Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 10, no. 243: November 9, 1872

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D BUILDERS' GUIDE Vol. X. NEW YOEK, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1872. No. 243. Published Weekly by THE REAL ESTATE EECORD ASSOCIATION. TERMS. One year, in advance.................,....®6 GO All communications should be addressed to 7 AND 9 WARBEN STBKET. No receipt for money due the READ ESTATE RECORD will be acknowledged unless signed by one of our regular ooUectors. HENRY D. SMITH or THOMAS F. CuiQirNGS. All bills for coUection wUl be sent from the office on a regu¬ larly printed form. OFFICE OF THE NEW YOKKEE STAATS- zeitung! The press of New York seems determined not to be left iDehind in the race of architectural improvement in this city. While otir banks, insurance companies, large mercantile houses and others have found it necessary to make their outward showing commensurate with the growth of their prosperity, by the erection of costly and imposing structures, some of our leading newspapers have felt justified in doing the same. The New Tork Times set the exam¬ ple, followed a few years after by the Herald, but neither of these efforts—in proportion at least to their pretension and costliness—can be called anything like architectural successes. The first, although forming altogether a jum¬ bled conglomerate of building, possesses som'e few points of excellence, but the Herald build¬ ing, on the contrary, which might and ought to have been one of the most imposing structures in the city—considering the magnificent location and many other unusual facilities at the dis¬ posal of the architect—is, from the very misuse of such opportunities, one of our most painful architectural failures. It was left to the pro¬ prietor of the JVeio Yorker Staats-ZeitU7ig to set the example of erecting a building really worthy of the press of this great metropolis. The new building of this establishment is now approaching completion on the gore or ir¬ regular piece of ground formed by the junction of Tryon "row, Chatham and Centre, streets, and looms up as quite an important feature in that very prominent parb of the city. It has a frontage of 50 feet on Chatham street, 97 feet on Tryon row, and 63 feet on Centre street; forming a combined frontage of 209 feet. It is four stories, independent of basement and cel¬ lar, and is crowned by a lofty and well-propor¬ tioned Mansart roof with dormer windows. The first story is 20 feet in height, the second story 17 feet, the third 15 feet 6 inches, and the fourth 15 feet; the Mansart roof being 18 feet in the cle^r! .The" cellar and basement to that half of the building adjoining Tryon row and Chatham street will be occupied by the press¬ rooms, furnaces, heaters and other" working machinery of the establishment, while the '• same portion of the first story, immediately above, wUl form the grand office of the Staats- Zeitung, which -vviU be by far the largest and most beautiful newspaper of&ce yet seen in New York, In the fourth story will be located the editorial rooms, and the whole of the Mansart floor will be employed for compositors. The remainder of the rooms throughout will be used for general offices • those on the first floor being intended for banks, insurance offices, and simi¬ lar institutions. The whole building has been constructed fire-proof, in the most, solid man¬ ner, and will be furnished when completed with an elevator and all the best-known modem im¬ provements, in the most tasteful style. The front of the building, while having no extraordinary pretension to architectural gran¬ deur, produces nevertheless—from its size and location, combined with tasteful and judicious treatment—a very grand and harmonious effect. It is one of those structures which please by their very simplicity, and by the manifest adap¬ tation of aU the parts to the end desired,— which is the groundwork of all good design. The plot was an unusually difficult one to treat, owing to its awkward and peculiar shape. The divergence of the sides on both Centre and Chatham streets from the Tryon row front, forming two very obtuse angles, could have been managed in no other way to produce so good an effect as the architect has achieved by rounding the two corners, which he has done very skilfully. He has thereby produced a fine result, making of them two striking angular frontispieces; the one at the junction of Tryon row and Chatham street being the grand en¬ trance to the Zeitung office. In the centre of the Tryon row fagade is another bold projec¬ tion, and one at each termination of the build¬ ing on Centre and Chatham streets, forming al¬ together a very symmetrical composition. To the Tryon row projection is added a two-story portico, tbe lower part Ionic and the upper one Corinthian, surmounted by two fine life-size bronze statues, representing the heroes of print¬ ing in G-ermany and America—G-uttenberg and EranMin. The style of the frontage is what may be called classical Italian, better known perhaps by the comprehensive term of PaUadian; with attached columns and pilasters separating arched windows on the various floors. On the first floor the arches are semicircular and rusti¬ cated, on the second and third floors segmental, and on the fourth floor agaia semicircular; producing a pleasing and varied effect. This effecb is considerably heightened by the excel¬ lent material employed; Quiacy blue granite being used for the rusticated first story, and the gray granite of Concord, N, H,, for aU the re¬ maining portions. The openings are aU ele¬ gantly proportioned, aaid their deep axigles and recesses produce that solid and substantial ap¬ pearance without which, the best-designed front invariably displeases, by looking shallow and ephemeral. The building was commenced in August, 1871, from the design and under the superintendence of Mr. Henry Fernbach, Ar¬ chitect, and is not expected to be totally finish¬ ed until about the 1st of May, 1873. BICKNELL'S VILLAGE BUILDER. So many excellent works have of late years been published upon the art and science of building and architecture that it can only be from lack of proper study, on the part of those intending to build, if we do not soon reach the time when every man can be his own architect. The truth of the poet's saying is doubtless aa often realized in this case, as in many others, that "a little learning is a dangerous thing," and many a daring experimenter in house-build¬ ing has had cause to regret, when his fine con¬ ceptions were practically carried out, that he had not saved his time, money and patience, by going in the first instance to some experienced architect, instead of trusting to his own crude fancies gleaned out of architectural books. At the same time there are many elementary works, full of rich suggestions and de.signs, which are extremely useful not only to the inexperienced proprietor in search of something to grati£y his taste in building, but also to the practical builder and young architect. Such a work is "Bicknell's Village Builder," a work replete -with designs, enlarged details and specifications, for country-houses and villas of every style and description, churches, farm-houses, bams, etc. The designs are in general adapted to those of moderate means who contemplate building, but there are also many to meet cases of a costlier and more pretentious character. The designs are supplied by architects of considerable emi¬ nence in their profession, and the plates exe¬ cuted -with great care and beauty. LIFE IKSTJEAITCE AGAIN. The impression is gaining ground among former believers that Life Insurance is rotten from end to end, and that tbe only persons who will make anytMng by the present system will be those who have the good luck to die during the next ten years. Persons with a reasonable amount of vitality, who expect to reach, their threescore and ten, will find that they have been paying their thousands of dollars merely for the purpose of putting money into the pockets of a set of irresponsible scamps who have gotten up these iogenious schemes for tbeir own personal benefit. The business itself is misleading and decep¬ tive. The premiums flow in, and the profits are. made during the first few years of the