Audubon Terrace
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Audubon Terrace Historic District
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Audubon Terrace
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| Location: | Broadway, between West 155th and West 156th Streets, New York, New York |
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| Coordinates: | 40°50′0″N 73°56′49″W / 40.833333°N 73.94694°WCoordinates: 40°50′0″N 73°56′49″W / 40.833333°N 73.94694°W |
| Built: | 1907 |
| Architect: | Charles Pratt Huntington |
| Architectural style: | Beaux Arts |
| Governing body: | Private |
| NRHP Reference#: | 80002667 |
| Added to NRHP: | May 30, 1980[1] |
Audubon Terrace, also known as Audubon Terrace Historic District, is a landmark complex of approximately eight early 20th century Beaux Arts buildings in New York City. Home to several different cultural institutions, the various architecturally complementary buildings, which take up most of a city block, are arranged in two parallel rows facing each other across a common east / west pedestrian plaza. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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[edit] Resident institutions
The original residents of Audubon Terrace included the American Geographical Society, the American Numismatic Society, the Museum of the American Indian-Heye Foundation, the Hispanic Society of America, the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Church of Our Lady of Esperanza.[2] The first three organizations have since moved, and the Hispanic Society has been considering a move to larger quarters downtown since 2006.[3] Boricua College, a private bilingual college, has since occupied the former building of the American Geographical Society, the easternmost building on the north side of the plaza.
The Hispanic Society maintains a library and a museum with an important collection of art and artifacts from the Iberian peninsula, as well as from Central and South America.[4] It is normally open daily except Mondays. The American Academy of Arts and Letters exhibits to the public occasionally, usually twice each year.[5]
[edit] Location
Audubon Terrace is located on the west side of Broadway, bounded by West 155th and West 156th Streets, in the Washington Heights neighborhood of upper Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. It is directly across 155th Street from Trinity Church Cemetery. Although the 157th Street subway station is one block away, the complex's location considerably north of midtown has resulted in a perceived detriment to easy access for visitors, especially those from out of town.[2]
[edit] History
Named for naturalist and artist John James Audubon, on whose former land the complex sits, and who is buried across the street, Audubon Terrace was commissioned by railroad heir and philanthropist Archer M. Huntington in 1907. Huntington chose the location at a time when the two centuries old northward march of fashionable residences and cultural institutions seemed likely to transform the largely rural area. Huntington assumed that other museums and learned societies would soon join him, creating an intellectual citadel atop the island's heights. The widespread adoption of the elevator and steel framing at this time, however, led Manhattan real estate to begin to develop vertically instead and New York's other great cultural institutions stayed put.
Among the well-known architects who designed the buildings of Audubon Terrace were Cass Gilbert, Stanford White, and Charles Pratt Huntington[6]. Huntington designed the original buildings, housing the Hispanic Society, American Geographical Society, Museum of the American Indian, and American Numismatic Society. The two buildings housing the Academy of Arts and Letters were completed in 1923 and 1930, respectively[7]. A large equestrian statue of the legendary Spanish knight El Cid, located in the plaza in front of the Hispanic Society, was sculpted by Archer Huntington’s wife, Anna Hyatt Huntington in 1927.[8][9]
Audubon Terrace was designated the “Audubon Terrace Historic District” by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission on January 9, 1979[10]. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html.
- ^ a b Streetscapes: Audubon Terrace, The New York Times, May 17, 1987, accessed March 30, 2008
- ^ Hispanic Society Board Endorses Plan to Leave Washington Heights for Downtown, The New York Times, March 23, 2006, accessed March 30, 2008
- ^ Hispanic Society - Collections, accessed March 30, 2008
- ^ American Academy - Exhibitions, accessed March 30, 2008 Archived October 9, 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Hispanic Society - Architectural Context, accessed March 30, 2008
- ^ The Buildings of the Academy, accessed March 30, 2008
- ^ Hispanic Society - Anna Hyatt Huntington, accessed March 30, 2008
- ^ David J. Framberger and Joan R. Olshansky (December 1979). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Audubon Terrace Historic District". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=5158. Retrieved 2011-03-19. See also: "Accompanying eight photos". http://www.oprhp.state.ny.us/hpimaging/hp_view.asp?GroupView=5160.
- ^ Landmarks Preservation Commission, accessed March 30, 2008
- Walsh, Kevin (2006). Forgotten New York. New York: Collins. pp. 206. ISBN 0061145025.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Audubon Terrace |
[edit] External links
- Audubon Terrace Gallery - 96 photos
