Barbizon 63

Barbizon Hotel for Women
Barbizon Hotel for Women, July 2007
Location 140 E. 63rd St., Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates 40°45′52.79″N 73°57′58.46″W / 40.7646639°N 73.9662389°W / 40.7646639; -73.9662389Coordinates: 40°45′52.79″N 73°57′58.46″W / 40.7646639°N 73.9662389°W / 40.7646639; -73.9662389
Area less than one acre
Built 1927
Architect Palmer H. Ogden, Everett F. Murgatroyd
Architectural style Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Late Gothic Revival
NRHP reference #

82001186

[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP October 29, 1982
Designated NYCL April 17, 2012

The Barbizon Hotel for Women, later known as Barbizon 63, was symbolic of the cultural change as women began to come to New York City for professional opportunities, but still wanted a "safe retreat" that felt like the family home.[2] It is located at 140 East 63rd Street, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City.

History

It was built in 1927 incorporating a blend of Italian Renaissance, Late Gothic Revival, and Islamic decorative elements. It is a 23-story steel frame building encased in concrete and faced in salmon-colored brick with limestone and terra cotta decorative elements.[3]

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.[1]

For most of its existence, it operated as a residential hotel for women, with no men allowed above the ground floor, and strict dress and conduct rules were enforced. The hotel became a more standard hotel when it began admitting men as guests in 1981.[4] In 2002, a $40 million renovation was completed and the name was changed to The Melrose Hotel. In 2005 the hotel closed and the building was gutted and rebuilt for condominium use and renamed Barbizon 63.

Even after the condo renovation, there were still 14 women living under the old arrangements at the hotel due to rent control in 2006.[4]

The building includes a large indoor pool which is today part of an Equinox Fitness club, and air rights to adjacent properties were purchased when the building was constructed.

Famous residents

Female

Male

  • In the television series Mad Men, the Barbizon is noted as the place of residence of one of Don Draper's post-divorce love interests, Bethany Van Nuys. Don drops her off at the Barbizon in the 1st and 8th episodes of Season 4.
  • In the 1967 Nick Carter spy novel The Red Guard, Carter books his teenage god-daughter into the Barbizon.
  • In the 2015 Marvel TV Series Agent Carter, Peggy Carter lives in the Griffith, a fictional hotel heavily inspired by the Barbizon. Like the Barbizon, it is located on 63rd Street & Lexington Avenue.
  • In Sylvia Plath's novel, The Bell Jar, the Barbizon is prominently featured under the name "The Amazon". The novel's protagonist (and Plath's fictional alter ego), Esther Greenwood, lives there during a summer internship at a fashion magazine. This event is based on Plath's real-life internship at the magazine Mademoiselle in 1953.
  • In a debut novel called The Dollhouse written by Fiona Davis, the Barbizon Hotel/Barbizon 63 Condos is featured in a fictitious coming-of-age story that details two generations of young women whose lives intersect.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. ↑ "Places where Women Made History". National Park Service. Retrieved 2012-06-07.
  3. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Barbizon Hotel for Women". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. August 1982. Retrieved 2011-03-25. See also: "Accompanying nine photos".
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Barbanel, Josh (2006-03-19). "A New Chapter for the Barbizon". The New York Times.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.