The Octagon (Roosevelt Island)
{{Short description|Building in Manhattan, New York}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| name = The Octagon
| nrhp_type = nrhp
| image = The-octagon-roosevelt-island.jpg
| caption = Aerial view
| location = 888 Main Street, Roosevelt Island, Manhattan, NY, 10044 United States
| coordinates = {{coord|40|46|8.42|N|73|56|38.13|W|display=inline,title}}
| district_map = {{Maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=270|frame-height=180|zoom=13|type=point|title=The Octagon|description=Historic New York City landmark|marker=}}
| map_caption = Interactive map highlighting the location of the Octagon
| area =
| built = 1835
| architect = Alexander Jackson Davis
| architecture = Octagon Mode
| added = March 16, 1972
| refnum = 72000880{{NRISref|2007a}}
| designated_other2_name = New York City Landmark
| designated_other2_date = March 23, 1976
| designated_other2_abbr = NYCL
| designated_other2_number = 0910
| designated_other2_link = New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission
| designated_other2_color = #ffe978
| designated_other1 = New York State Register of Historic Places
| designated_other1_number = 06101.000499
| designated_other1_num_position = bottom
| designated_other1_abbr = NYSRHP
| designated_other1_date = June 23, 1980
}}
The Octagon, built in 1834, is a historic octagonal building and attached apartment block complex located at 888 Main Street on Roosevelt Island in New York City.
It originally served as the main entrance to the New York City Mental Health Hospital (also known as the New York City Lunatic Asylum), which opened in 1841. Designed by Alexander Jackson Davis, the five-story rotunda was made of blue-gray stone that was quarried on the island. The Octagon is the last remnant of the hospital, and after many years of decay and two fires, was close to ruin. After restoration, it has now been incorporated into the adjacent buildings to create a large apartment complex. Mistreatment of patients at the asylum was the center of the exposé by Nellie Bly in her 1887 book Ten Days in a Mad-House.
History
The structure was built as part of the New York City Mental Health Hospital in 1841 and was incorporated into the Metropolitan Hospital in 1894. The Octagon, as a Metropolitan Hospital building, closed in 1955, leaving the building abandoned.{{cite web|url=http://www.octagonnyc.com/history|title=History|publisher=|accessdate=March 10, 2016}} On March 16, 1972, despite its condition, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.{{cite web|url=http://www.rihs.us/landmarks/octagon.htm|title=Roosevelt Island Historical Society|publisher=|accessdate=March 10, 2016}}
The Octagon was the last remnant of the hospital, and after many years of decay and two fires, was close to ruin. In April 2006, after restoration, the renovated Octagon reopened as the lobby entrance to a pair of adjacent apartment buildings with 500 units in total.Gray, Christopher, [https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9403E3DE1138F930A15752C0A9639C8B63&fta=y "STREETSCAPES/The Octagon on Roosevelt Island; A Once-Grand 1839 Tower Is Given a New Life"], The New York Times, January 23, 2005Vita, Tricia, [http://www.nationaltrust.org/magazine/archives/arch_story/042503.htm "Restoring Roosevelt Island's Ruins: A developer has plans for a former asylum beside Manhattan"], Preservation (magazine), National Trust for Historic Preservation, April 25, 2003
=Sustainability=
The new apartment complex utilizes both solar panels and fuel cell installations. A 50 kW array of solar panels and a 400 kW fuel cell enable the building to generate more than 50% of its power.{{cite web|url=http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/18/fuel-cells-a-clean-energy-alternative-at-new-world-trade-center-new-york-citys-octagon/|title=Fuel Cells: A Clean Energy Alternative at New World Trade Center, New York City's Octagon - CleanTechnica|work=CleanTechnica|date=December 18, 2011|accessdate=March 10, 2016}} The fuel cell is a combined heat and power system that converts natural gas to electricity and heat via a combustion-free, electrochemical process. This system provides power and heat that meets the majority of the building's energy demand, and the efficiency it achieves is higher than the energy received from the power grid. Not only does the system provide more efficient energy usage, the heat from the process is also used for the building's space heating and domestic water requirements. Thus the Octagon is projected to reduce its carbon emissions by 790 metric tons annually.{{cite web|url=http://greenbuildingelements.com/2011/05/29/octagon-apartment-community-is-the-first-in-new-york-powered-by-fuel-cell/|title=Octagon Apartment Community is the First in New York Powered By Fuel Cell|work=Green Building Elements|date=May 29, 2011|accessdate=March 10, 2016}}
The Octagon received the largest initial award of New York State Green Building Tax Credits and was recognized in the first New York City Green Buildings Competition with the "Green Apple Award" for leadership in applying sustainable design principles to residential development. In 2006, a newly constructed residential building was built on the site, modeled on the original structure. It received LEED Silver status from the U.S. Green Building Council in 2008.{{cite press release |date=May 27, 2011 |title=First Fuel Cell to Power Residential Building in New York |url=http://www.utcpower.com/pressroom/pressreleases/first-fuel-cell-to-power-residential-building-in-new-york |url-status=dead |publisher=UTC Power |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110925052056/http://www.utcpower.com/pressroom/pressreleases/first-fuel-cell-to-power-residential-building-in-new-york |archive-date=September 25, 2011 |access-date=September 12, 2022}}
468 NEW-YORK CITY ASYLUM FOR THE INSANE (WOMAN) BLACKWELL'S ISLAND.jpg|The main building in 1893
Welfare Island Insane Asylum EAST SIDE HABS NY,31-WELFI,6-1.jpg|Rotunda as it appeared in 1970
Welfare island insane asylum STAIRCASE HABS NY,31-WELFI,6-4.jpg|Original interior stairway, second floor
Nellie Bly-Mad-House-11.png|As depicted in Ten Days in a Mad-House
The-octagon.jpg|Appearance in 2017
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|The Octagon (Roosevelt Island)}}
- {{official website|http://www.octagonnyc.com/bldgHistory.asp}}
- [http://rihs.us/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=26&Itemid=36 New York City Landmark description and history]
- [http://forgotten-ny.com/2005/11/forgotten-tour-23-roosevelt-island-manhattan/ Forgotten NY on Roosevelt Island including the Octagon]
{{Roosevelt Island}}
{{New York City Historic Sites}}
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Octagon}}
Category:1830s architecture in the United States
Category:1835 establishments in New York (state)
Category:Alexander Jackson Davis buildings
Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1835
Category:Buildings and structures in Manhattan
Category:Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan
Category:New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan
Category:New York State Register of Historic Places in New York County
Category:Octagonal buildings in the United States