48 Wall Street
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48 Wall Street, formerly the Bank of New York & Trust Company Building, is a 32-story, skyscraper on the corner of Wall Street and William Street in the
Financial District A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies and other related finance corporations have their head offices. In major cities, financial districts are often home to s ...
of Lower Manhattan in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. Built in 1927–1929 in the Neo-Georgian and
Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archit ...
styles, it was designed by Benjamin Wistar Morris. The current structure is the third to be erected on the same plot, as the
Bank of New York The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, commonly known as BNY Mellon, is an American investment banking services holding company headquartered in New York City. BNY Mellon was formed from the merger of The Bank of New York and the Mellon Fina ...
had previously erected buildings on the site in 1797 and 1858. The structure was erected during a period when many skyscrapers were being erected in Lower Manhattan. 48 Wall Street is designed with many neo-Georgian details. The lowest three stories, built over a raised basement, were used as the banking floor and feature large arched windows on the second story, as well as
pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...
s over the entrances. The top of the building contains a
cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, fro ...
designed in the
Federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
style and topped by a statue of an eagle. The Bank of New York moved out of 48 Wall Street in 1998, after which it was renovated extensively.
Museum of American Finance The Museum of American Finance is the United States's only independent public museum dedicated to preserving, exhibiting and teaching about American finance and financial history. Located in the Financial District in Manhattan, New York City, it ...
occupied the former banking hall from 2007 to 2018; it was replaced by Will & Wall, a multi-purpose event venue. The building was designated a city landmark by the
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...
in 1998 and was added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
(NRHP) in 2003. It is also a contributing property to the Wall Street Historic District, a NRHP district created in 2007.


Site

48 Wall Street is located at the northeast corner of
Wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including: * Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the sup ...
and William Streets, facing Wall Street to the south and William Street to the west. The building has a frontage of on Wall Street and on William Street. The lot is largely rectangular with small variations.
55 Wall Street 55 Wall Street, formerly known as the National City Bank Building, is an eight-story building on Wall Street between William and Hanover streets in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City, United States. The lowest three sto ...
is across Wall Street immediately to the south;
40 Wall Street 40 Wall Street, also known as the Trump Building, is a Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic skyscraper on Wall Street between Nassau Street (Manhattan), Nassau and William Street (Manhattan), William streets in the Financial District, Manh ...
is across William Street to the west; and 52 William Street and
60 Wall Street 60 Wall Street (formerly the J.P. Morgan Bank Building or Deutsche Bank Building) is a 55-story, skyscraper on Wall Street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City, United States. The tower was designed by Kevin Roche and ...
share the block directly to the north and east, respectively. The site slopes downward to the south, with the Wall Street side being slightly lower than the northern portion of the lot. As such, the Wall Street side is at the same elevation as the lobby on the 1st floor (which was designed like a basement), while the banking room on the second floor is slightly higher than William Street. This positioning probably reflected bank architect
Alfred Hopkins Alfred Harral Hopkins (March 14, 1870 – May 5, 1941) was an American architect, an "estate architect" who specialized in country houses and especially in model farms in an invented "vernacular" style suited to the American elite. He was a me ...
's advice that a bank on a slope allowed "a better view of the bank's interior" and that a partially-above-ground basement provided better ventilation for the departments housed there. Immediately outside the building's southeastern corner is the entrance for the Wall Street station on the New York City Subway's Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line (served by the ).


Architecture

48 Wall Street is a skyscraper designed in the neo-Georgian style, with adaptations from the
Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archit ...
style. In the 1920s, at the time of 48 Wall Street's construction, new bank buildings in New York City were typically one of two types: small buildings used solely for banking and large bank-and-office buildings that incorporated banks at their bases. Though there were roughly equal numbers of both types of building, large bank-and-office buildings were typically erected on plots with high land values, such as in the
Financial District A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies and other related finance corporations have their head offices. In major cities, financial districts are often home to s ...
. Though many contemporary bank buildings still used the
Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
and
Renaissance Revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...
styles, which were popular before
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, other buildings like 48 Wall Street tried out new styles, such as
neo-Romanesque Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...
and neo-Georgian styles.


Form

At the time of 48 Wall Street's construction, the
1916 Zoning Resolution The 1916 Zoning Resolution in New York City was the first citywide zoning code in the United States. The zoning resolution reflected both borough and local interests, and was proposed after the Equitable Building was erected in Lower Manhatta ...
necessitated the inclusion of setbacks on buildings in New York City that were above a certain height. As such, setbacks were added above the 14th, 20th, 25th, 26th, 30th, and 32nd floors. The eastern
elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Ver ...
of the building, which faces 60 Wall Street, is recessed above the 14th story, while the northern elevation facing 52 William Street is recessed above the 20th story. The eastern portion of the southern elevation (facing Wall Street) has setbacks on the 14th, 19th, 26th, 29th, and 32nd floors, and the northern portion of the western elevation (facing William Street) has a setback above the 28th story.


Facade

The facade is arranged so that the lowest stories are clad with
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
and the upper stories are faced with
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
. A large-scale program of ornamentation was used on the facade, inspired by formal Georgian models. Due to the narrow street grid of the Financial District, the surrounding skyscrapers obstruct the view of the building from many angles; as a result, most of the ornamentation is at the base, where the banking room is. All ornamentation and windows are on the western and southern elevations. The eastern and northern elevations are completely windowless with stucco walls. The section of 48 Wall Street below the first setback is 14 stories tall: this is divided into a three-story base, a nine-story midsection, and two upper stories. The base is three stories tall with rusticated granite blocks, though the rustication on the 1st story is deeper than on the 2nd and 3rd stories. The main banking entrance to 48 Wall Street is at the center of the Wall Street facade, while the main entrance to the office stories is located on the eastern section of that same facade. Both Wall Street entrances have a protruding entryway surround, which is topped by a
pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...
: the banking entrance has a segmental-arch broken pediment capped by a lantern with glass globe, and the office entrance is simpler with two panels reading and . Another elaborate entrance with a neo-Georgian surround is located on the northern end of the William Street facade (with the address 46 William Street), while a simple service entrance is located next to it. Another simple entrance to the 1st-floor retail area is at the southern end of the William Street facade. The base also incorporates two
cornerstone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over tim ...
s from the previous buildings on the site, both dating from 1797: one from the Bank of New York's structure 48 Wall Street, and the other from the United States Branch Bank Building's structure at 52 Wall Street. The 1st and 2nd stories contain five vertical bays on Wall Street and eight on William Street, each of which contain one window. The windows illuminating the double-height 2nd-floor banking room are large arched windows, except the outermost windows on each side, which are smaller rectangular windows beneath decorative metal grilles. Above the 2nd-floor windows are ornamented
keystones A keystone (or capstone) is the wedge-shaped stone at the apex of a masonry arch or typically round-shaped one at the apex of a vault. In both cases it is the final piece placed during construction and locks all the stones into position, allo ...
. The 3rd story is arranged with 10 bays on Wall Street, arranged in groupings of 2, 6, and 2, as well as with 14 bays on William Street, arranged in groupings of 1, 4, 4, 4 and 1. Above the 3rd floor is an elaborate cornice. The inscribed letters are located below the cornice on Wall Street. There are flagpoles above two of the arched 2nd-story windows on the Wall Street side, and another flagpole above the center of the 3rd story on the same facade. The mid-section of the building includes eleven stories between the 4th and 14th floors, which are divided into bays separated by
piers Piers may refer to: * Pier, a raised structure over a body of water * Pier (architecture), an architectural support * Piers (name), a given name and surname (including lists of people with the name) * Piers baronets, two titles, in the baronetages ...
. The 4th and 14th floors are arranged as "transitional stories" that contain courses atop and below the facades of both stories. The 3rd through 14th stories are each arranged with 10 bays on Wall Street, in a 2-6-2 pattern, and 14 bays on William Street, in a 1-4-4-4-1 pattern. The outermost groupings of bays on each facade are distinguished by a pattern of textured and smooth blocks beside each bay. Above the 14th story is a decorative frieze. The first setback is at the 14th story, but a four-bay-wide dormer projects from the southern elevation at the 15th story. On the western elevation, the center four bays are recessed and rise uninterrupted until the setback on the 26th story. There is little decoration, except for vertical bands and recessed panels that provide accenting, as well as other symbols such as wreaths and roundels. Some of the balustrades above each setback are also decorated with urns and
anthemia Anthemia ( el, Ανθέμια) is a former municipality in Imathia, Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at ...
. The main section of the Wall Street facade narrows significantly: the section between the 15th and 20th floors is eight bays wide; between the 21st and 25th floors is five bays wide; and between the 26th and 30th stories is three bays wide.


Roof

The section above the 30th story forms a lantern-like
cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, fro ...
with four layers. The lowest layer is composed of the 31st and 32nd stories: the former has rectangular windows and the latter has square windows. Both stories measure three by three bays wide, with round-arched,
gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...
d wings to the south and north. The second layer is a windowless octagonal section with niches cut into each corner. The third layer is cruciform-shaped, with rectangular openings on each of four sides flanked by a pair of columns, forming a
colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or cur ...
. The top layer is a windowless square mass, topped by a pyramidal roof. The lantern is designed in the Federal style. The pyramidal roof is capped by a representation of an eagle on a globe, which represented New York state. The eagle is located above the ground, and is gilded. The eagle was restored in 2008.


Interior

The office stories' lobby is from the eastern entrance on Wall Street, and is composed of an inner vestibule and elevator lobby. The walls and floors are composed of gray marble, while the ceiling is made of plaster, with glass-and-bronze lamps attached to the top. A stair with a bronze railing is located on the eastern side of the lobby. There is a letterbox on the south wall of the inner vestibule. The elevator lobby contains no elevators along the west wall, all of which have decorated bronze doors. These are separated into 'local' elevators serving lower floors and 'express' elevators running nonstop to upper floors. The banking lobby, accessed from the central entrance on Wall Street, also has a small entrance vestibule with marble walls and floors, located between the entrance and main lobby. The entrance vestibule features a stone
roundel A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in heraldry, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of diff ...
with the New York Life Insurance & Trust Company's inscription, as well as a bronze plaque with the Bank of New York's seal. Inside, doors lead to the main lobby, which is composed of two circular stairs flanking a marble compass on the floor. The banking room takes up almost the entire 2nd story, and is divided into three sections. These are the north side of the room, taking up much of the space; a raised area on the south, near the balustrade; and a narrow western section behind an arcade. The space has a black-and-white marble floor; plaster walls with marble
wainscoting Panelling (or paneling in the U.S.) is a millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was developed in antiquity to make ro ...
; and an ornamented ceiling with acoustical tiles and large chandeliers. Inside the banking room are eight arched panels that are decorated with murals: five on the north wall and three on the east wall. The north-wall panels depict scenes from the 18th century and the east-wall panels depict scenes from the 19th century. These murals were painted by James Monroe Hewlett. Also on the east wall of the banking room are screens leading to the elevator lobby. On the southeast corner is a private office, which includes a marble
fireplace mantel The fireplace mantel or mantelpiece, also known as a chimneypiece, originated in medieval times as a hood that projected over a fire grate to catch the smoke. The term has evolved to include the decorative framework around the fireplace, and c ...
and wooden decorations. The 3rd floor has the bank's original executive office. There was also a board room designed in the
Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archit ...
style, which contained
Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...
columns, round-arched doors, wainscoting, and a fireplace, and formerly an
Ernest Peixotto Ernest Clifford Peixotto (1869–1940) was an American artist, illustrator, and author. Although he was known mainly for his murals and his travel literature, his artwork also regularly appeared in ''Scribner's Magazine''. His 1916 work ''Our His ...
painting of the bank's founders. The board room is likely an imitation of that at the bank's first headquarters, the Walton family mansion. The other office spaces were unfurnished and were rented out to commercial tenants.


History


Previous buildings

The
Bank of New York The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, commonly known as BNY Mellon, is an American investment banking services holding company headquartered in New York City. BNY Mellon was formed from the merger of The Bank of New York and the Mellon Fina ...
was founded in 1784. Its first offices were in the old Walton family mansion on Pearl Street, in the current Financial District, but the bank moved to a site on Hanover Square in 1787. Nine years later, the bank's board was looking for "better facilities and a more desirable location", and voted to move to the corner of Wall and William Streets at a cost of 10,000
New York pound The pound was the currency of the province and state of New York until 1793. Initially, sterling coin circulated along with foreign currencies. This was supplemented by local paper money from 1709. Although these were denominated in £sd, they we ...
s. The new structure was constructed "with the necessary vaults for the business of the bank", and it opened on April 23, 1798. Several years later, were trimmed off the William Street side of the building when that street was widened, and the bank received compensation of $35,000 (). In subsequent years, other banks began moving to residential buildings on Wall Street, and by the 1820s, financial institutions made up the vast majority of tenants. In the mid-19th century, many Wall Street banks destroyed their former structures to erect new
Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
and
Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian ...
buildings. Among these were the Bank of New York, which in 1856 approved a plan for a four-story structure to plans by Vaux and Withers. The structure was completed in 1858. The brownstone and brick building measured on William Street and on Wall Street. The interior banking room, with a ceiling high, was located at the building's rear (north) end on the 1st and 2nd stories. Two additional stories were built in 1880, including a mansard roof on the top story.


Planning and construction

By the beginning of the 20th century, banks on Wall Street were building larger structures. The Bank of New York considered buying land to build a third structure at 48 Wall Street in the first decade of the century, but these plans were dropped in 1909 as uneconomical. The plans were reconsidered in the 1910s. In 1912, the
New York Life Insurance and Trust Company New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
put for sale the neighboring 50 Wall Street, though the company retained the other neighboring property at 52 Wall Street. The new Bank of New York building was again postponed due to the construction of the Broadway–Seventh Avenue subway line in the 1910s, which raised concerns that the new structure's foundations might be damaged, and then the onset of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, when funding was scarce. The New York Life Insurance and Trust Company and the Bank of New York merged in 1922, and the combined company took the properties at 48 and 52 Wall Street. The bank remodeled 52 Wall Street in 1923 and 1924, but the bank still needed space to expand. In 1926, the Bank of New York and Trust Company and the National City Bank, which owned 50 Wall Street, agreed to exchange ownership of 50 and 52 Wall Street. As a result, the Bank of New York and Trust Company had an L-shaped lot measuring on Wall Street and on William Street. The Bank of New York and Trust Company kept of the 52 Wall Street plot, while the National City Bank commissioned its own skyscraper for the remaining portion of the 52 Wall Street site. The land-swapping agreement was confirmed in May 1927. Benjamin Wistar Morris prepared plans for a 32-story building on the combined plot. He initially projected in April 1927 that the building would cost $5 million () if the facades were built entirely in limestone, but including interior furnishings raised the projection by $340,000 in July. The trustees rejected a plan to replace part of the facade with a cheaper material. The Bank of New York and Trust Company wished to continue working at the site of the new skyscraper. Ultimately, the bank decided to rent space at nearby 76 William Street for two years because it would have been impractical to maintain their current quarters while the foundations were being excavated. To fund the building, which was expected to cost $7 million (equal to $ million in ), the bank prepared a 50% stock
dividend A dividend is a distribution of profits by a corporation to its shareholders. When a corporation earns a profit or surplus, it is able to pay a portion of the profit as a dividend to shareholders. Any amount not distributed is taken to be re-i ...
, to be funded by increasing its total capital from $4 million to $6 million. The building's cornerstone was laid on January 12, 1928, the 171st birthday of the bank's founder, Alexander Hamilton. Though the lowest seven floors were to be used by the Bank of New York, the remaining floors were available for use by other tenants. By that March, the building was 50% leased. In September 1928, bank officials hosted a ceremony where stones from the two previous buildings on the site were inserted into the new skyscraper. The same month, the golden eagle was placed atop the building's roof. The new building opened on January 12, 1929, Hamilton's 172nd birthday.


Bank of New York use

At the time of the building's opening, all 32 stories were leased. The Bank of New York used the 1st through 3rd stories for official banking activity, with a banking room, a
trust Trust often refers to: * Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality It may also refer to: Business and law * Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another * Trust (bus ...
department, and
safe deposit box A safe deposit box, also known as a safety deposit box, is an individually secured container, usually held within a larger safe or bank vault. Safe deposit boxes are generally located in banks, post offices or other institutions. Safe deposit ...
es. The 4th through 7th stories were used for the bank's offices. Tenants in the upper floors included brokerage and banking tenants such as J. Henry Schroder & Co., which took two floors; E. Naumberg on the 15th floor; Hitt, Farwell & Company on the 25th floor; Eldredge & Company on the 26th floor; and
Wood Gundy Wood Gundy Inc. was a leading Canadian stock brokerage and investment banking firm. Founded in 1905, it was acquired by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce in 1988 as it attempted to build an investment banking business. The Wood Gundy name ...
on the 27th floor. The building also housed Sullivan & Cromwell, a law firm that took four floors. Most of 48 Wall Street's tenants remained through the Great Depression. Business at the Bank of New York thrived in the Depression, and in August 1946, the bank bought the adjacent 52–54 William Street building to the north, giving both the bank and its tenants additional space for expansion. Connections between 48 Wall Street and 52 William Street were subsequently built at several levels in the 1940s. Connections to the
National City Corporation National City Corporation was a regional bank holding company based in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, founded in 1845; it was once one of the ten largest banks in America in terms of deposits, mortgages and home equity lines of credit. Subsidiary Nat ...
's 52 Wall Street building to the east were also erected during the 1950s. The rest of the blockfront on Wall Street, between 54 and 68 Wall Street, was demolished in the early 1970s by their owner,
Cities Service Citgo Petroleum Corporation (or Citgo, stylized as CITGO) is a United States–based refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. Headquartered in the Energy Corridor area o ...
, which had been headquartered at nearby 70 Pine Street but moved to Oklahoma in 1974. By 1979, the
American International Group American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is an American multinational finance and insurance corporation with operations in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions. , AIG companies employed 49,600 people.https://www.aig.com/content/dam/aig/amer ...
and the Bank of New York were considering building a new skyscraper at
60 Wall Street 60 Wall Street (formerly the J.P. Morgan Bank Building or Deutsche Bank Building) is a 55-story, skyscraper on Wall Street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City, United States. The tower was designed by Kevin Roche and ...
. This building would have replaced 48 and 52 Wall Street. Some of 48 Wall Street's lower stories, which had just been renovated by Parish‐Hadley Inc., may have been saved. After the city's Industrial Commercial Incentive Board refused the Bank of New York's request for a $22 million
tax abatement A tax holiday is a temporary reduction or elimination of a tax. It is synonymous with tax abatement, tax subsidy or tax reduction. Governments usually create tax holidays as incentives for business investment. Tax relief can be provided in the ...
for the office tower's construction in February 1982, the plans were canceled. By September 1982, the lots were up for sale, and in September 1983, the bank sold the vacant lots and 52 Wall Street to developer Park Tower Realty Company. The connections between 48 and 52 Wall Street were severed, and the new building at 60 Wall Street was completed in 1989. With the Bank of New York's acquisition of the
Irving Trust Irving Trust was an American Commercial bank headquartered in New York City that operated between 1851 and 1988 when it was acquired by Bank of New York. From 1965 the bank was the principal subsidiary of the Irving Bank Corporation. Between 1913 ...
in December 1988, the company's headquarters moved to nearby
1 Wall Street 1 Wall Street (also known as the Irving Trust Company Building, the Bank of New York Building, and the BNY Mellon Building) is a skyscraper in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, New York City, on the eastern side of Broadway between W ...
, the Irving Trust company headquarters. However, the Bank of New York retained ownership of 48 Wall Street, as well as some offices there.


Sale and later use

In the late 1990s, the bank put 48 Wall Street for sale, hosting a two-stage auction in which more than 20 parties bid. A
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and economic risk, risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four rea ...
between the Corsair Group and Swig Burris Equities won the auction, buying the building for $37.5 million. The joint venture planned to convert the upper floors to 277 rental apartments and keep the lower floors as commercial stores. The structure would be renamed the Residences at 48 Wall Street, with 169 furnished apartments on the fifth through 17th floors and unfurnished units above. Most of the units would have been one- or two-bedroom units, though some would have been studios. At the time, building prices in Lower Manhattan were increasing rapidly; the nearby
Broad Exchange Building The Broad Exchange Building, also known as 25 Broad Street, is a residential building at Exchange Place and Broad Street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The 20-story building was designed by Clinton & Russell a ...
had been sold in 1995 for , but the joint venture had bought 48 Wall Street for . When the Bank of New York finally moved out of the space in September 1998, it had occupied the site for 201 years. The
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...
designated the building's exterior as a landmark in October 1998. The building's residential renovation was set to cost $85 million and include renovated elevators, windows with
insulated glazing Insulating glass (IG) consists of two or more glass window panes separated by a space to reduce heat transfer across a part of the building envelope. A window with insulating glass is commonly known as double glazing or a double-paned window, ...
,
fiber-optic cable A fiber-optic cable, also known as an optical-fiber cable, is an assembly similar to an electrical cable, but containing one or more optical fibers that are used to carry light. The optical fiber elements are typically individually coated with ...
s, and a restored lobby. The Corsair/Swig Burris joint venture dropped their plans for apartment conversions in February 2000, after interior demolition was well underway. The joint venture cited the growing demand for commercial and office space, since these types of tenants were willing to pay more per square foot. The building reopened in August 2001, at which point it was 65% occupied. Among the new tenants were the
Rockefeller Group Business Center Founded in 1994 by Ric Sondik, Rockefeller Group Business Centers is a New York corporation that provides short-term workplaces. Currently, they operate a business center In Rockefeller Center's International Building. Their client base is about 5 ...
. 48 Wall Street was added to the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
(NRHP) in 2003. The building was designated as a contributing property to the Wall Street Historic District, a NRHP district, in 2007. The eagle at the top of the building was restored in a 2008 project. The
Museum of American Finance The Museum of American Finance is the United States's only independent public museum dedicated to preserving, exhibiting and teaching about American finance and financial history. Located in the Financial District in Manhattan, New York City, it ...
announced in 2005 that it would move from
26 Broadway 26 Broadway, also known as the Standard Oil Building or Socony–Vacuum Building, is an office building adjacent to Bowling Green in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The 31-story, structure was designed in the Renai ...
to 48 Wall Street. Two years later, 48 Wall Street's former banking hall was modified to house the museum. However, the museum terminated its lease at 48 Wall Street in December 2018. Subsequently, the former bank housed Will & Wall, a multi-purpose event venue.


Critical reception

Upon 48 Wall Street's opening, it was described by the Bank of New York and Trust Company's president, Edwin Merrill, as "visual evidence of the bank's intention to keep abreast of the times". The ''Real Estate Record'' wrote in 1927 that, in the architecture of 48 Wall Street, the bank "is endeavoring to perpetuate the dignity and feeling" of 18th-century New York City. ''Bankers Magazine'' stated in 1929 that "the colonial feeling has been fittingly observed in the treatment of both interior and exterior", and lauded the murals' "soft colors", which were described as having "an air of quiet". In a 1987 book, architect
Robert A. M. Stern Robert Arthur Morton Stern, usually credited as Robert A. M. Stern (born May 23, 1939), is a New York City–based architect, educator, and author. He is the founding partner of the architecture firm, Robert A.M. Stern Architects, also known a ...
described the structure's
massing Massing is a term in architecture which refers to the perception of the general shape and form as well as size of a building. Massing in architectural theory Massing refers to the structure in three dimensions (form), not just its outline from ...
as being simple and "mellifluous".


See also

*
List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan below 14th Street The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), formed in 1965, is the New York City governmental commission that administers the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. Since its founding, it has designated over a thousand landmarks, cla ...
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan below 14th Street This is intended to be a complete list of properties and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places on Manhattan Island below 14th Street, which is a significant portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan. In turn, the bo ...


References


Notes


Citations


Sources

* * * * * * {{Portal bar, Architecture, National Register of Historic Places, New York City 1928 establishments in New York City Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan Financial District, Manhattan Historic district contributing properties in Manhattan Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in New York (state) New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan Office buildings completed in 1928 Skyscraper office buildings in Manhattan Wall Street Bank buildings in Manhattan Bank buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in New York City