During the 1960s renovation, Intramural Associates redesigned a part of the old hotel lobby, which was preserved as the building's residential entrance. The lobby was redesigned with a color palette of red, white, and blue, and the lobby walls were wainscoted in cherry wood. Barbara Comfort designed

19856-458: Was created in the lobby after World War I in advance of a dinner in which Ferdinand Foch was a guest; it remained in operation through the late 1950s. The first-floor lobby was clad in imitation Caen stone, which was actually made of plaster. The main lobby had a vaulted ceiling supported by square piers. These piers curved directly onto the ceiling and were clad with sandstone. Crystal chandeliers, each with 24 lamps, were suspended directly from

20002-428: Was described by one author as a "hill of the rudest and most heterogeneous mixture of stone and gravel and boulders, cemented together into a matrix of almost impenetrable density existed, crowning the underlying schist ... It had a natural rise from 34th Street , sinking towards 42nd Street and reaching from Lexington Avenue to Broadway ." The hill still exists, with an incline from 31st to 35th Streets, as well as

20148-503: Was escaping on Manhattan's west side, given that the farm was on the island's east side. Furthermore, Robert Murray traded with both Continental and British Army soldiers. Nevertheless, the Murrays' actions during the war inspired at least two Broadway shows. The Daughters of the American Revolution placed a plaque in 1926 near the site of the Murray mansion, commemorating the family's wartime actions. From 1776 to 1783, when

20294-519: Was excluded from such development. This was because of the Murray Hill Restrictive Agreement, which was enacted in 1847 and restricted the development of non-residential buildings in that area. The restriction extended 100 ft (30 m) south of 34th Street, including the future Vanderbilt Hotel site. Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt acquired additional land next to his family's old estate in 1907. That November, Vanderbilt leased part of

20440-425: Was known as the Della Robbia Room, after Luca Della Robbia, and could fit a thousand guests. The bar at the southern section of the restaurant was originally nicknamed the "Crypt". There was a kitchen below the bar, as well as a laundry room at the north end of the grill room. The spaces were split across multiple levels, each only slightly above the other. A door from Park Avenue led to a central corridor directly above

20586-564: Was part of the 18th-century estate of merchant Robert Murray . In the 1860s, after the Park Avenue Tunnel was built, the segment of Fourth Avenue between 34th and 40th Streets was renamed Park Avenue, while the avenue's name south of 34th Street remained unchanged. Since the house numbering system reset at the southern end of Park Avenue, the Vanderbilt Hotel and other buildings between 32nd and 34th Streets originally had Fourth Avenue addresses. The segment from 32nd to 34th Streets, outside

20732-411: Was portrayed in contemporary sources. One contemporary rumor posited that Mrs. Murray and her two daughters had used "feminine wiles" to convince the officers to stop by for tea. However, later scholarship stated that Howe had ordered his troops to stand down until all the British Army troops had landed at Kips Bay. According to these writers, it was unlikely that Mrs. Murray would have known that Putnam

20878-768: Was purchased by Yeshiva University. In 2002, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission created the Murray Hill Historic District. The original district consists of 71 rowhouses, three apartments, a church, and an office within two non-contiguous areas. The district was extended in 2004 to encompass 12 additional buildings in two areas, one of which directly abuts both of the original historic district areas. The expanded city historic district includes properties on both sides of 35th through 38th Streets between Park and Lexington Avenues. The National Park Service also added

21024-439: Was renovated in the 1960s. On the top three stories, the building was ornately decorated with terracotta motifs such as lozenges , lions' heads, helmets, and colonnettes . At the 19th story, each window has a shallow pediment, which supports a balustrade that protrudes from each of the 20th-story windows. In addition, each of the 20th-story windows is separated by a terracotta panel with a pattern. There are stone trusses across

21170-488: Was supplied by a traveling hopper with a capacity of about 1,500 lb (680 kg), filled by a coal conveyor with continuously moving buckets. Additionally, there were three direct current electric generators that were capable of generating 500 kW (670 hp) at any one time, as well as a central oiling system and two garbage incinerators. The steam pipes in each room were hidden by marble countertops and asbestos curtains. The hotel had an ice machine , which had

21316-405: Was treated as a single, large open space with a vaulted ceiling. This decision was informed by the fact that the Vanderbilt Hotel was actually intended as an apartment hotel for long-term residents. Thus, the building did not contain a large ballroom or other spaces that characterized transient hotels. The restaurant and palm garden were separated from the rest of the lobby by screens and plants. At

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