46 West 56th Street (New York City, New York)

 office building, commercial building

5-story French-Renaissance commercial building originally completed in 1870 as a brownstone townhouse for Judge Noah Davis, who had served as Presiding Justice of the Supreme Court of New York County for thirteen years. Seven months after Davis’s death, in November 1902, real estate operator Mitchell A. C. Levy purchased the home, and then sold it in 1906 to Samuel Kridel, who had the facade completely rebuilt, finishing in 1908, after which the house was sold to Jackson Gouraud who had the interior decorated by Theo. Hofstatter & Co.

The new limestone front had an arched entrance centered in the rusticated base below a stone balcony. The rusticated end piers remain, but the rest of the ground floor has been replaced by a modern glass-and-metal storefront. A band course with a fret motif caps the ground floor.

The 2nd & 3rd floors have three bays of windows, wider in the center. The 2nd-floor windows were replaced with modern plate-glass in metal frames when this floor was converted to commercial purposes; the 3rd floor retains its double-hung windows with bracketed sills topped by low, ornamental, wrought-iron railings. Between these two floors are three carved spandrel panels bearing thick garlands and ribbons. Mounting brackets for vertical, projecting sings have been installed at both floors on the west end. A cartouche is centered above the 3rd floor's middle window. The 4th floor has three equal-sized windows above a band course, with a projecting flagpole mounted atop a lion's head crowning the cartouche. These windows also have low wrought-iron railings, and there are elaborate carved panels at the end piers, with winged cherubs in baskets below flowers and foliate ornament. The 4th floor is crowned by a cornice with modillioned and dentils. Above is a slate mansard behind a limestone balustrade, pierced by a pair of rounded dormers.

Jackson Gouraud died in the house in 1910. His widow, Amy, retained the property until 1913, when it was sold to Rebecca Crear, who converted it to serve as a dressmaking shop for the next seven years. From 1920, there was a store on the lower two floors, and apartments above. In 1932 the apartments gave way to factory and showroom space. In the mid-20th century the street level was home to upscale art galleries, the Marino Art Gallery followed by the Westerly Gallery. Then in the 1960s it was home to The Coffee Mill.

The ground floor is now occupied by Potbelly Sandwich Shop, with offices above.

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