Residence of Judge Elbert H. Gary, 1927 Like many of Candela's buildings, 856 Fifth Avenue was built on the graves of the mansions that came before it, including Judge Gary's mansion and some adjacent buildings were torn down to build Candela's 856 Fifth Avenue. The Gary mansion had stood on the site for only 15 years. Gary's widow moved into the apartment house at 856 Fifth upon its completion in 1928.

856 Fifth Avenue ca. 1929 With its smooth stone facades and flush windows rising above a three-story rusticated base, 856 Fifth Avenue was one of architect Rosario Candela's most elegantly severe designs. The building initially comprised nine single-floor apartments, two two-story maisonettes, and a penthouse duplex of 18 rooms. Interior decorator and style maven Dorothy Draper served as consultant on the building's plans and decorations.

Rosario Candela played a major role in shaping the architectural legacy of 20th-century Manhattan: the distinctive "prewar apartment buildings that define the cityscapes of streets like Park and Fifth Avenues and Sutton Place." Even today, almost a century after they were built, Candela's buildings rank among the most prized in the city.

855 Fifth Avenue, 1891. From 1885 until the mid-1890s, this home was the residence of one of the most prolific members of Hispanic society in New York. Born Francisca Aparicio y Merida in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, Aparicio had served as the First Lady of Guatemala from 1874 until 1885. Her husband, President Justo Rufino Barrios, trusted her with duties of the state. When Barrios was killed on the battlefield in an attempt to re-form the Central American Union, Aparicio moved to the United States with her seven children. Upon moving to New York City, the former First Lady purchased a building at 855 Fifth Avenue. She soon made her home widely known for lavish entertainment. A column in an Ohio newspaper of the time claimed, "of all New York's young widows and matrons she receives the most attention." The article describes "Mme. de Barrios," wearing a Cleopatra costume, herself in the possession of "a selection of jewels so great that if she wore a new parure each day there would be more than enough for all the days in the year." Aparicio's home became a social destination for Spanish-American society in New York. The residence became a lavishly decorated mansion full of Latin American Art, where Aparcios hosted classical music performances, private operas, costume balls, and dancing (a skill in which she was supposedly very talented). On one of her trips with her family to Europe, she met Jose Martinez de Roda, a member of the Spanish Congress of Deputies. They were wed in her Fifth Avenue home. As was to be expected, this ceremony was full of pomp and circumstance, with the civil service performed by New York City's mayor Hugh J. Grant and the religious ceremony by the archbishop of New York, Michael Corrigan. The couple moved to Europe shortly after they were married. One-time minister to the court of Spain Perry Belmont took over the residence after the newly-weds moved out.

Southeast corner of Fifth Avenue, ca. 1912. The building at no. 856 was constructed in 1881-1882—the corner building in a set of four townhouses (three of which faced Fifth Avenue and one at 2 East 67th Street). Designed by the firm of Lamb & Wheeler, the home was built for H.O. Armour, a meat-packing industrialist, who ran the New York syndicate of the well known Chicago firm. Armour died in 1901 and his wife sold the home in 1910. The 19th century home on this very desirable lot (of considerable size, 30 foot by 120 foot) was quickly demolished. The new construction was a mansion for Judge Elbert Gary.

Rosario Candela played a major role in shaping the architectural legacy of 20th-century Manhattan. Candela's elegant yet understated high rises created the look of New York urbanism between the world wars. This walking tour takes you through some of Candela's iconic buildings on the Upper East Side.

R. Livingston and Eleanor T. Beeckman House ARCHITECT: Warren & Wetmore DATE: 1903-05 STYLE: French Classic Although this small townhouse is sandwiched between two large apartment buildings, their overpowering size cannot overshadow the palatial scale nor the elegant grandeur of its architecture. Designed by an architect educated in the finest tradition of the French Beaux-Arts School, this house, in its character, reflects the influence of the Eighteenth Century classic period of Louis XV. Two windows wide, the three-story masonry facade, with steep mansard roof containing two floors with dormers has an impressive dignity and restraint.