Morgan Library & Museum, 1938. Built expressly to house the famous J. Pierpont Morgan Collection of books and manuscripts, the Morgan Library was designed by McKim, Mead & White to provide a beautiful setting for the treasures within. As in the construction of Greek temples, the stones were perfectly fitted, obviating the use of a full bed of mortar- an expensive but enduring method of constructing masonry walls and today practically a lost art.

In the closing decades of the 19th century, New York underwent a profound physical and cultural transformation. Fueled by the wealth of the exploding financial and manufacturing sectors, the city rapidly evolved into a world-class metropolis. The bold ambitions of civic and business leaders, architects, and engineers of the era manifested in landmarks such as the vast Cathedral of St. John the Divine, the stately U.S. Custom House, the towering Municipal Building, and the original terminus of New York City’s first official subway line—the ornate City Hall stop. The sweeping interior spaces common to all of these structures, and hundreds of others, depended upon a venerable Mediterranean building technology adapted to contemporary American construction: arched tile ceilings—or vaults—that were not only self-supporting but could also bear the weight of floors or roofs above them. These vaults were designed and built by a single New York firm, founded by Spanish immigrant Rafael Guastavino (1842-1908) and later headed by his son Rafael Jr. (1872-1950). The Guastavinos’ patented system for building domes and vaults involved multiple layers of thin ceramic tiles bonded with quick-drying mortar. The resulting structures were not only exceptionally strong, but also lightweight, easy to build, and inherently beautiful, thanks to intricate patterns of exposed tile that formed finished, decorative surfaces. Guastavino vaults figured prominently in more than 1,000 projects across the nation, including 200 in Manhattan alone. During its 73-year history, the Guastavino Company helped build some of the most impressive interior spaces in America—veritable palaces for the people. This list based on MCNY's exhibition Palaces for the People, contains many of Guastavino's masterpieces in the five boroughs, both those that remain and those that have been lost to the wrecking ball.

Pierpont Morgan Library and Annex ARCHITECT: McKim, Mead & White; Charles F. McKim DATE: 1902-07 STYLE: Italian Renaissance Eclectic The Pierpont Morgan Library and Annex are outstanding examples of Italian Renaissance Eclectic design incorporating the talents of architect, sculptor and painter. They represent the finest available both in use of materials and craftsmanship. Their architectural details are both refined and delicate and that the classical purity of the Library exerted a marked influence on the general development of architecture in this country at the time it was built. The Pierpont Morgan Library is one of the finest neo-Italian Renaissance buildings in New York City. It was designed to house the extensive book, manuscript, and art collection of J. Pierpont Morgan. The interior and exterior harmoniously work together to create a splendid showcase for Morgan’s collection. The interior is particularly distinguished by the extensive ceiling murals, and the rich array of wood and marbled surfaces. The murals , which are based on Renaissance prototypes, depict themes that allude to Morgan and his collection.

Lioness statue at the Morgan Library, ca. 1976.

Edmund Vincent Gillon shot thousands of photographs documenting New York’s architecture and public art from the 1970s to the 1990s. Among Gillon’s rolls, his keen eye for civic sculpture stands out. Admire this set of memorable monuments, part of the Museum of the City of New York’s collection:

The Madison Avenue entrance to the J.P. Morgan Jr. house, January 27, 1937. The freestanding Italianate brownstone mansion was built in 1852-3 for Isaac Newton Phelps, whose family’s copper mining fortune funded the construction of three such mansions on Madison Avenue, between 36th and 37th Streets. Isaac Phelps, himself, was a wealthy merchant and banker. Having purchased the southernmost house in 1882, J.P. Morgan Sr. acquired Phelps’ home at No. 231 and the remaining mansion in between in 1903. Morgan demolished the middle house, using its lot for a private garden, and gave the No. 231 to his son, J.P. Morgan, Jr. In 1928, Morgan Sr.’s house was razed for the construction of the Morgan Library. When J.P. Morgan Jr. died in 1943, the Lutheran Church acquired the building, setting off a long-running preservation saga. In 1965, the Church signaled its intent to build an office building on the site, which was subsequently declared a New York City Landmark, protecting the property. The Church appealed the ruling successfully, and in 1974, the Landmark status was reversed. However, the Lutherans no longer had the funds to pursue their planned construction. With the mansion’s status uncertain, the Landmarks Preservation Commission re-designated the building that year. This time, there was no appeal. The Landmark limbo ended in 1988, when the Morgan Library purchased the property, securing its future and tying its legacy to the collection of its most prominent owner. Today, it’s home to the museum offices, store, and cafe.

No single building better symbolized the Gilded Age than the home of William K. Vanderbilt, completed in 1883. While the rich had been flaunting their wealth in costumes and jewels, Vanderbilt displayed his dollars in limestone. And then other society men and women followed suit.

In 1892, 27% of the country's millionaires lived in New York, when the city only made up 2% of the country's population! Welcome to the society of the Gilded Age. This tour takes its inspiration from an exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York that explores the visual culture of New York's richest residents from the mid-1870s to the start of World War One. It stops at several places, such as the old headquarters of Tiffany \&Company that are connected to the dazzling objects in the show. It also introduces you to some of the people at the center of Gilded-age society, and illuminates how-over the course of three decades- the city transformed more rapidly than ever before. It was during this time that New York became a world capital on par with London and Paris. Before the 1870s the lives of the rich and the places they frequented had been more private and understated. By the 1890s they were public and over the top: Simple brownstones gave way to French chateaux, cluttered dry good stores became palatial department stores; and grand hotels and restaurants became premiere places to entertain, outside the home. Even if shoes are more comfortable now than they were in the Gilded Age, you may find it tiring to walk this tour from beginning to end. So feel free to split it up!

The Gilded Age describes the era following the Civil War and preceding the Progressive Era. From around 1870-1900 the United States industrialized rapidly. Factories sprung up throughout the towns and cities in the Northeast and Midwest. New railroad networks and telegraph lines connected these industries and cities with the financial centers of the nation, specifically New York City. The Gilded Age is a complicated period. It saw the rise of monopolies and the creation of vast wealth. However, this wealth was limited to only a few families. Most Americans, including the millions of immigrants arriving annually, remained incredibly poor. The inequality of the Gilded Age prompted Progressive Reformers to enact laws which helped those poorer Americans. New York City represented well this "tale of two cities." In 1892, 27% of the country's millionaires lived in New York, when the city only made up 2% of the country's population! Yet the vast majority of poor immigrants arriving to the country entered through New York Harbor. While many Progressive reforms got their start in the Big Apple, the city was also the center of Gilded Age opulence. NYS Social Studies Scope and Sequence Standards: 8.2 & 11.5 For Teachers: The Gilded Age Lesson Plan

New York is celebrated in countless works of literature. Many buildings, whether famous landmarks or run-of-the-mill residences, have made guest appearances in the pages of American novels. Here's a list of literary locations:

Between 1954 and 1957, the Municipal Art Society surveyed historic buildings in all five boroughs to create a database of potential landmarks to preserve. Local residents and MAS staff compiled individual sheets devoted to about 200 buildings. Each sheet outlined the building’s date, location, and style and provided a description and a small photograph. This is the list of Manhattan buildings.

You're standing across from one of three brownstones that J.P. Morgan owned on this block. Next to it is the addition to the Morgan Library designed by Renzo Piano in 2006. Around the corner is Morgan's original library, built in 1912. The photographer Edward Steichen once said that looking into Morgan's "black eyes was like confronting the headlights of an express train bearing down on you." That unrelenting ambition drove his art acquisition as much as it had his business strategy. In 1901, he formed the country's first billion-dollar company- U.S. Steel- and following the Panics of 1893 and 1907 helped to save the country and then the city from financial ruin. It was not until Morgan was in his 50s-after amassing his great wealth- that he turned buying art, rare books, and manuscripts into a second job. In 1901, one of Morgan's partner wrote: "We never see him and it is difficult to get hold of him. He spends his time lunching with Kings or Kaisers or buying Raphaels." By 1890, more than 50% of Morgan's money went towards art, and by 1912, he had put $60 million (more than $1.5 billion today) into objects that ranged widely beyond Old Masters. There were Gutenberg Bibles, Roman frescoes, Assyrian reliefs, 17th century, German metalwork, tapestries, ivories, enamels, and furniture. Morgan hired Charles McKim, of the architectural firm McKim, Mead, and White, to build him a library in which to put it all. The design was inspired by Rome's 16th-century palaces and churches. Once inside the bronze doors, visitors entered a rotunda with a vaulted ceiling covered in scenes inspired by Raphael's ceiling the Vatican. One of the three rooms you can visit today is Morgan's private study. This room- with its 16th-century Italian wood ceiling, red damask walls, stained glass window panels, and oversized glass window panels, and oversized Italianate desk became a haven for Morgan in the last years of his life. And when he died, in 1913, it was here that the family held the viewing. Morgan's son, Jack, turned his father's library into a public institution.

Phelps Stokes-J. P. Morgan, Jr., House ARCHITECT: R. H. Robertson DATE: 1852-53 STYLE: Neo-Renaissance Robertson’s designs harmonized with the original while adding neo-Renaissance characteristics. When J. Pierpont Morgan purchased the house for his son J.P. Morgan, Jr., in late 1904, it was subsequently further renovated, and much of the exterior character it assumed then still survives today. When the Pierpont Morgan Library purchased the house in 1988, it was incorporated into the museum forming a vital part of its ongoing program.