The Mortimer Building was a 19th-century building located at

Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...

and New 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 ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

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. It was built by W.Y. Mortimer beginning on June 1, 1884, and completed for occupancy in March 1885. The architect was

George B. Post George Browne Post (December 15, 1837 – November 28, 1913) was an American architect trained in the Beaux-Arts tradition. He was recognized as a master of modern American architecture as well as being instrumental in the birth of the skyscra ...

. It fronted Wall Street for a distance of fifty-seven feet and New Street for sixty-five feet. Used entirely as an office building, the structure adjoined the

New York Stock Exchange Building The New York Stock Exchange Building (also the NYSE Building), in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City, serves as the headquarters of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). It is composed of two connected structures occupying ...

on the west and south. Tenants included lawyers, brokers, and bankers. The

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed c ...

acquired the Mortimer Building for $745,000 in December 1918. Reasons for the acquisition included consolidating all of the adjuncts of the exchange beneath one roof and the necessity for additional floor space for ''foreign issues'', entertained by the NYSE. The site was valued at $710,000 in February 1920; $745,000 with the building included.

Interior design and history

Its rooms were light, arranged in suites and singly. The walls were made primarily of mahogany. The halls were

wainscoted Panelling (or paneling in the U.S.) is a Millwork (building material), millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was deve ...

in marble and mahogany. The stairways were composed of iron and stone. The structure was considered

fireproof Fireproofing is rendering something (structures, materials, etc.) resistant to fire, or incombustible; or material for use in making anything fire-proof. It is a passive fire protection measure. "Fireproof" or "fireproofing" can be used as a n ...

from top to bottom. Modern conveniences included steam gas, electric lights, and two speedy elevators.

Previous structures

The 1884 Mortimer Building replaced an earlier edifice with the same name, built in 1835 by Richard Mortimer (1790 - 1882). The latter structure was constructed in accordance with the Mortimer estate, William Yates Mortimer executor.''The Mortimer Building'',

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

, February 15, 1885, pg. 7. Richard Mortimer had commissioned another Mortimer Building at 935-939 Broadway from architect

Griffith Thomas Griffith Thomas (1820—1879) was an American architect. He partnered with his father, Thomas Thomas, at the architecture firm of T. Thomas and Son.American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

, still stands as of 2018.

References

1885 establishments in New York (state) Demolished buildings and structures in Manhattan Office buildings in Manhattan History of Manhattan Cultural history of New York City Commercial buildings completed in 1885 Financial District, Manhattan Wall Street {{Manhattan-struct-stub