Home Life Building

 office building, historical building, 1894_construction, French Renaissance (architecture)

16-story Renaissance-revival office building (and 12-story portion) completed in 1894. It is actually two attached buildings combined into one internally. The mid-block building was built by the Brooklyn-based Home Life Insurance Company, which had a branch office at the site since 1866. It was designed by Napoleon Le Brun & Sons. Adjacent to the former Home Life building, at the corner with the address of 253 Broadway, is the 12-story Postal Telegraph Building, designed by Harding & Gooch, and completed at the same time. In 1947, Home Life purchased the neighboring structure and connected the two buildings internally.

The taller Home Life Insurance Building is clad in white marble. The ground floor is rusticated, with three central round-arches, and Corinthian columns of polished granite flanking the outer bays. Above a dentiled cornice, the base of the 2nd floor features intricately-carved panels, and a balustrade in the center bay. The outer bays have round-arches with keystones and more carved stonework around the arches, and Corinthian columns on either side. The three center bays are separated by the same style of columns, with smaller columns dividing each recessed bay into three tall, narrow windows. A dentiled cornice caps this floor. At the 3rd floor, the center three bays culminate in round-arches with keystones and carved stonework. The two outer bays each have a round window encircled by carved foliate designs on the lower half, and topped by a keystone. A dentiled cornice tops the center three bays only.

The transitional 4th floor has rustications, and a round-arched window at each bay, except for the center one, which has two round-arched windows set under a rounded pediment that is crowned by a finial, and framed by double pilasters. A modillioned band course signals the beginnings of the shaft portion of the facade. Above, the 5th floor has an arcade of five round-arched windows in the center, with a single round-arched window at each end, all with keystones. The 6th-13th floors all have square-headed windows - five grouped in the center and a single window at each end. The 5-window groupings have projecting sills with corbelled feet, as do the single end bays, which also feature marble surrounds. The 6th and 13th floors also feature projecting marble balconies in the center, with brackets and carved panels. The center of the 14th floor is recessed, with a loggia of Corinthian columns and balustrades, and projecting semi-circle balconies at the end bays. This floor is capped by a modillioned cornice with end brackets. Above, the 15th floor has round-arched windows in the center, and square-headed windows at the end bays, where the facade transitions to a sloping mansard roof. Above this floor, there is a single bay of twin round-arched windows below a semi-circular pediment that stands out from a steeply-sloping copper pyramid.

The Postal Telegraph building is of a completely different design. It has a 4-story base of limestone, with buff-colored brick above. The square-headed windows are deeply recessed, with continuous sill courses and keystones above all but the outer bays. The top floor is headed by intricately-carved floral designs the the frieze of a cornice, and the outer bays have carved surrounds topped by circular ornament. Capping it all off is a prominent copper roof cornice with large brackets. In 1938 the lower floors of the Postal Telegraph Building were were reconstructed o a design by Ely Jacques Kahn with glass blocks, recessed behind four giant, green-painted piers that support the upper floors.

The building is a cooperative, owned jointly with the City, which houses various offices on the upper floors. The basement and street levels are privately owned. Both structures were jointly designated as landmarks in 1991. The ground floor is occupied by a Chase Bank branch, Willner Chemists, and Bolton's women's clothing.