122 Manhattan Avenue

122 Manhattan Avenue

Date: 1886-87

NB Number: (NB 518-1886; NB 519-1886; NB 1606-1886)

Type:  Rowhouse

Architect:  Gilbert, C.P.H.

Developer/Owner/Builder: John Brown (owner), Petit Murdock (builder)

NYC Landmarks Designation:  Historic District

Landmark Designation Report: Manhattan Avenue Historic District

National Register Designation: N/A

Primary Style:  Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival

Primary Facade:   Brick, Metal, and Stone

Stories: 3 and basement

Historic District: Manhattan Avenue HD

History of 122, 124, 126, 128, 130, 132, 134, 136, 138 and 140 Manhattan Avenue: The row houses in this group are early works designed by the prolific residential architect C.P.H. Gilbert and developed by John Brown of Hoboken, New Jersey. The builder/ contracting firm Petit Murdock broke ground on three houses at 39-43 West 105th Street, four houses at 134-40 Manhattan Avenue, and two houses at 45 West 105th Street (120 Manhattan Avenue) and 122 Manhattan Avenue, in April 1886, with construction completed later that year at a projected cost of $12,000 per house. The remaining nine structures, at 124-32 Manhattan Avenue and 38-44 West 106th Street (eight of which remain), broke ground in October 1886 and were completed in August of the following year, at a projected cost of only $8,000 per house. These three-story houses are among the earliest known works by Gilbert, who would go on to become an extremely successful and prestigious residential designer, building twenty houses on Montgomery Place in the Park Slope Historic District, Brooklyn, as well as memorable mansions for Thomas Adams, Issac D. Fletcher, Felix Warburg, and F. W. Woolworth.

The dwellings in the historic district were somewhat smaller than the average row house of the late nineteenth century, apparently intended for middle-class occupation. A large number of the tenants had Irish or German backgrounds, though many were U.S. born and had moved here from other states. Occupations included salesmen, real estate brokers, physicians, as well as a janitor, engineer, teacher and bookkeeper. Many of the households employed servants, mainly of Irish descent. In subsequent decades, an increasing number of lodgers and boarders were recorded by census enumerators, and many of the houses were divided into rooming houses following the First World War.

Originally a mirror image of 122 Manhattan Avenue, 44 West 106th Street was demolished between 1966 and 1967. Following demolition, the vacant lot was converted to a park by the Manhattan Avenue Neighborhood Association between 1969 and 1970, and was hailed as a remarkable display of community cooperation and enthusiasm in a neighborhood which had suffered years of neglect. The park was replaced in 2001 by a six-story condominium apartment building.

Description of 122, 124, 126, 128, 130, 132, 134, 136, 138 and 140 Manhattan Avenue: The row houses in this group have a lively and jagged profile, incorporating features associated with the Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival styles. Gilbert made sophisticated use of texture, juxtaposing brick and brownstone, as well as industrial materials like iron and tin. Each house was entered by either conventional or box stoop, arranged to create both variety and balance. No house is identical to its neighbor, but specific elements repeat to establish a sense of visual coherence. For instance, 124 and 126 Manhattan Avenue share a continuous pressed-metal cornice, interlocking brownstone blocks, and identical bay windows, but have stoops with different orientations. A similar approach appears at 136 and 138 Manhattan Avenue. To enliven the roofline, Gilbert employed free-standing triangular pediments with sunbursts, as well as tower-like forms at the ends of the row. Stained-glass and multi-paned transoms, many of which remain intact, were also used to enliven the row and give it a distinctive character.

Description: Brick facade above rusticated brownstone basement, first story and box stoop with scroll handrail details; smooth-cut window surround at basement; smooth stone band at water table; smooth-cut door surround at entryway; foliate brackets supporting triangular pediment with foliate and mask motif at entryway; possibly historic door enframent; paired first story fenestration beneath segmental arch with smooth-cut window surround, foliated keystone, denticulated sill and curved, multi-paned transoms; smooth stone band at first story sill; three-sided pressed-metal oriel at second story with stained-glass transoms, three-sided paneled band, crown molding featuring sunburst pediment, and carved sandstone base integrated with first story; molded stone band at first story continuous with oriel base; molded stone band at second story continuous with oriel crown molding; arched third story fenestration beneath brick relieving arches with adjoining molded stone lintels with keystones and molded stone corbels; additional stone band at third story forms projecting window sills of third story fenestration; additional stone band at second story bisected by oriel; pressed-metal cornice and parapet with decorative moldings and sunburst pediment; possibly historic windows at first story and oriel; security grilles at basement; iron gate beneath stoop; iron handrail on stoop; ironwork at areaway

Alterations: stoop stuccoed and repointed; basement, first story and stoop painted; second and third stories possibly painted; paneled wood-and-glass door; non-historic windows and sashes, except where noted; arched third story fenestration did not historically feature transoms; historic multi-paned upper sashes at oriel removed; stained glass transoms at oriel removed; globe finials removed from parapet; security gate at areaway; intercom and lighting at entryway