Fred F. French Building

The Fred F. French Building is at the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and 45th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City.{{harvnb|ps=.|National Park Service|2003|p=3}}{{Cite web|title=547 5 Avenue, 10176|url=https://zola.planning.nyc.gov/l/lot/1/1281/1#17.08/40.755374/-73.977584|access-date=March 20, 2020|publisher=New York City Department of City Planning|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164446/https://zola.planning.nyc.gov/l/lot/1/1281/1#17.08/40.755374/-73.977584|url-status=live}} Its plot is largely rectangular but has a small cutout on the northwestern portion. The building adjoins a 20-story building at 553 Fifth Avenue, which is L-shaped and occupies the cutout, as well as a nine-story building at 9 East 45th Street. The building is assigned its own ZIP Code, 10176; it was one of 41 buildings in Manhattan that had their own ZIP Codes {{as of|2019|lc=y}}.{{cite web | last=Brown | first=Nicole | title=Why do some buildings have their own ZIP codes? NYCurious | website=amNewYork | date=March 18, 2019 | url=https://www.amny.com/news/nyc-zip-codes-1-28558957/ | access-date=July 8, 2022}}

The Fred F. French Building was designed by H. Douglas Ives with Sloan & Robertson in the Art Deco style and completed in 1927.{{harvnb|Macaulay-Lewis|2021|ps=.|p=79}} The building is named for Fred F. French, the head of the French Companies, whose other projects in the city included Tudor City and Knickerbocker Village.{{Cite news|last=Pollak|first=Michael|date=February 27, 2005|title=Still Hailing That Taxi|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/27/nyregion/thecity/still-hailing-that-taxi.html|url-status=live|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180726072107/https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/27/nyregion/thecity/still-hailing-that-taxi.html|archive-date=July 26, 2018|issn=0362-4331}} The Fred F. French Building rises 38 stories, rising {{Convert|426|ft||abbr=}} tall, and contains several setbacks on all sides as mandated under the 1916 Zoning Resolution.{{cite web|title=Fred F. French Building|url=https://www.emporis.com/buildings/115506/fred-f-french-building-new-york-city-ny-usa|access-date=October 12, 2020|publisher=Emporis|archive-date=October 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013063317/https://www.emporis.com/buildings/115506/fred-f-french-building-new-york-city-ny-usa|url-status=usurped}} It was one of the first few skyscrapers to be built with a mostly rectangular plan; previous buildings had been erected with largely square plans.{{Cite news|last=Gray|first=Christopher|author-link=Christopher Gray (architectural historian)|date=May 24, 1992|title=Streetscapes: The Fred R. French Building; Refurbishing 'Mesopatamia'|page=7|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/24/realestate/streetscapes-the-fred-r-french-building-refurbishing-mesopatamia.html|url-status=live|url-access=limited|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013080837/https://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/24/realestate/streetscapes-the-fred-r-french-building-refurbishing-mesopatamia.html|archive-date=October 13, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}

The Fred F. French Building was described by architectural writer Carol Herselle Krinsky as the "only Mesopotamian skyscraper" in New York City.{{cite magazine|last=Krinsky|first=Carol Herselle|date=January 1982|title=The Fred F. French Building; Mesopotamia in Manhattan|journal=Antiques|volume=121|pages=289–291}} Ives wrote that the building's colorful design took after Middle Eastern architectural features such as ziggurats. The colors used in the Fred F. French Building's facade were intended to evoke that of the Tower of Babel. At the time of the building's development, there was large interest in Ancient Egypt and the Ancient Near East, and other contemporary structures such as the Chrysler Building, Rockefeller Center, and 2 Park Avenue incorporated elements of ancient Egyptian and Near Eastern architecture.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=12}}{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=22}} Furthermore, modern building codes prevented the inclusion of cornices and other decorative elements that projected more than {{convert|18|in}} from the facade, as had been standard in older buildings. Because of the different influences, Ives said he felt "somewhat at a loss" when asked to describe the building's design.{{cite news |date=February 6, 1927 |title=Architect at a Loss to Explain New Style; H. D. Ives Says French Building Arouses Many Difficult Questions Concerning Design |page=RE1 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/104240644 |url-access=subscription |access-date=October 12, 2020 |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|104240644}} }}

File:The French Building - from the Top of the Rock (4693142334).jpg

The Fred F. French Building's official address is 551 Fifth Avenue, The building was designed with profit as the main consideration, so the shorter side along Fifth Avenue was intended for highly valuable retail space. The building is one of the few remaining towers which maintains its entrance on 5th Avenue{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=10}} The building consists of a base spanning the 1st to 3rd stories; a midsection from the 4th to the 19th floors, with multiple setbacks; and a rectangular "tower" that is capped by a three-story penthouse above the 35th floor.{{Cite New York 1930|page=597}} Each of the four primary elevations of the facade has a different massing. The northern and eastern elevations face other buildings, but the southern and western elevations face 45th Street and Fifth Avenue respectively.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=14}}

The Fred F. French Building's Middle Eastern decoration was intended to be colorful and noticeable from afar, rather than historically accurate.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=23}} The facade is accented with terracotta bands of various colors including hues of red and black.

On Fifth Avenue and on 45th Street, the first story is topped by a bronze frieze that contains depictions of winged beasts and stylized glyphs.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|pp=12–13}} The second story contains steel-framed tripartite windows above the friezes.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|pp=14–15}} The entrances are set within bronze arches, which contain coffered piers; symbols of architecture and industry in their spandrels; and bronze letters reading {{Smallcaps|the french building}} above each arch.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=4}}{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=13}} Above the second story, on both Fifth Avenue and 45th Street, are limestone friezes reading {{Smallcaps|the fred f. french building}}. Flagpoles project from the second story in the second and fifth bays from the north on Fifth Avenue. The third story, on both Fifth Avenue and 45th Street, contains two slightly recessed one-over-one sash windows in each bay. A cornice runs above the third floor.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=6}}{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=15}}

The base of the facade on Fifth Avenue is divided into five bays by double-story limestone piers. The entrance on Fifth Avenue, in the second bay from north, contains an outer vestibule under the arch, outside the entrance doors. The vestibule's ceiling consists of a depressed barrel vault with a bronze and crystal chandelier, as well as painted stepped corners and bas-relief polychrome beasts. The vestibule has an Italian travertine floor with beige stone lozenges, black and white marble triangles, and brass strips. The sides of the vestibule have bronze display windows, and the vestibule has two bronze revolving doors, topped by inscribed panels with the building's name and address.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=5}}{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|pp=15–16}} Historically, the northernmost bay had a glass storefront and granite water table at ground level, which was later replaced. The other three bays on Fifth Avenue also have replacement glass storefronts and water tables.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=16}}

The base of the facade on 45th Street is divided into twelve bays by double-story limestone piers. The main entrance is in the eighth bay from the west and contains an arched vestibule. The vestibule is enclosed behind double glass doors and a bronze-and-glass transom.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=17}} Its design is the same as that of the outer vestibule of the Fifth Avenue entrance.{{harvnb|Macaulay-Lewis|2021|ps=.|pp=79–80}} The decorations include bearded genies and 25 panels depicting Mesopotamian women.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior|1986|ps=.|p=1}} The other eleven bays on 45th Street contain glass storefronts and water tables in various conditions.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|pp=17–19}}

The 4th through 19th stories comprise the midsection of the building and are clad with russet colored brick. The 4th through 11th floors rise directly from the lot lines before setting back at various depths.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=19}}{{cite book |last=Stichweh |first=Dirk |title=New York Skyscrapers |publisher=Prestel Publishing |year=2016 |isbn=978-3-7913-8226-5 |page=161 |oclc=923852487}} The setbacks are decorated with limestone-trimmed friezes containing black ornament.{{cite book |last=Nash |first=Eric |title=Manhattan Skyscrapers |publisher=Princeton Architectural Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-56898-652-4 |publication-place=New York |page=39 |oclc=407907000}} Limestone windowsills were used on the facades facing the street, and precast concrete was used above setbacks at places where these windows could not be seen from street level. The windows on these stories are all sash windows, two per bay on each floor. The capitals of the piers are clad in light green faience with small rosettes.

The 20th through 38th stories comprise the "tower" of the building. The setbacks atop the tower are more gradual from the northern and southern elevations, while the eastern and western elevations set back more abruptly to the penthouse. The tower section measures only two bays wide on its western and eastern elevations. An orange-and-green belt course of faience tiles runs above the 31st floor.

Near the top of the building, there are faience panels with sunburst designs on the north and south elevations, with red, orange, gold, and green tiles. The sunburst designs were used to symbolize progress, while winged griffons depicting integrity and watchfulness flank each sunburst. Two beehives, each surrounded by five bees, separate the sunbursts and griffins. The narrower west and east elevations contain mosaic depictions of Mercury, the Roman god of trade. Faience spandrels and an orange-and-green frieze depicting serpents are placed above the 38th floor. The windows of the penthouse are arranged in several configurations. A metal fire escape runs along the eastern elevation. Atop the penthouse is a flat roof with a water tower. The use of a flat roof deviated from previous Art Deco designs, which typically had stepped pinnacles. The rooftop water tower contains bas reliefs on green background surrounded by a frame of red faience. At night, the building's pinnacle was illuminated.

File:FredFrenchBuildingElevator.jpg

The Fred F. French Building contained the most up-to-date designs and machinery when it was completed. Its innovations included an electric plumbing system, automatic elevators, and lighting and ventilation systems that could be "conveniently controlled", as described in the French Companies' magazine The Voice.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=20}} The building also contains bronze ornamental work created by Russian-American artist Vincent Glinsky.{{cite book|title=The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography|publisher=James T. White & Company|year=1979|isbn=978-0-88371-026-5|volume=58|page=36}}

The building has eleven elevators. Ten of these run from the lobby and are separated into two banks of five units each. One bank serves all stories from the 1st to 16th floors, while the other runs nonstop from the lobby to the 17th floor, serving all floors through the 35th. From the 35th floor, a single elevator rises to the 38th story. Additionally, two stairways connect each of the floors.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=9}} From the building's completion, the elevators were semi-automatically operated Otis cabs, one of the first such installations in the city. Elevator operators were retained only to push buttons for certain floors upon passengers' request and to bypass floors when the cabs were full.{{cite news|date=February 13, 1927|title=Push Button Now Master of Speedy Building "Lift": "Elevator" in French Building Must Obey Little Contrivance Either in the Car or on Each Floor|page=C2|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1113521968/774D7528F23D4117PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164456/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1113521968/774D7528F23D4117PQ|url-status=live}}

The first-floor lobby is L-shaped and consists of a longer wing extending west from the elevator lobby to Fifth Avenue, as well as a shorter corridor to the 45th Street entrance vestibule. The lobby walls are clad with marble.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=7}} The lobby contains decorative details such as chevrons, palmettes, volutes, merlons, and lotus flowers as well as representations of animals such as lions and winged bulls. The passageway from 45th Street is wider because the main entrance is on that side.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior|1986|ps=.|p=10}}

The passageway from Fifth Avenue is narrower and is divided by pilasters into several bays, each of which contains a multicolored vault with beasts and pattern. A gilded plaster frieze runs near the top of the wall.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior|1986|ps=.|p=11}} The revolving doors from Fifth Avenue are flanked by capitals with double bulls' heads, inspired by those that were originally in the Palace of Darius in Susa. The design of the Fifth Avenue corridor was intended to draw visitors from the entrance to the elevator hall, and it also concealed the slight downward slope that existed between the Fifth Avenue and 45th Street entrances.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|pp=7–8}}

The elevator lobby contains several decorative bronze elements. The walls have three tenant-directory boards with ornamental bronze frames. The gilt-bronze double-leaf elevator doors in the lobby modeled in low relief by metallurgist Oscar Bach{{Cite web |title= |url="Bronze Doors Kept in Elevator Conversion." New York Times (1923-), 17 June, 1962, pp. 232. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/bronze-doors-kept-elevator-conversion/docview/116115120}} each have eight panels (four on each leaf) depicting sectors in which Fred French had businesses, including industry, commerce, finance, and building. Eight bronze chandeliers are present in the lobby, which contain inscriptions indicating the floors served by the adjacent elevators. Also in the lobby are five gilt-bronze doors leading to offices, with similar designs to the elevator doors, as well as three gilt-bronze doors of simpler design.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=8}} An Assyrian Revival mailbox is mounted on the wall between the two elevator banks; the mailbox contains a depiction of a bald eagle, the symbol of the United States Post Office, as well as two winged griffins.

The building has approximately {{convert|430,000|ft2}} for rent.{{cite web|date=October 16, 2012|title=MetLife Lends $130Mln Against Manhattan's Fred F. French Building|url=https://crenews.com/2012/10/16/metlife-lends-130mln-against-manhattans-fred-french-building/|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 11, 2020|website=Commercial Real Estate Direct|archive-date=December 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215155856/https://crenews.com/2012/10/16/metlife-lends-130mln-against-manhattans-fred-french-building/|url-status=live}} The upper stories have different floor areas and shapes, and the higher floors had smaller areas because of the setbacks on the exterior. The 2nd through 11th stories had {{Convert|16000|ft2||abbr=}} per floor; the 29th through 35th stories in the tower have {{Convert|4000|ft2||abbr=}} per floor; and the penthouse has {{Convert|2400|ft2||abbr=}} per floor. The stories of the base have a floor plan that is clustered around a largely L-shaped passageway. The upper floors have passageways in various layouts to reflect the different shapes and sizes of each story. Usually, on stories where a tenant rented an entire floor, the layout of that floor contained an open plan.

Unlike the lobby, the office stories were not decorated in the Mesopotamian style and were instead designed to tenants' specifications.{{harvnb|Macaulay-Lewis|2021|ps=.|p=80}} Some floors still contain their original furnishings, including mail chutes made of glass and bronze, as well as room-number signs and elevator floor indicators made of bronze. The interiors were originally finished with a marble molding at the baseboard, as well as wooden doorways and doors. Tenants modified the interiors on some floors with a myriad of designs, although some modern finishes were placed on top of the original furnishings. The remodeled floors contain finishes made of carpet, stone tiles, plastic tiles, or wood floors. The remodeled walls are made of sheetrock or paper, and they have baseboards made of plastic, stone, or wood. Dropped ceilings are used in almost all locations where the interiors were remodeled.

On the 12th and 13th floors were the French Companies' offices, designed in the Tudor style, an allusion to the design of Tudor City.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=11}}{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=21}} The 12th floor remains largely intact but some of these finishes were changed after the Fred F. French Company moved out during the 1980s. The 12th-floor elevator lobby contains green carpets, stone walls, a decorative plaster coffered ceiling, and marble baseboards and door surrounds. A circular stair west of the elevators leads to the 13th floor and contains green marble risers, black stone steps, and a handrail and balustrade made of bronze.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|pp=9–10}} From the elevator lobby, a doorway leads to a rectangular reception hall with predominantly green and white designs; the walls and ceiling are similar to the elevator lobby, but the tile floors and baseboards are made of black marble. An I-shaped reception area for the Fred F. French Company is to the east of the reception hall and contains wooden decorative elements and black marble floors. A conference room with wood decorations is south of the reception hall. A corridor with wood decorations and dropped ceiling leads east of the reception hall and south of the French Company reception area. At the eastern end of the French Company reception area is the rectangular executive secretary's office, with cast ornamental details on the ceiling.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=10}} Fred French's office was "reputed" to be in the L-shaped room north of the executive secretary's office and had similar decoration.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|pp=10–11}}

File:Fred F French Building (48155644417).jpg

Fifth Avenue was being developed with office and commercial buildings at the beginning of the 20th century.{{cite web|last=Klose|first=Olivia|date=December 14, 2010|title=500 Fifth Avenue|url=https://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2427.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121224100554/http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/reports/2427.pdf|archive-date=December 24, 2012|publisher=New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission|page=2}} The completion of the underground Grand Central Terminal in 1913 resulted in the rapid development of Terminal City, the area around Grand Central, as well as a corresponding increase in real-estate prices.{{Cite book |last1=Fitch |first1=James Marston |url=https://archive.org/stream/grandcentralterm00fitc |title=Grand Central Terminal and Rockefeller Center: A Historic-Critical Estimate of Their Significance |last2=Waite |first2=Diana S. |date=1974 |publisher=The Division |location=Albany, New York |pages=6 |language=en}}{{harvnb|Macaulay-Lewis|2021|ps=.|p=77}} By the 1920s, Fifth Avenue was the most active area for development in Midtown, and developers were starting to build north of 45th Street, which had previously been considered the boundary for profitable developments.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|pp=2–3}}{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|pp=14–15}}{{cite news|date=July 25, 1926|title=Millions of Dollars for New Buildings Invested in the Fifth Avenue Area: Steady Increase Shown in Real Estate Values|page=RE1|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/103796193/9335A1A67FEB4160PQ/|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|issn=0362-4331|via=ProQuest}} The most active year for construction in that decade was 1926, when thirty office buildings were constructed on Fifth Avenue.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=14}}{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=2}}{{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=Cervin|url=https://archive.org/stream/skyscraperstylea0000robi|title=Skyscraper Style : Art Deco, New York|last2=Haag Bletter|first2=Rosemarie|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1975|isbn=978-0-19-502112-7|publication-place=New York|page=12|oclc=1266717|author-link=Cervin Robinson|author-link2=Rosemarie Haag Bletter|url-access=registration}} The two-block-wide area between Fifth and Park Avenues represented eight percent of Manhattan's land area, but it constituted twenty-five percent of developments that commenced in the borough between 1924 and 1926.

The French Companies was founded in 1910, and it built a 16-story headquarters at Madison Avenue and 41st Street in 1920. By the mid-1920s, the company was one of New York City's largest development firms, and it was looking for a new site for its headquarters.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=4}}{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=16}} Among the French Companies' largest projects was the Tudor City apartment complex on the east side of Manhattan.

Fred French bought {{Convert|19000|ft2||abbr=}} at the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and 45th Street in March 1925, with frontage of {{Convert|200|ft||abbr=}} on 45th Street and {{Convert|78.5|ft||abbr=}} on Fifth Avenue.{{cite news|date=March 20, 1925|title=Fred F. French Companies Buy Big Plot on Fifth Avenue and Forty-Fifth Street|page=34|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/103498243|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164453/https://www.proquest.com/docview/103498243/8A1031DD6AA24125PQ/3|id={{ProQuest|103498243}} |url-status=live}}{{cite news|date=March 22, 1925|title=Echo of French Deal Will Long Be Heard on Fifth Avenue: Purchase of 45th Street Corner and Development of Half-Acre Site With 31-Story Building Will Shake Loose From Old Owners Many Properties in Neighborhood; New Building Era for Section|page=B1|work=The New York Herald, New York Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1112915764/FB8C3A1292C9411BPQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|via=ProQuest}} He planned to build a 31-story office building for the French Companies' headquarters, with a banking hall on the lower stories. At the time, the site contained the Church of the Heavenly Rest, as well as four residential buildings and one office building. The land had cost an average of {{Convert|285|$/ft2||abbr=}}{{efn|Equivalent to {{cvt|{{inflation|fmt=c|value=285|index=US-GDP|start_year=1925}}|$/ft2}} in {{inflation/year|US-GDP}}{{inflation/fn|US-GDP}}}} significantly higher than their mid-19th century cost of {{cvt|2.85|$/ft2}},{{efn|Equivalent to {{cvt|{{inflation|fmt=c|value=2.85|index=US-GDP|start_year=1859}}|$/ft2}} in {{inflation/year|US-GDP}}.{{inflation/fn|US-GDP}}}} but lower than the average cost of {{Convert|300|$/ft2||abbr=}} for similar plots.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=3}}{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=15}}{{efn|When the project was announced, another source initially gave the land cost as being {{cvt|250|$/ft2}}, equivalent to {{cvt|{{inflation|fmt=c|value=250|index=US-GDP|start_year=1925}}|$/ft2}} in {{inflation/year|US-GDP}}.{{inflation/fn|US-GDP}} French later confirmed the higher figure of $285 per square foot.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=21}}}} The building at the corner, measuring {{Convert|25|by|110|ft|abbr=}}, alone had cost $300,000.

The French Companies obtained title to the site in May 1925.{{cite news|date=May 1, 1925|title=Title to Fifth Avenue Corner Passes to Fred F. French Co.|page=35|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/103601335|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164455/https://www.proquest.com/docview/103601335/52BE367B626545DFPQ/3|id={{ProQuest|103601335}} |url-status=live}} Sloan & Robertson filed preliminary plans for the Fred F. French Building that August.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|p=9}}{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=19}} At the time, the building was expected to be completed in early 1927 at a cost of $10 million.{{cite news|date=August 26, 1925|title=Plans Filed for Commercial Skyscraper at Fifth Avenue and Forty-Fifth St.|page=31|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/103634912|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|issn=0362-4331|id={{ProQuest|103634912}} }} The building would have risen 31 stories and {{Convert|385|ft||abbr=}}. A subsequent two-story addition was rejected because it did not fit zoning codes, which Sloan & Robertson appealed. Ultimately, the architects were granted a variance to construct a 38-story, {{Convert|416.58|ft|0|abbr=|adj=on}} building, the second tallest in the surrounding area, behind only H. Craig Severance's {{Convert|432|ft|0|abbr=|adj=on}} Harriman Building at 44th Street and Fifth Avenue. Final plans for the Fred F. French Building were filed in March 1926.{{cite news|date=March 21, 1926|title=Final Fifth Avenue Plans.: 35-Story Skyscraper at 45th Street to Be Completed Jan 1, 1927|page=RE2|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/103870052/D9A3A6C8E45B4B94PQ/|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|issn=0362-4331|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164504/https://www.proquest.com/docview/103870052/D9A3A6C8E45B4B94PQ|url-status=live}}

Construction on the Fred F. French Building commenced on May 22, 1926, and the steel frame was topped out within four months. In October 1926, a $4.5 million mortgage was placed on the building.{{cite news|date=October 8, 1926|title=$4,500,000 Lent On French Building|page=41|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1112977516/ED923162B84243B5PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164504/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1112977516/ED923162B84243B5PQ|url-status=live}}{{cite news|date=October 10, 1926|title=Loan $4,500,000 On New Fred F. French Building For 5Th Ave, Manhattan|page=D1|work=Brooklyn Daily Eagle|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60994236/|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=newspapers.com {{open access}}|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164455/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60994236/loan-4500000-on-new-fred-f-french/|url-status=live}} For unknown reasons, the project was delayed by seven months, and it opened on October 24, 1927. Had the Fred F. French Building opened on time, it would have claimed the title of tallest building along Fifth Avenue, but ultimately it was the second-tallest behind the Harriman Building.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|ps=.|pp=9–10}} The Fred F. French Building was the French Companies' first commercial building to be completed under the "French Plan", a company philosophy that prioritized small returns on large ventures, rather than large returns on small ventures.{{harvnb|National Park Service|2003|ps=.|p=17}} Furthermore, the Fred F. French Building was one of the first retail skyscrapers to be built on this section of Fifth Avenue.{{Cite news|last=Goldberger|first=Paul|author-link=Paul Goldberger|date=December 15, 1984|title=5th Ave., At Its Brightest, Sees Shadows of Change|page=25|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/15/nyregion/5th-ave-at-its-brightest-sees-shadows-of-change.html|url-status=live|access-date=October 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180130162330/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/15/nyregion/5th-ave-at-its-brightest-sees-shadows-of-change.html|archive-date=January 30, 2018|issn=0362-4331}}

File:FredFrenchBuildingMailbox.jpgThe French Companies heavily marketed its new building in its magazine The Voice, and the building was quickly occupied.{{harvnb|Macaulay-Lewis|2021|ps=.|p=78}} Among the earliest large tenants in the building were clothier Browning, King & Co.;{{cite news|date=November 12, 1926|title=Real Estate Transactions in City and Suburbs: Fifth Avenue Space Leased For $1,250,000 Browning, King & Co. Locate in 38 Story French Building Going Up at 45th St. Corner; Other Rentals|page=37|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1112722644/381434898B54A96PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 7, 2020|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164507/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1112722644/381434898B54A96PQ|url-status=live}} real estate auctioneers William Kennelly Inc;{{Cite news|date=January 20, 1929|title=Kennelly Firm Joins Uptown Movement; Auctioneers to Move From Lower Broadway to the French Building on Fifth Avenue|page=RE1|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1929/01/20/archives/kennelly-firm-joins-uptown-movement-auctioneers-to-move-from-lower.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013000934/https://www.nytimes.com/1929/01/20/archives/kennelly-firm-joins-uptown-movement-auctioneers-to-move-from-lower.html|url-status=live}} luggage manufacturer Crouch & Fitzgerald;{{cite news|date=January 31, 1927|title=Real Estate in City and Suburbs: Luggage Concern To Pay $1,000,000 Rental on Fifth Ave. Leases Store in New French Building; New Tenants for Loft and Office Structures in Mid-Town Section|page=26|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1113623428|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164514/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1113623428/774D7528F23D4117PQ/8|id={{ProQuest|1113623428}} |url-status=live}} pulp and paper firm Perkins-Goodwin Company;{{cite news|date=March 15, 1927|title=Pulp, Paper Concern Takes Large Space On Fifth Avenue: Perkins-Good Win Co. Takes Lease on 27th Floor in New French Building; Other Rentals in Midtown Section|page=26|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1130474513/774D7528F23D4117PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=ProQuest}} a ticket office for the St. Paul Railroad;{{cite news|date=March 24, 1927|title=St. Paul Railroad Will Pay $1,500,000 For 5Th Ave. Store: Ticket Office in French Building Will Cost Western Road $130 Square Ft.; Rent Shows Bin Advance|page=32|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1130493406|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164507/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1130493406/774D7528F23D4117PQ/12|id={{ProQuest|1130493406}} |url-status=live}} and the American Broadcasting Company.{{Cite news|date=October 15, 1928|title=Coast Chain Office Here.; American Broadcasting Company Opens Quarters at 551 Fifth Av.|page=R28|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1928/10/15/archives/coast-chain-office-here-american-broadcasting-company-opens.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 8, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 10, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010014029/https://www.nytimes.com/1928/10/15/archives/coast-chain-office-here-american-broadcasting-company-opens.html|url-status=live}} The ground-level space at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 45th Street used as a restaurant operated by Acker, Merral & Condit.{{cite news|date=February 8, 1927|title=Fifth Avenue Space Leased For Restaurant: 9,000 Square Feet Acquired by Acker, Merrall & Condit Co. In New French Building, 45th St. Corner|page=36|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1113516270|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|id={{ProQuest|1113516270}} }} Three years after the building's completion, H. Douglas Ives filed plans to turn the 36th and 37th floors of the penthouse into offices. The Fred F. French Building also saw several deaths in its early years, including the suicides of workers in the building,{{Cite news|date=January 5, 1932|title=Man, Once Wealthy, Ends Life by Shot; Former Corset Manufacturer, Facing Forgery Charge, Left Note, Saying Friends Quit Him|page=5|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1932/01/05/archives/man-once-wealthy-ends-life-by-shot-former-corset-manufacturer.html|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=December 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215162037/https://www.nytimes.com/1932/01/05/archives/man-once-wealthy-ends-life-by-shot-former-corset-manufacturer.html|url-status=live}}{{cite news|date=November 15, 1938|title=Woman Falls 23 Stories After Notifying Friends: Had Planned Suicide 2 Months Before Fifth Avenue Leap|page=25|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1255842173|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164445/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1255842173/881788A209514DB5PQ/10|id={{ProQuest|1255842173}} |url-status=live}} as well as the accidental crushing of an elevator repairman.{{Cite news|date=March 31, 1945|title=Elevator Kills Worker; Repairman Crushed to Death in a Fifth Avenue Building|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1945/03/31/archives/elevator-kills-worker-repairman-crushed-to-death-in-a-fifth-avenue.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=December 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215162151/https://www.nytimes.com/1945/03/31/archives/elevator-kills-worker-repairman-crushed-to-death-in-a-fifth-avenue.html|url-status=live}}

By 1934, the ground-floor corner space in the Fred F. French Building had become a French restaurant.{{cite news|date=January 27, 1934|title=Real Estate News: Large Midtown Quarters Taken By Restaurant Max Fisher, Wm. Frieber Rent in French Building; Paint, Paper Firms Lease|page=25|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1240086757/774D7528F23D4117PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164505/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1240086757/774D7528F23D4117PQ|url-status=live}} During the mid-20th century, the Fred F. French Building gained other tenants such as diamond dealer Louis Roselaar,{{Cite news|date=July 31, 1941|title=Big Space Leased by Diamond Dealer; Louis Roselaar, With Branches in Europe, Takes Offices in 551 Fifth Avenue|page=31|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1941/07/31/archives/big-space-leased-by-diamond-dealer-louis-roselaar-with-branches-in.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019221640/https://www.nytimes.com/1941/07/31/archives/big-space-leased-by-diamond-dealer-louis-roselaar-with-branches-in.html|url-status=live}} the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation,{{cite news|date=April 1, 1935|title=47 Fellowships Are Awarded by Guggenheim: Memorial Foundation Gives Annual Aid to Artists and Scholars of America|page=9|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1246391182/493596AC39FF4E59PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164452/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1246391182/493596AC39FF4E59PQ|url-status=live}} and the Brazilian government's trade bureau,{{cite news|date=March 31, 1952|title=Trade Bureau a Bit of Brazil in Fifth Avenue: It Received 8 Queries a Month in 1935, And Now 141 Questions Are Asked Daily; Brazilian Products Are on Exhibition There|page=58|work=New York Herald Tribune|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1322075412/ACB2354D84A4BA4PQ|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=ProQuest|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164503/https://www.proquest.com/docview/1322075412/ACB2354D84A4BA4PQ|url-status=live}} as well as several advertising firms{{Cite news|date=March 15, 1944|title=Advertising Firms Stay in 551 5Th Ave.; Four Renew Leases in the Fred F. French Building|page=30|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1944/03/15/archives/advertising-firms-stay-in-551-5th-ave-four-renew-leases-in-the-fred.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=December 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215162421/https://www.nytimes.com/1944/03/15/archives/advertising-firms-stay-in-551-5th-ave-four-renew-leases-in-the-fred.html|url-status=live}} and three insurance companies.{{Cite news|date=March 20, 1942|title=Buildings Fill Up in Midtown Area; Late Rentals Complete the Leasing of Three Business Structures in Section|page=36|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1942/03/20/archives/buildings-fill-up-in-midtown-area-late-rentals-complete-the-leasing.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013021849/https://www.nytimes.com/1942/03/20/archives/buildings-fill-up-in-midtown-area-late-rentals-complete-the-leasing.html|url-status=live}} The ground-floor corner space became home to The Cattleman restaurant by 1967.{{Cite news|date=October 18, 1967|title=Ellman Will Head Longchamps Chain|page=71|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1967/10/18/archives/ellman-will-head-longchamps-chain.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=October 12, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=October 14, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201014152235/https://www.nytimes.com/1967/10/18/archives/ellman-will-head-longchamps-chain.html|url-status=live}}

The building was purchased by financial services company MetLife in 1985, and the French Companies subsequently moved out. During the 1990s, the Fred F. French Building underwent a complete restoration. Although the faience panels were largely undamaged, the terracotta was replaced because of rust. The lobby was re-gilt and the ceiling was repainted; in addition, the elevators from the lobby were totally replaced. The renovation earned the Building Owners and Managers Association's 1994/1995 Historic Building of the Year Award. Pace University rented some space in the building for use as classrooms in 1997.{{Cite news|last=Chen|first=David W.|date=April 17, 1997|title=New Center for Pace|page=B12|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/04/17/nyregion/new-center-for-pace.html|url-status=live|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229004152/https://www.nytimes.com/1997/04/17/nyregion/new-center-for-pace.html|archive-date=December 29, 2017|issn=0362-4331}}

A group of investors led by The Feil Organization bought the Fred F. French Building for $128 million as part of a move by MetLife to sell off its real estate portfolio. The partnership included Lloyd Goldman and his family, as well as Stanley Chera.{{Cite news|last=Bagli|first=Charles V.|date=December 24, 2002|title=Metro Briefing {{!}} New York: Manhattan: Landmark Changes Hands|page=B6|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/24/nyregion/metro-briefing-new-york-manhattan-landmark-changes-hands.html|url-status=live|url-access=limited|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010090620/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/24/nyregion/metro-briefing-new-york-manhattan-landmark-changes-hands.html|archive-date=October 10, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}{{cite news|last=Herman|first=Eric|date=November 20, 2002|title=French Lessons|page=54|work=New York Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60993668/|access-date=October 12, 2020|via=newspapers.com {{open access}}|archive-date=March 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316164456/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60993668/french-lessons/|url-status=live}}{{cite book|last=Bagli|first=Charles V.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0uVvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA85|title=Other People's Money: Inside the Housing Crisis and the Demise of the Greatest Real Estate Deal Ever Made|publisher=Plume|year=2014|isbn=978-0-14-218071-6|page=85|lccn=2013045940|access-date=October 12, 2020|archive-date=January 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120163805/https://books.google.com/books?id=0uVvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA85|url-status=live}} At the time, Morton's The Steakhouse was among the tenants in the Fred F. French Building, as was the British Tourist Authority. In 2012, retailer Tommy Bahama opened a three-story flagship store and restaurant in the Fred F. French Building.{{Cite news|last=Levere|first=Jane L.|date=September 4, 2012|title=The Heart of Fifth Avenue Shopping Is Edging to the South|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/05/realestate/commercial/the-heart-of-fifth-avenue-shopping-edges-to-the-south.html|url-status=live|url-access=limited|access-date=October 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201011104218/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/05/realestate/commercial/the-heart-of-fifth-avenue-shopping-edges-to-the-south.html|archive-date=October 11, 2020|issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite magazine|last=Palmieri|first=Jean E.|date=November 15, 2012|title=Tommy Bahama Throws Anchor On Fifth Avenue|url=https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/tommy-bahama-throws-anchor-on-fifth-avenue-6488100/|url-status=live|magazine=Women's Wear Daily|volume=204|issue=103|archive-url=https://archive.today/20201215163329/https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/tommy-bahama-throws-anchor-on-fifth-avenue-6488100/|archive-date=December 15, 2020|access-date=December 15, 2020}} By the middle of that decade, the building had tenants such as Denihan Hospitality Group, ABM Industries, and law firm Kleinberg, Kaplan, Wolff & Cohen.{{cite web|date=March 13, 2019|title=551 Fifth Avenue – TRD Research|url=https://therealdeal.com/new-research/topics/property/551-fifth-avenue/|access-date=October 8, 2020|website=The Real Deal|archive-date=October 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201012212303/https://therealdeal.com/new-research/topics/property/551-fifth-avenue/|url-status=live}}

There was mixed commentary on the Fred F. French Building's design. George S. Chappell lamented the "rows of dreary factory windows" in The New Yorker, rhetorically commenting: "Can't the Fifth Avenue Association do something about this?" The WPA Guide to New York City described the faience panels as being "of questionable taste."{{Cite fednyc|page=218}} Other criticism of the building was more positive. Paul Goldberger of The New York Times called the building one of the "best slab-shaped buildings of the 1920's".{{Cite news|last=Goldberger|first=Paul|author-link=Paul Goldberger|date=April 30, 1986|title=Carnegie Hall Details Plans for Office Tower|page=C19|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/04/30/arts/carnegie-hall-details-plans-for-office-tower.html|url-status=live|access-date=October 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524194608/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/04/30/arts/carnegie-hall-details-plans-for-office-tower.html|archive-date=May 24, 2015|issn=0362-4331}} Upon its opening, the building was characterized as being "one of the most popular business palaces in the entire midtown section" because of its technologically advanced systems, central location, and elaborate decoration. The writer Elizabeth Macaulay-Lewis said in 2021 that the Fred F. French Building "embodies the eclectic nature of many Neo-Antique buildings".

The building's shape was also praised. According to the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), the Fred F. French Building so exactly conformed to the 1916 Zoning Resolution that it was illustrated in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language to accompany the definition of the word "setback".{{cite book|last=Tauranac|first=John|title=Essential New York : A Guide to the History and Architecture of Manhattan's Important Buildings, Parks, And Bridges|publisher=Holt, Rinehart, and Winston|year=1979|isbn=978-0-03-042626-1|publication-place=New York|page=155|oclc=4494970|author-link=John Tauranac}} The AIA Guide to New York City characterized the building as being "from the days when even the greediest developer owed serious and intricate architectural detail and materials to the tenant and public".{{cite aia5|page=328}} Robert A. M. Stern said that the Fred F. French Building "demonstrated that a slab could retain the iconic clarity of the skyscraper type and provide more rentable space per square foot of ground area". The Fred F. French Building's name also received notice; as the British broadcaster Alistair Cooke said, "It was marvelous that here a man should not only get his name on a building, but get his name with his middle initial on a building."{{cite news|last=Kakutani|first=Michiko|author-link=Michiko Kakutani|date=November 8, 1979|title=TV Dinners Vs. High Tea|pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60994039/ 23], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60993966/ 24]|work=Democrat and Chronicle}}

In the 1980s, a group of preservationists began surveying the city's buildings for possible sites that could be designated as interior landmarks by the LPC, with the Fred F. French Building's lobby being considered as one such landmark.{{Cite news|last=Miller|first=Bryan|date=February 18, 1982|title=Volunteers Tracking Down New York's Significant Interiors|page=C6|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/02/18/garden/volunteers-tracking-down-new-york-s-significant-interiors.html|url-status=live|access-date=October 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524110954/https://www.nytimes.com/1982/02/18/garden/volunteers-tracking-down-new-york-s-significant-interiors.html|archive-date=May 24, 2015|issn=0362-4331}} The LPC designated the building and its lobby as city landmarks on March 18, 1986.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986|p=1}}; {{harvnb|ps=.|Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior|1986|p=1}} In its report about the building's interior, the LPC described the building as having a "proto-Art Deco" design.{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior|1986|ps=.|p=21}} The building was also listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 28, 2004.{{cite web|date=2004|title=National Register of Historic Places 2004 Weekly Lists|url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2004-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201014005428/https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2004-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf|archive-date=October 14, 2020|access-date=July 20, 2020|publisher=National Park Service|page=21}}

{{Portal|Architecture|New York City|NRHP}}

• Architecture of New York City
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{{Notelist}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite report |date=March 18, 1986 |title=Fred F. French Building |url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1415.pdf |publisher=New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission |ref={{harvid|Landmarks Preservation Commission|1986}}}}
• {{cite report |date=March 18, 1986 |title=Fred F. French Building Interior |url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1416.pdf |publisher=New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission |ref={{harvid|Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior|1986}}}}
• {{cite report |date=December 19, 2003 |title=Fred F. French Building |url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/03001514.pdf |publisher=National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service |ref={{harvid|National Park Service|2003}}}}
• {{cite book |last=Macaulay-Lewis |first=Elizabeth |title=Antiquity in Gotham: The Ancient Architecture of New York City |publisher=Fordham University Press |date=2021 |isbn=978-0-8232-9384-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GwyjzQEACAAJ |oclc=1176326519}}

{{Commons category|Fred F. French Building}}

• {{Official website|https://551fifthavenueny.com/}}

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{{National Register of Historic Places in New York}}

Category:1927 establishments in New York City

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Category:New York City interior landmarks

Category:New York State Register of Historic Places in New York County

Category:Office buildings completed in 1927

Category:Office buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan

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