Gramercy Court Building
USA /
New Jersey /
West New York /
Park Avenue South, 228-230
World
/ USA
/ New Jersey
/ West New York
office building
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170-foot, 13-story office building completed in 1895. Built for Joseph P. Knapp's American Lithographic Company, it was originally known as the American Lithograph Building. It is clad in grey-beige brick, spanning six bays on Park Avenue South and nine bays on 19th Street. All of the bays have three windows, except for the center bay on 19th Street and the southern bay on the avenue, both of which are two windows wide.
The 2-story base has brick piers on tall white stone bases, with bands of patterned white terra-cotta and Ionic capitals. The exception is the four piers framing the main entrance on 19th Street and the two bays flanking the entrance. Here the piers are stone, and are fronted by double-height polished granite Ionic columns on tall white stone bases forming a portico. The outer columns are doubled, and support an entablature with a cornice that is projected forward above the center bay, and topped by a balustrade. Carved on the stone at the center bay is "AMERICAN LITHOGRAPHIC CO." The ground floor of each bay has show windows divided into three parts by black metal framing, with tall transoms at the top. The bays at the ground floor are topped by cream-colored metal lintels with dentils. The center bay on 19th Street has a modernized entry, and the southern bay on the avenue has a round-arched freight entrance with decorative wrought-iron ornament in the arch, and an intricate foliate frieze above. At the 2nd floor the bays are divided into three windows by cream-colored cast-iron pilasters; they have squared bases, fluted round columns and Corinthian/scrolled capitals.
The transitional 3rd floor has squat, wide piers, each with two bands of ornamental circles over grey brick. The pilasters match those on the 2nd floor. On 19th Street the end and center bays are slightly projected forward.
The upper floors are set off by an egg-and-dart molding. The end and center bays, and all the bays on the avenue (except the south bay) match those on the 3rd floor, except for having tiny dentils above each window, and horizontal rustications on the brick piers. These piers have Corinthian capitals at the 7th floor, which is capped by a cornice. The other bays have three recessed windows punched into the facade from the 4th-7th floors. The main piers and the intermediate piers between each window have white banding with a wavy pattern. The windows in these bays are each topped by a scrolled keystone. Each group of three windows in these bays is joined by continuous stone sills.
Above the 7th-floor cornice, the piers are plain brick and every bay has the same pilasters as from the 3rd floor. The 11th floor is topped by another cornice, and the end and center piers on 19th Street, as well as all the piers on the avenue, have double brackets. The top floor has round-arched windows. The narrow southern bay above the freight entrance on the avenue has double-windows at each floor, with stone bands outside the windows at their top and bottoms. There are scrolled keystones at the 4th-6th floors, and the cornices extend over this bay as well. Both facades are crowned by a green copper bracketed roof cornice with double brackets at each pier.
The American Lithographic Company was purchased by Consolidated Graphics in 1930. The company eventually was absorbed into the Crowell-Collier Publishing Company. The building has housed various companies since, including advertising agency Young & Rubicbam.
The ground floor is occupied by a Chase Bank branch.
The 2-story base has brick piers on tall white stone bases, with bands of patterned white terra-cotta and Ionic capitals. The exception is the four piers framing the main entrance on 19th Street and the two bays flanking the entrance. Here the piers are stone, and are fronted by double-height polished granite Ionic columns on tall white stone bases forming a portico. The outer columns are doubled, and support an entablature with a cornice that is projected forward above the center bay, and topped by a balustrade. Carved on the stone at the center bay is "AMERICAN LITHOGRAPHIC CO." The ground floor of each bay has show windows divided into three parts by black metal framing, with tall transoms at the top. The bays at the ground floor are topped by cream-colored metal lintels with dentils. The center bay on 19th Street has a modernized entry, and the southern bay on the avenue has a round-arched freight entrance with decorative wrought-iron ornament in the arch, and an intricate foliate frieze above. At the 2nd floor the bays are divided into three windows by cream-colored cast-iron pilasters; they have squared bases, fluted round columns and Corinthian/scrolled capitals.
The transitional 3rd floor has squat, wide piers, each with two bands of ornamental circles over grey brick. The pilasters match those on the 2nd floor. On 19th Street the end and center bays are slightly projected forward.
The upper floors are set off by an egg-and-dart molding. The end and center bays, and all the bays on the avenue (except the south bay) match those on the 3rd floor, except for having tiny dentils above each window, and horizontal rustications on the brick piers. These piers have Corinthian capitals at the 7th floor, which is capped by a cornice. The other bays have three recessed windows punched into the facade from the 4th-7th floors. The main piers and the intermediate piers between each window have white banding with a wavy pattern. The windows in these bays are each topped by a scrolled keystone. Each group of three windows in these bays is joined by continuous stone sills.
Above the 7th-floor cornice, the piers are plain brick and every bay has the same pilasters as from the 3rd floor. The 11th floor is topped by another cornice, and the end and center piers on 19th Street, as well as all the piers on the avenue, have double brackets. The top floor has round-arched windows. The narrow southern bay above the freight entrance on the avenue has double-windows at each floor, with stone bands outside the windows at their top and bottoms. There are scrolled keystones at the 4th-6th floors, and the cornices extend over this bay as well. Both facades are crowned by a green copper bracketed roof cornice with double brackets at each pier.
The American Lithographic Company was purchased by Consolidated Graphics in 1930. The company eventually was absorbed into the Crowell-Collier Publishing Company. The building has housed various companies since, including advertising agency Young & Rubicbam.
The ground floor is occupied by a Chase Bank branch.
Nearby cities:
Coordinates: 40°44'15"N 73°59'19"W
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- Merchants' Exchange Building 0.4 km
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- Greenwich Village 1.3 km
- Midtown (Manhattan, NY) 1.4 km
- Chelsea 1.4 km
- East Village 1.4 km
- Lower (Downtown) Manhattan 1.9 km
- Manhattan 5 km
- Hudson County, New Jersey 7.2 km
- Brooklyn 11 km
- Queens 14 km
- The Palisades 25 km