The Hoffman Building, also known as The Arnold, was a

Morristown, New Jersey Morristown () is a town and the county seat of Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. ...

structure completed before 1896.VOGT BROS., COMPLETE Morris County New Jersey, DIRECTORY for 1897-1898 .
Page 3 local Morristown advertisement of "A. L. Revere" that matches time period. 1898, published by Vogt. Bros. Located across the street from the

Morristown Green Morristown Green, most commonly referred to as the Green, is a historical park located in the center of Morristown, New Jersey. It has an area of two and a half acres and has in the past served as a military base, a militia training ground, ...

, the three-story building housed retail and rental properties,VOGT BROS., COMPLETE Morris County New Jersey, DIRECTORY for 1897-1898 .
Page 12 local Morristown advertisement. 1898, published by Vogt. Bros. most notably

Adams & Fairchild Adams & Fairchild was a 19th century grocery store located beside the Morristown Green in Morristown, New Jersey. Circa 1882, it operated out of historic 1740s tavern, Arnold's Tavern, notable for its American Revolution, Revolutionary history. Wh ...

grocers and P. H. Hoffman & Son clothiers. It was commissioned by Philip H. Hoffman, and its carpenter was John T. Allen.VOGT BROS., COMPLETE Morris County New Jersey, DIRECTORY for 1897-1898 .
Page 12 local Morristown advertisement. 1898, published by Vogt. Bros. The inscription above the entrance hall read "The Arnold," in homage to the

Arnold's Tavern Jacob Arnold's Tavern, also known as the Old Arnold Tavern and the Duncan House, was a "famous" historic tavern established by Samuel Arnold circa 1740. Until 1886, it was located in Morristown Green in Morristown, New Jersey. In 1777 it served as ...

, the historic building moved to accommodate it. It was demolished some time before the 1960s to make room for the Reynolds & Co building, in which a Charles Schwab location now stands.

Architecture

The three-story building appeared to have two Dutch neck gables on either side, creating a symmetrical exterior that may recall the Western-style false front and

Mission Revival The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...

architecture. The second floor's windows have arched

pediments 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 pediment ...

History

19th century

In 1849, Philip H. Hoffman established men's clothing store and tailoring shop P. H. Hoffman & Son. By 1882, the Clothiers operated out of the historic

which also housed

Groceries and the jewelry store of F. J. Crowell as well as apartments. Circa 1882, Philip H. Hoffman owned the building, along with Hampton O. Marsh. In the spring of 1886, after Marsh's death, Hoffman "decided to remove the old building, and rectin its stead heHoffman Building." The Tavern's demolition was prevented by Morristown historian and lecturer Julia Keese Colles.All Soul's Hospital
North Jersey History and Genealogy Center. Accessed July 17, 2011. To preserve the building, Colles arranged to move the building from the Morristown Green to her estate on Mount Kemble Avenue. Some time before 1896, the building was completed. That year, former tenants

Grocers moved in and advertised their relocation back to 20 North Park Place.VOGT BROS., COMPLETE Morris County New Jersey, DIRECTORY for 1897-1898 .
Page 12 local Morristown advertisement. 1898, published by Vogt. Bros. In 1899, D. Kantor photographed the Hoffman Building.

20th century

As of 1904, the building was residential; a groom's family celebrated his wedding breakfast at his Hoffman Building home. That year, Sidney A. Baldwin, organist and musical director of the Morristown Church of the Redeemer, had her studio where she taught

pianoforte The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

in the Hoffman Building. Circa October 1910, Morristown resident Arthur Day had his bike stolen from the hall of the Hoffman Building. The Hoffman Building was still standing by 1923, when it housed Morristown Typewriter Service, a typewriter business by M. J. Conroy. By the 1960s, the building and its two neighboring buildings on the left had been demolished; the source provides a photograph of the street for view. The Hoffman building and its two neighboring structures to the left became the site of the

minimalist In visual arts, music and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in post–World War II in Western art, most strongly with American visual arts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Prominent artists associated with minimalism include Don ...

brick Reynolds & Co building, which circa 1960 housed the Jodo Gift Shop,

S. S. Kresge Company S is the nineteenth letter of the English alphabet. S may also refer to: History * an Anglo-Saxon charter's number in Peter Sawyer (historian), Peter Sawyer's, catalogue Language and linguistics * Long s (ſ), a form of the lower-case letter s ...

, and Rogers Clothing. By 2022, the Reynolds & Co building had become a Charles Schwab location.

References

External links

Undated photograph of the building
{{coord, 40.79742, -74.48180, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NJ, display=title Morristown, New Jersey Buildings and structures in Morris County, New Jersey Western false front architecture Commercial buildings completed in the 19th century