While just nine blocks apart, Clay Avenue and the Grand Concourse appear to be in different worlds in terms of architecture and urban form. However, both the small-scale street of two-family houses and the wide thoroughfare lined with Art Deco apartment buildings help to tell the story of the development of this section of The Bronx. Both are located in what was historically the village of Morrisania, named for the English brothers Colonel Lewis Morris and Captain Richard Morris who purchased the land in 1670. In 1900, Ernest Wenigmann began amassing property on Clay Avenue with the intention of constructing 28 houses. Wenigmann commissioned architect Warren C. Dickerson, who had a reputation for designing many fine rowhouses across the borough. For the Clay Avenue development, Dickerson employed elements of the Renaissance Revival and Romanesque Revival styles, and while the houses are all different in their ornamentation, they are linked by the use of beige or red brick, as well as their similar massing and repetitive trends found on either side of the street. The houses were designed in pairs, with each house meant to house two families, but Dickerson subtly designed the houses so that each would give the appearance of a single-family dwelling. Thus, the aspirational middle-class homeowner could fit their family into one apartment while renting out the adjacent unit for additional income, all the while residing in what appeared to be a single-family home. The 28 houses on Clay Avenue were all constructed between 1901 and 1902, when Ernest Wenigmann began selling the properties. Within three years, the street was almost entirely occupied, illustrating the success of Wenigmann’s venture and Dickerson’s designs. Clay Avenue remains a beloved architectural ensemble and tight-knit community. In 1909, seven years after Wenigmann completed construction of the houses on Clay Avenue, the Grand Concourse was opened to traffic and became a crucial link between Manhattan and the still rural sections of The Bronx. The completion of the Jerome Avenue subway in 1918 and the introduction of real estate tax exemptions precipitated a wave of development that swept the Grand Concourse from 1922 to 1931. This period saw the construction of over half of the district’s buildings, primarily five- and six-story apartment houses situated on large lots and enlivened by decorative elements that evoked faraway places. The 1933 opening of the IND subway along the Grand Concourse sparked a second building boom from 1935 to 1945 that produced many now iconic Art Deco and Moderne style buildings. These structures feature terra cotta, mosaic tile, cast stone and beige brick in their designs. Although these buildings were executed in a range of architectural styles, many of them are representative of the garden apartment typology. This housing form, which developed in the late 1910s and 1920s, was principally characterized by medium-rise structures arranged around large courtyards. The neighborhoods surrounding Clay Avenue and the Grand Concourse shared in the precipitous population loss and economic decline that plagued much of The Bronx in the post-World War II era. Nevertheless, the community emerged from the turmoil to become the stable, dynamic and diverse area that it is today. The significance and integrity of this neighborhood’s built fabric prompted the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to designate two historic districts here: Clay Avenue (1994) and the Grand Concourse (2011).

Andrew J. Freedman Home Designated June 2, 1992 1125 Grand Concourse (Joseph H. Freedlander & Harry Allan Jacobs, 1922-24; wings by David Levy, 1928-31) – NYCHD, NYCIL Sitting prominently on the Grand Concourse, the four-story Andrew Freedman home was designed by Joseph Freedlander and Harry Jacobs in the tradition of the Italian Renaissance palazzo. This monumental building is defined by its symmetrical massing and architectural details, including a balustraded terrace and beautiful ironwork. After his death in 1915, Andrew Freedman, who was involved with the construction of New York City’s first subway and had close ties to Tammany Hall, left his fortune for the establishment of a home for the “care and maintenance of aged and indigent persons of both sexes…who have been in good circumstances but by reason of adverse fortune, have become poor and dependent.” This home for the once-wealthy was expanded between 1928 and 1931 and remained in its original use until 1983. Purchased by the Mid-Bronx Senior Citizens Council, the rechristened Andrew Freedman Complex now serves as a lodging facility, cultural center and event space.

Where do the rich go when they lose all their money? To a mansion in the Bronx of course. This was the brainchild of millionaire Andrew J. Freedman.

The Grand Concourse is one of the most important avenues in the Bronx. Designed by Louis Aloys Risse, an immigrant from Lorraine, France, who had previously worked for the New York Central Railroad. Risse was appointed chief topographical engineer for the city in the 1890s. Many of the buildings along the Concourse were designed in the Art Deco style, creating a semi-consistent visual along the broad boulevard. Visit the past via the Grand Concourse. Discover the stunning architecture from civic monuments to Art Deco apartment houses to grand municipal structures.

Andrew J. Freedman Home, October 1, 1924. Opening its doors in 1924, the Andrew J. Freedman Home's mission was a rather peculiar one: to serve as a retirement home for wealthy individuals who had lost their money. Having almost lost his entire fortune in the Panic of 1907, Andrew Freeman, a self-made millionaire, came up with this peculiar charity and, upon his death in 1915, left some of his substantial fortune to create the eponymous home. The four-story building in French and Italian Renaissance style cost a million dollars to build and was only to serve individuals who been in "good circumstances" financially. The recently impoverished were supposed to adhere to a set of manners and formal dress. In exchange, these residents were allowed to live rent free in the plush palazzo and were attended to by servants. Two wings were added in 1928 and 1931 just in time to accommodate the suddenly destitute stockbrokers of the Great Depression. Eventually during the 1960s, the trust that supported the home, much like the denizens of the Home, ran out of money and the Home's residents were forced to pay rent. It was eventually bought by the mid Bronx Senior Citizen's Council and turned into a retirement home for the destitute. The Andrew J. Freedman Home was named a New York City Landmark in 1992 and now serves as an event and art space as well as a day care center.