Irvington Town Hall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Irvington Town Hall
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U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
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Front (south) elevation, 2006
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| Location | Irvington, NY |
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| Nearest city | Yonkers |
| Built | 1902 |
| Architect | Alfred J. Manning |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| Part of | Irvington Historic District (ID01300195) |
| NRHP reference No. | 84000205 |
| Added to NRHP | 1984 |
The Irvington Town Hall is an important building in Irvington, New York. It's located right on Main Street. This building is home to the village government and the police department. For many years, it also housed the public library.
Inside, there's a special reading room. This room was a requirement from the original land deed (a legal document for property). The Town Hall also has a large theatre with 432 seats. This theatre is used for many local events, like school graduations.
The Town Hall was built in 1902. It was designed by a local architect named Albert J. Manning. This building was one of the first civic (public) buildings to use the Colonial Revival style. This style looks back to the architecture of early American colonial times.
What makes the Town Hall extra special are the beautiful glasswork and mosaics inside. These were created by Louis Comfort Tiffany. His father, Charles Lewis Tiffany, who started Tiffany & Co., had a large home in Irvington. Because of its unique design and Tiffany's artwork, the Town Hall was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. This means it's recognized as a very important historic site in the United States. Since 2014, it has also been part of the Irvington Historic District.
Contents
Exploring the Town Hall's Design
The Irvington Town Hall is a two-story building made of brick. It sits on a raised basement made of stone. The front of the building is decorated with terra cotta and stone. Terra cotta is a type of baked clay used for decoration.
On the second floor of the front, there's a special porch-like area called a portico. It has columns that look like the ancient Ionic style. Above this, there's a three-part wooden clock tower. This tower has round-arched openings and more columns. The very top of the clock tower has a dome-shaped roof. This clock tower is one of the most famous landmarks in Irvington.
The main entrance has an arched design. The building also features solid stone railings that curve at the sidewalk. The back of the building is simpler, mostly made of stone and brick.
Inside the Historic Building
Much of the inside of the Town Hall features dark wood paneling. Some rooms have wainscoting, which is wood paneling on the lower part of the walls. In the library, the dark wood ceiling beams have famous quotes written in gold leaf.
The library is lit by beautiful chandeliers and lanterns. These were designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The walls are made of plaster and lead to a domed ceiling. Some open areas have decorative supports called corbels.
The theatre inside the Town Hall has a full orchestra section and a balcony. There are also private booths with round openings. The stage's archway, called the proscenium arch, also has detailed classical designs.
A Look Back at History
The land where the Town Hall stands today was first used in 1869. A group called the Mental and Moral Improvement Society built a place called the Atheneum. This building had a library where people could borrow books.
In the late 1800s, Irvington grew quickly. By the 1890s, the village needed a central place for its government offices. In 1892, the society gave the Atheneum property to the village. They had one condition: the village had to always keep a library and reading room in the building. They also had to build the new Town Hall within five years.
The village struggled to find the right architect. So, in 1897, the society gave them five more years. Finally, Albert J. Manning, an architect who used to work in New York City, created a design the village liked. The new Town Hall was finished and opened in 1902, right at the end of the extension.
Wealthy residents of the village helped pay for the building. Frederick W. Guiteau, a member of the society, gave the library $10,000. Helen Gould, who grew up nearby at the Lyndhurst estate, paid for the interior decorations. This made Tiffany's beautiful work possible. The special Arts and Crafts furniture she bought is still used today.
The Town Hall as a Community Hub
The new Town Hall quickly became the heart of public life in Irvington. The theatre was especially popular for public events. It hosted school graduation ceremonies, police and fire department dances, plays, and other cultural events.
Famous people also visited. Eleanor Roosevelt spoke at a Democratic gathering there in 1932. This was just before her husband, Franklin D. Roosevelt, was elected President. The famous Opera singer Lillian Nordica performed there. Even Ted Mack, a radio and TV host, held auditions for his Original Amateur Hour show at the Town Hall.
In the mid-1900s, the library needed more space. It took over the stair area leading to the theatre. A new tower was added to the back of the building. However, after new fire safety rules were made in the 1960s, the theatre no longer met the standards for public use. The library then used it for storage.
In 1978, a group called the Irvington Town Hall Theatre Group raised $100,000. Most of this money came from the village. They used it to fix up the theatre and restore old details like the light fixtures. The theatre reopened in late 1981 and has been used ever since.
By the 1990s, the library needed more space again. It also had to follow the Americans with Disabilities Act. This law requires buildings to be more accessible for everyone. So, the library moved to another historic building in Irvington. However, a reading room, called the "Tiffany Room," still remains in the Town Hall. This fulfills the requirement from the original land deed.
See also
