The Century (Central Park West, Manhattan) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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The Century
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U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
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 Location in Manhattan
Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States |
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| Built | 1930–1931 |
| Architect | Irwin S. Chanin, Jacques Delamarre |
| Architectural style | Art Deco |
| Part of | Central Park West Historic District (ID82001189) |
| Added to NRHP | November 9, 1982 |
The Century is a famous apartment building in New York City. You can find it on Central Park West at 63rd Street, in an area called the Upper West Side of Manhattan. This tall building was finished in 1931. It cost about $6.5 million to build. The company that designed it was led by Irwin S. Chanin. The Century looks special because it's built in the Art Deco style. Many buildings nearby have a different look, called Beaux-Arts.
Because it's so important, The Century was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. This means it's a special part of the Central Park West Historic District. It's also recognized as a local landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. The Century is one of the tallest buildings in this historic area.
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Building The Century: A Look Back
The Century apartment building stands where the old Century Theatre used to be. On October 25, 1930, architect Irwin S. Chanin promised to build a 29-floor apartment building on this spot. The old theater was being torn down in late 1930 when Chanin's company got a big loan of $6.5 million. This money was for building The Century. At the same time, Chanin was also building another large apartment building nearby, called The Majestic.
Quick Construction Work
Tearing down the old theater continued into November 1930. Irwin Chanin told New York Times that building The Majestic and The Century would create many jobs. He said about 3,000 people would work on them every day. In January 1931, as the theater demolition finished, workers found a time capsule in the theater's cornerstone. Inside was a letter from U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt!
Chanin Construction Company, another one of Irwin Chanin's companies, handled the building work. The Century needed over 3 million feet (910,000 m) of electrical wiring. That's three times more than what was needed for the 56-story Chanin Building! People thought the building would be ready by October 31, 1931. Construction started in April 1931. By the end of May, the steel frame was already up to the 15th floor. Just 30 days later, the entire steel frame was complete! This fast progress happened because different work teams worked together very well. In June 1931, a newspaper said that about 1,050 workers were on the job every day. Sometimes, up to 1,400 people were working at once. By September 1931, The Century was almost finished, and apartments were being offered for rent.
The Century Today
Today, The Century is still a very fancy apartment building. In May 2010, some large apartments with six bedrooms sold for around $19 million. Smaller one-bedroom apartments sold for between $875,000 and $1.675 million.
The Century's Unique Art Deco Design
The Century building, along with its slightly older sister building, The Majestic, was one of the first homes to use the Art Deco style. This style was mostly used for office buildings before. Both The Century and The Majestic are 30 stories tall. Their Art Deco look is very different from the Beaux-Arts buildings around them. The design team was led by Jacques Delamarre, working for Irwin S. Chanin's office. The building was constructed in 1930 or 1931.
The Century has Art Deco towers that look like they were inspired by machines. It also has special cantilevered floor slabs. These slabs mean there are no corner columns, so the building has big corner windows. The three fancy entrances face Central Park West, 62nd Street, and 63rd Street. In the 1980s, the building had 410 apartments. They ranged from one to eight bedrooms. Fifty-two of these apartments had large outdoor terraces. The main lobby on the ground floor has offices for different businesses.
Why The Century is Important
The Century is a special part of the Central Park West Historic District. This district was recognized by the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on November 9, 1982. The Century is one of four "twin-towered" buildings in this historic district. The others are The Eldorado, The San Remo, and The Majestic. Together, these buildings make the skyline of the Upper West Side along Central Park West look very unique.
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission also made The Century a local landmark on July 10, 1985. This means that any changes to the building must follow special rules from the Landmarks Commission. When it became a landmark, the Commission said The Century was a "sophisticated essay in Art Deco design." They noted its "complex balance of horizontal and vertical elements." At 30 floors, The Century and two other buildings are the tallest in the Central Park West Historic District. The height of these buildings was allowed because of a law from 1929. This law usually limited apartment buildings to 19 stories. But it made an exception for taller buildings like The Century if the building site was very large and the building itself covered only a small part of the land.
