United Workers Cooperatives, also known as Allerton Coops, is a historic apartment building complex located at 2700–2870 Bronx Park East in Allerton and the "Commie Coops,

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

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 ...

. The complex includes three contributing buildings and five contributing structures. The

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

style buildings were built during two construction campaigns, 1926–1927 and 1927–1929 by the United Workers' Association. The buildings feature half timbered

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 ...

s, horizontal half-timbered bands topped with sloping slate roofs, corbelled and crenellated towers, and picturesque chimneys. ''See also:'' The complex was built by the United Workers' Association (part of the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines general ...

or "IWW"), and was an important early example of cooperative housing for working-class people. Most of the Association members were secular

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

with Communist political leanings who were engaged in the needle trades. The association sought to improve the living standards of its members, many of whom lived in squalid conditions in the

tenements A tenement is a type of building shared by multiple dwellings, typically with flats or apartments on each floor and with shared entrance stairway access. They are common on the British Isles, particularly in Scotland. In the medieval Old Town, i ...

of the Lower East Side. It bought a plot of land in an undeveloped section of the Bronx, near the open space of Bronx Park, and envisioned a community of socially and politically engaged residents who would each have an equal say in the running of the complex, regardless of the size of their apartments or the prices that they paid for them. The complex had classrooms, a library, and other amenities and activities that were uncommon in other cooperative complexes that were built for profit. Though considered a social success, the complex failed financially in the Great Depression and was converted to rental housing in 1943. After decades of neglect by a succession of landlords, the complex was purchased and renovated by a new owner in the mid-1980s. The complex was listed on 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 ...

in 1986, and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1991. It was designated a New York City landmark in 1992.

References

External links

United Workers' Cooperative Colony (The Coops), Flickr.com website
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York Residential buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in New York City Tudor Revival architecture in New York City Residential buildings completed in 1926 Residential buildings in the Bronx National Register of Historic Places in the Bronx National Historic Landmarks in New York City