Madison Square North Historic District

Containing a wide assortment of building types and styles, the woven streetscapes of the Madison Square North historic district stand as a visual history of midtown Manhattan, from the 1870s to the present. The district's ninety-six buildings, configured on ten blocks, include brownstone row houses, apartment buildings, hotels, and high-rise office buildings. These structures exhibit the work of premier architects, including McKim, Mead & White, Francis H. Kimball, Bruce Price, and Eli Jacques Kahn.

With the opening of Madison Square Park in 1847, this district became a popular residential area. From the 1850s to the 1870s, the district was transformed into Manhattan's premier social center and the city's chief club district, and many of the Italianate row houses constructed during this time were occupied by some of the city's wealthiest residents. Towards the end of the 19th century, speculative developers began to construct commercial buildings, in a variety of fashionable styles, and converting existing residential building to commercial use. After 1900, as mercantile companies began to enter the district, developers built for wholesale merchants, who required store-and-loft buildings, though many commercial offices were housed in the area as well. Few buildings have been constructed since the Depression era, and most buildings continue to serve their original or similar purpose. ©2014