South of Union Square
Menu
Place
Share
66 Leroy Street
Posts & Stories
(3)
Hudson Park Branch, NYPL
Post
Hudson Park Library, Seventh Avenue South facade, 1937. In late 1910s the nearby park, which gave the branch its name, Hudson Park, was largely demolished in the construction of Seventh Avenue South. An addition was built for an entrance on the new street, in a slightly different style. The new facade had Common or American Bond brick work instead of the Flemish Bond of the original structure and double-height limestone enframements on the windows. Both of these factors give the Seventh Avenue South facade a more rigid and geometric look. The library, following this addition, seems to hug the seven-story brick apartment building at the southwest corner of Leroy Street and 7th Avenue (not visible at right).
Carnegie Libraries of the Five Boroughs
Story
📚In 1901 after selling his corporation for $500 million, steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie announced a $5.2 million donation to the City of New York for the construction of public library buildings. With this gift, 67 branch libraries were constructed in the five boroughs between 1903 and 1929. 📚
Hudson Park Branch, NYPL
Post
Hudson Park Branch, date unknown (pre-1920). Constructed between 1904 and 1906, the Hudson Park Library was designed by Carrère & Hastings. The library's location was chosen largely due to its proximity to the adjacent Hudson Park. That park, though, was effectively demolished during the south extension of Seventh Avenue. The construction that razed the park though also prompted the construction of a new addition to the building, so that patrons might also enter on the new Seventh Avenue South. The 1920 addition was also designed by the building's original architects. Given its location in an Italian community, the library, from its opening, offered Italian language books. Poet Marianne Moore worked as a library assistant from 1921 to 1925.
Photos
(5)
View fullscreen
Hudson Park Branch, NYPL
Hudson Park Branch, NYPL
Manhattan: Leroy Street - 7th Avenue South No. 1 68-64 Leroy Street, south side, west of Seventh Avenue South, seen from St. Luke's Place and showing at the right a portion of Hudson Park. 68-66 Leroy Street, the low building adjoining the eastern side of the park, is the Hudson Park Library, a branch of the New York Public Library. The eastern side of the building exactly marks the old eastern boundary of the Trinity Church Farm, which was originally one of the Dutch farms confiscated by the Duke of York, and was deeded in perpetuity to Trinity Church by Queen Anne. May 19, 1933. P. L. Sperr. No. 2 A view solely of the Hudson Park Library during imrovemment by the (Works Progress Administration. This agency also constructed a swimming pool in the easterly portion of the Park that adjoins this structure. During same, several gruesome objects were recovered, as this was formerly St. Johns Cemetery. January 19, 1937 Works Progress Administration Five Boroughs Project Credit Line Imperative
Hudson Park Branch, NYPL
10 Seventh Avenue South
Manhattan: 7th Avenue South - Clarkson Street
Hudson Park Branch, NYPL
Manhattan: Leroy Street - 7th Avenue South No. 1 68-64 Leroy Street, south side, west of Seventh Avenue South, seen from St. Luke's Place and showing at the right a portion of Hudson Park. 68-66 Leroy Street, the low building adjoining the eastern side of the park, is the Hudson Park Library, a branch of the New York Public Library. The eastern side of the building exactly marks the old eastern boundary of the Trinity Church Farm, which was originally one of the Dutch farms confiscated by the Duke of York, and was deeded in perpetuity to Trinity Church by Queen Anne. May 19, 1933. P. L. Sperr. No. 2 A view solely of the Hudson Park Library during imrovemment by the (Works Progress Administration. This agency also constructed a swimming pool in the easterly portion of the Park that adjoins this structure. During same, several gruesome objects were recovered, as this was formerly St. Johns Cemetery. January 19, 1937 Works Progress Administration Five Boroughs Project Credit Line Imperative
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
Open Map
