44 Union Square facts for kids
Quick facts for kids 44 Union Square |
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Exterior of 44 Union Square in August 2021
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| Alternative names | 100 East 17th Street, Tammany Hall Building |
| General information | |
| Type | Office, retail |
| Architectural style | Neo-Georgian |
| Location | Union Square, Manhattan |
| Address | 44 Union Sq E |
| Town or city | New York City |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 40°44′11″N 73°59′20″W / 40.73639°N 73.98889°W |
| Named for | Tammany Hall |
| Groundbreaking | 1928 |
| Opened | July 4, 1929 |
| Renovated | 2016–2020 |
| Cost | $7 million |
| Renovation cost | $61 million |
| Landlord | Liberty Theatres |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Thompson, Holmes & Converse and Charles B. Meyers |
| Renovating team | |
| Architect | BKSK Architects |
| Designated: | November 29, 2013 |
| Reference #: | 2490 |
44 Union Square, also known as 100 East 17th Street or the Tammany Hall Building, is a three-story building in New York City. You can find it at 44 Union Square East in Union Square, Manhattan. It sits right on the southeast corner of Union Square East and East 17th Street.
This building was constructed between 1928 and 1929. It was designed by architects Thompson, Holmes & Converse and Charles B. Meyers. They built it for a political group called the Tammany Society, also known as Tammany Hall. This building is the oldest headquarters of the organization that is still standing today.
The Tammany Society moved to 44 Union Square from their old building on nearby 14th Street. When this new building was planned, the society was very popular. Famous members included U.S. senator Robert F. Wagner and governor Al Smith. However, Tammany Hall lost its power in the 1930s. The building was then sold in 1943 to a group connected to the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union. Later, in the 1980s, it became home to the Union Square Theatre. The New York Film Academy also used space here starting in 1994.
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission officially named the building a city landmark in 2013. Between 2016 and 2020, it was updated to become an office and retail space. During this big renovation, the outside of the building was kept the same. But the inside was completely redone. A cool glass dome roof was added to honor Chief Tamanend, who the Tammany Society was named after.
Contents
Architecture
44 Union Square is a three-and-a-half-story building. It was designed in a style called Neo-Georgian by Charles B. Meyers and Thompson, Holmes & Converse. It was built for Tammany Hall, a major political group in New York City. The building is about 79 feet (24 meters) wide on the Union Square East side. It is about 150 feet (46 meters) long on the 17th Street side.
Building Design
The Neo-Georgian style of the Tammany Hall Building has special features. These include brick walls laid in a pattern called Flemish bond. The rectangular windows have stone keystones (wedge-shaped stones) above them. There are also pretty wrought-iron balconies. Both the Union Square East and 17th Street sides look balanced and even. A triangular part above the main entrance, called a gable, is not typical Neo-Georgian. It might have been inspired by a similar design on their old 14th Street building.
The outside of the building looks like government buildings from early American history. These features include a main floor above a slightly raised basement. There's a grand entrance with columns, called a portico, on the Union Square East side. This portico has a triangular top, or pediment, supported by strong Doric columns. The building also has a sloped roof, called a hip roof, and a decorative band, or frieze, along the top. The Tammany Society said these designs were inspired by Federal Hall in Lower Manhattan and Somerset House in London. This building was one of several in New York City in the early 1900s that looked like government buildings. Other examples include The Town Hall and the Museum of the City of New York.
Outside Look (Facade)
The outside walls, or facade, are made of limestone on the basement and first floor. The second floor and above use English red brick. The company that made the bricks said their strong bricks, mixed with the soft limestone, would make the building a lasting symbol of New York City's past. On top of the building is a glass-and-steel dome. It covers about 11,250 square feet (1,045 square meters).
On the Union Square East side, the main entrance to the shops was in the middle of the first floor. Above this, on the second floor, was a balcony. This balcony is in the center of the building, below the triangular pediment. Inside the round arch of the pediment, you can see a design. It shows arrows and an olive branch around Tammany Hall's round logo.
On the 17th Street side, there are three arches in the middle of the first floor. These used to be exits from the building's large meeting hall. The main entrance to the theater and elevators was to the right of these arches. A similar set of arches was to the left. Above the first floor, in the middle of the building, there's an inscription. It reads "1786 THE SOCIETY OF TAMMANY OR COLUMBIAN ORDER 1928".
Inside the Building
A book from the Tammany Society in 1936 described the inside of the building. The western half had many offices. The Tammany Society used the entire third floor for themselves. This floor had a main lounge, a club room, offices, meeting rooms, and waiting areas. The Democratic County Committee, another political group, was on the second floor. The first floor was used for shops.
Starting in 2016, the basement, first, and second floors were changed into about 27,485 square feet (2,553 square meters) of retail space. The floors and walls inside are made of strong reinforced concrete.
The eastern half of the building used to have a large meeting hall, or auditorium, with 1,200 seats. This hall took up the first to third floors. Below it, in the basement, was a waiting room. Stairs led up to the second-floor balcony. In 2016, the auditorium was taken out. This made space for about 43,106 square feet (4,005 square meters) of office space.
The new glass dome roof was added during the 2016–2020 renovation. It looks like the rising turtle shell from the Lenape creation story. This was done to honor Chief Tamanend, who the Tammany Society was named after. With the dome, the fifth floor has high ceilings, between 12 and 21 feet (3.7 and 6.4 meters). The sixth floor has ceilings up to 19 feet (5.8 meters) high.
History of the Building
By the early 1900s, Union Square in Manhattan was a busy place. Many train lines and the subway station at 14th Street–Union Square were nearby. The area also became a big business district with many office buildings and shops.
The old headquarters of Tammany Hall was on 14th Street. The group was named after Tamanend, a chief of the Lenape people who originally lived in New York City. Tammany Hall often used Native American names and terms. For example, they called their headquarters a "wigwam." In 1926, a nearby building was going to expand. So, Tammany Hall sold their old "wigwam" in December 1927. There were some questions about whether Tammany leaders made too much money from the sale. But a leader named George Washington Olvany denied it.
Construction
Just one week after selling their old building, Tammany Hall bought a new spot. This was at 44 Union Square East, near 17th Street. Olvany announced the purchase in December 1927. The new Tammany Hall Building was planned to be in the American colonial style. It would be 150 feet (46 meters) long on 17th Street and 105 feet (32 meters) on Union Square East. It would have shops on the ground floor and a 1,200-seat meeting hall. At the time, the society's members included important politicians like Robert F. Wagner and Al Smith. The new building showed a fresh start for the group.
In January 1928, Charles B. Meyers and Thompson, Holmes & Converse were chosen as the architects. The building plans were sent in April. Tammany Hall stayed in its old building until July 4, 1928, to celebrate Independence Day there. Then, they moved to a temporary spot. Construction on the new building went quickly. By December, most of it was done. The New York County Democratic Committee started using the new building on January 2, 1929. The official cornerstone was laid the next week, marking the outside of the building being finished.
New Owners: The Unions
The "wigwam" at 44 Union Square was ready by early July 1929. A special celebration was held on July 4, 1929. Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt and former governor Smith spoke at the event. The building cost $350,000 to build. Soon after, in the early 1930s, Tammany Hall began to lose its political power. President Roosevelt, though also a Democrat, did not like the organization. He started investigations into it. Roosevelt becoming president in 1933, and a Republican mayor being elected, led to Tammany Society's decline.
By the early 1940s, the Tammany Society could not afford to keep its "wigwam." Local 91, a part of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU), was looking for a new headquarters. They offered to buy the building in April 1943. The sale was completed that September. Tammany's leaders moved to a new club, and their old items went into storage. The ILGWU made the stage bigger and furnished the offices. They officially reopened the building on December 18, 1943. Many leaders, including mayors La Guardia and Jimmy Walker, attended. After fixing up the building, the ILGWU opened meeting spaces, offices, art studios, and classrooms there.
In 1947, 44 Union Square's meeting hall was renamed the Roosevelt Auditorium. It was often used for other unions' events. For example, in the 1950s, firefighters, gardeners, and sanitation workers held meetings there. The United Federation of Teachers used the Roosevelt Auditorium in 1960 to end a citywide teachers' strike. They also met there in 1968 for another strike. Many private sector unions also met at the Roosevelt Auditorium. By the 1980s, the ILGWU had fewer members. This was because many clothing factories left New York City.
A Place for Shows and Movies
In 1984, the ILGWU rented 44 Union Square to the Roundabout Theatre Company. The theater was split in half, making it smaller with 499 seats. The stage was made larger, and the balcony and main seating area were updated. The first show took place there on February 1, 1985. After their lease ended in 1990, Roundabout moved to a new theater.
In June 1994, Alan Schuster and Mitchell Maxwell rented 44 Union Square. They also ran another theater. They updated the inside of the building to get it ready for the Union Square Theatre. They painted the dome sky-blue and changed the seat covers to burgundy. The building also started housing the New York Film Academy in July 1994. The Union Square Theatre had its first show there that November. Liberty Theatres, a company, ran the Union Square Theatre. In 2001, Liberty Theatres bought the building from the ILGWU.
Becoming a Landmark and Renovation
People who wanted to protect old buildings had been asking for 44 Union Square to become a city landmark since the 1980s. But the ILGWU wasn't very interested. When Liberty Theatres bought the building, preservationists hoped they would be more open to it. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) officially made it a city landmark in October 2013. This happened after public meetings where many people supported the idea.
In the early 2010s, Liberty Theatres announced plans to update the Tammany Hall Building. They wanted to add a glass dome. The LPC first said no to these plans in 2014. But the next year, a smaller version of the glass dome was approved. The New York Film Academy moved out in late 2015. All other renters were asked to leave the next year. Before the 2016 renovation, the owners talked with the New York City Lenape Center. They got approval to use the creation story imagery for the dome design. The LPC protected the north and west sides of the building, but not the south and east sides. Bricks from the south and east walls were saved and used again in the renovation.
The $50 million project, designed by BKSK Architects, started in July 2016. The old meeting hall and other inside areas were taken out. This made room for new shops and offices. The building, now called 44 Union Square, was supposed to be finished by 2018. The protected outside walls were temporarily separated from the building's frame. Then, the inside was rebuilt with strong concrete walls and floors. Finally, the outside walls were reattached. By February 2019, the glass dome was being built. The whole renovation was mostly done by July 2020. The dome is about 150 by 75 feet (46 by 23 meters) and has over 12,000 square feet (1,100 square meters) of glass. To get approval, the dome was designed to look classic from Union Square.
The renovation of 44 Union Square was finished by October 2020. The project won an award for "excellence in safety." After the work was done, two members of the Lenape Center performed a traditional blessing on the building. A Petco pet-supply store opened in the building in June 2023.
See also
In Spanish: 44 Union Square para niños
