ARABIAN DECORATION

Civic Center, Manhattan

Summary

No. 359 Broadway, on the west side of Broadway between Leonard and Franklin streets, is a distinguished early Italianate commercial building constructed in 1852, a time when this section of Broadway was the city's most prestigious shopping area, containing a number of fashionable daguerreotype studios. An important and unusual example of the Italianate style, this stone-fronted commercial building, with its distinctive and varied window openings and abundant ornament, is a blend of Italianate elements from several sources.

The 359 Broadway Building has special historical significance because it was occupied by noted photographer Matthew B. Brady from 1853-59. Brady, one of the most important photographers in American history, was renowned for both his portraits and his numerous photographs of the Civil War which are still the primary visual document of that conflict. As the city expanded northward from the southern tip of Manhattan in the 1840s and 1850s, this area became a prosperous neighborhood of shops, saloons, and photographers devoted to serving the fashionable clientele that made Broadway the city's most distinguished promenade.

Remarkably intact, No. 359 Broadway serves as a significant reminder of the area's glittering past as a premier shopping district and as a home to the studio of one of America's most noted nineteenth-century photographers, Matthew Brady.

The Commercial Transformation of lower Broadway

The unparalleled growth of New York City in the nineteenth century, which led to its emergence as the largest and richest city in the country, was primarily the result of commerce. Following the War of 1812 and the reopening of Atlantic trade routes, and the completion in 1825 of the Erie Canal which connected New York to inland cities, the city grew into the country's major port and trading center. Commercial pressures began to push the city northward beyond the geographical limits of lower Manhattan, and a pattern of rapid development and redevelopment emerged. The city's commercial districts moved into residential areas, replacing older houses with retail establishments, while new residential districts for the wealthy developed still further north on the city's outskirts. Older commercial areas to the south became warehouse and districts.

Following the completion in 1846 of the precedent-setting A.T. Stewart drygoods store (280 Broadway), designed by Joseph Trench and John B. Snook, the section of Broadway north of City Hall rapidly changed into the city's leading commercial district. In the following decades, Broadway between City Hall Park and Madison Square became the major commercial artery of the metropolis.

Stewart's store, an impressive Italianate style "palazzo" executed in stone with cast-iron and glass storefronts, also established the architectural character for much of that development for the rest of the century.

As this area developed into the city's leading business and shopping district, a number of saloons opened on Broadway in the 1840s and 1850s. Because it was a fashionable shopping district catering to women, many of these establishments along this section of Broadway were "ladies' saloons" — restaurants for women — that served the throngs of shoppers in this area. The most notable of the saloons in the neighborhood was Taylor's Saloon, located just to the north of the 359 Broadway Building at No. 365.

Begun as an ice-cream shop and confectionery, Taylor's was praised by city guidebooks as "the largest and most sumptuous (restaurant) in the city or the country."

Taylor's Saloon was a feast for the eyes as well, with an abundance of mirrors, marble, and carved decoration to draw in the three thousand people that the restaurant served on an average weekday. The 359 Broadway Building was erected by owner James Thompson in 1852. Thompson, listed in New York City directories as both a saloon owner and a confectioner, operated a saloon at 359 Broadway until 1860. Thompson's Saloon at 359 Broadway, like Taylor's, served as an enticing establishment for shoppers enjoying another popular Broadway diversion, a visit to the photographer. One of the most famous was located upstairs.

Matthew Brady's studio at 359 Broadway was one of an estimated eighty-six portrait galleries in New York City in 1853; thirty-seven of these were located on Broadway. The avenue was the favored location of daguerrian artists because of its role as a fashionable promenade, and the prospect of a saloon and a photographer in the same building was especially inviting to passing shoppers.

All of the galleries were located on upper floors of buildings and illuminated by skylights essential to indoor portraiture. Matthew Brady's studio, which occupied 359 Broadway from 1853 to 1859, was one of the most famous Broadway galleries. One of Brady's chief competitors, Martin M. Lawrence, opened a new gallery at 381 Broadway the s

Tribeca, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States

Summary

No. 359 Broadway, on the west side of Broadway between Leonard and Franklin streets, is a distinguished early Italianate commercial building constructed in 1852, a time when this section of Broadway was the city's most prestigious shopping area, containing a number of fashionable daguerreotype studios. An important and unusual example of the Italianate style, this stone-fronted commercial building, with its distinctive and varied window openings and abundant ornament, is a blend of Italianate elements from several sources.

The 359 Broadway Building has special historical significance because it was occupied by noted photographer Matthew B. Brady from 1853-59. Brady, one of the most important photographers in American history, was renowned for both his portraits and his numerous photographs of the Civil War which are still the primary visual document of that conflict. As the city expanded northward from the southern tip of Manhattan in the 1840s and 1850s, this area became a prosperous neighborhood of shops, saloons, and photographers devoted to serving the fashionable clientele that made Broadway the city's most distinguished promenade.

Remarkably intact, No. 359 Broadway serves as a significant reminder of the area's glittering past as a premier shopping district and as a home to the studio of one of America's most noted nineteenth-century photographers, Matthew Brady.

The Commercial Transformation of lower Broadway

The unparalleled growth of New York City in the nineteenth century, which led to its emergence as the largest and richest city in the country, was primarily the result of commerce. Following the War of 1812 and the reopening of Atlantic trade routes, and the completion in 1825 of the Erie Canal which connected New York to inland cities, the city grew into the country's major port and trading center. Commercial pressures began to push the city northward beyond the geographical limits of lower Manhattan, and a pattern of rapid development and redevelopment emerged. The city's commercial districts moved into residential areas, replacing older houses with retail establishments, while new residential districts for the wealthy developed still further north on the city's outskirts. Older commercial areas to the south became warehouse and districts.

Following the completion in 1846 of the precedent-setting A.T. Stewart drygoods store (280 Broadway), designed by Joseph Trench and John B. Snook, the section of Broadway north of City Hall rapidly changed into the city's leading commercial district. In the following decades, Broadway between City Hall Park and Madison Square became the major commercial artery of the metropolis.

Stewart's store, an impressive Italianate style "palazzo" executed in stone with cast-iron and glass storefronts, also established the architectural character for much of that development for the rest of the century.

As this area developed into the city's leading business and shopping district, a number of saloons opened on Broadway in the 1840s and 1850s. Because it was a fashionable shopping district catering to women, many of these establishments along this section of Broadway were "ladies' saloons" — restaurants for women — that served the throngs of shoppers in this area. The most notable of the saloons in the neighborhood was Taylor's Saloon, located just to the north of the 359 Broadway Building at No. 365.

Begun as an ice-cream shop and confectionery, Taylor's was praised by city guidebooks as "the largest and most sumptuous (restaurant) in the city or the country."

Taylor's Saloon was a feast for the eyes as well, with an abundance of mirrors, marble, and carved decoration to draw in the three thousand people that the restaurant served on an average weekday. The 359 Broadway Building was erected by owner James Thompson in 1852. Thompson, listed in New York City directories as both a saloon owner and a confectioner, operated a saloon at 359 Broadway until 1860. Thompson's Saloon at 359 Broadway, like Taylor's, served as an enticing establishment for shoppers enjoying another popular Broadway diversion, a visit to the photographer. One of the most famous was located upstairs.

Matthew Brady's studio at 359 Broadway was one of an estimated eighty-six portrait galleries in New York City in 1853; thirty-seven of these were located on Broadway. The avenue was the favored location of daguerrian artists because of its role as a fashionable promenade, and the prospect of a saloon and a photographer in the same building was especially inviting to passing shoppers.

All of the galleries were located on upper floors of buildings and illuminated by skylights essential to indoor portraiture. Matthew Brady's studio, which occupied 359 Broadway from 1853 to 1859, was one of the most famous Broadway galleries. One of Brady's chief competitors, Martin M. Lawrence, opened