The Metropolitan Club

Coordinates: 40°45′53.5″N 73°58′20″W / 40.764861°N 73.97222°W / 40.764861; -73.97222

The Metropolitan Club
The Fifth Avenue facade of The Metropolitan Club
Formation 1891
Type gentlemen's club
Headquarters 1-11 East 60th Street
Location
Region served
New York City and the surrounding region
Website http://www.metropolitanclubnyc.org
60th Street entrance

The Metropolitan Club is a private social club in Manhattan, New York City. It was founded in 1891 as men only, but now allows women into membership.[1]

History

The Metropolitan Club was formed in 1891 by J. P. Morgan,[2] who served as its first president.

It was actually the second organization with that name in its neighborhood. The New York Times reported Tuesday, March 10, 1891, about the name selected the prior Saturday:

There is already a Metropolitan Club, which for some years has occupied quarters in the neighborhood in which the millionaires think of building.[3]

Actually, the first organization to claim the name "Metropolitan Club" seemed to be described by The Times for over a decade without the prefix "The".[4]

Original members

Other original members of the club included William Kissam Vanderbilt and James A. Roosevelt. "Each member, which included Vanderbilts and Whitneys, contributed $5,000 to buy the plot of land."[2]

The building

The architects of the original building (erected in 1893)[5] were McKim, Mead & White.

The east wing, erected in 1912, was designed by Ogden Codman Jr.[6]

Its 1894 clubhouse, designed by Stanford White, stands at 1-11 East 60th Street, on the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue. The land on which the Clubhouse stands—100 feet fronting on Fifth Avenue and 200 feet on 60th Street—was acquired from the Duchess of Marlborough who signed the purchase agreement in the United States Consulate in London. Cornelius Vanderbilt II signed the purchase agreement on behalf of the club.

The address of the Club's building is One East 60th Street;[2][7] the address for parking is 11 East 61st Street ("between Madison and Fifth Avenues" - "615 Garage Corporation").[8]

post-GOLF House Rules

Whether it is true or not that GOLF originated as Gentlemen-Only-Ladies-Forbidden, The Metropolitan Club was originally men-only. Today this is not the case, as noted in the DRESS CODE of the club's House Rules.

  • Men must wear jackets and ties - "turtlenecks and ascots are not acceptable."
  • Ladies have a longer list of what is "absolutely not acceptable."

Prohibition

Except in private spaces, "Cellular Phones" and Laptops are prohibited. There is no provision in the "No animals or pets are permitted" rule for seeing-eye dogs.

Founding members

Other notable members

See also

References

Notes
  1. ↑ Wilson, James Grant (1893). The Memorial History of the City of New York: From Its First Settlement to the Year 1892 (PDF). New York History Co. p. 293.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Metropolitan Club, located at 1 East 60th Street on the corner of 5th Avenue, was founded in 1891 by J.P. Morgan to challenge the Union Club, which had rejected some of his new money friends. Each member, which included Vanderbilts and Whitneys, contributed $5,000 to buy the plot of land ... "Inside 10 of New York City's most exclusive private clubs". October 26, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Very Hard On The Postmen.; It Would Seem That There Is One Metropolitan Club Too Many". The New York Times. March 10, 1891.
  4. ↑ "The Democratic State Nominations were ratified on Saturday night by the Metropolitan Club, at a public meeting held in Stuyvesant Institue. The lecture-room was crowded. Judge S.S.BOWNE was ..." Note that it says "the" (NOT "The") by Metropolitan Club. "POLITICAL". NYTimes.com. October 4, 1858.
  5. ↑ Some sources claim 1894, but it is clear that much if not most of the work was done in 1893. One item even mentions 1892.
  6. ↑ "The Metropolitan Club". Architect: McKim, Mead & White; Ogden Codman Jr. (east wing). Erected: 1893; 1912 (east wing)
  7. ↑ The mailing address is "1 East ..."
    the address on invitations to events is "One East ..." and
    the address given on the official web site is "One East Sixtieth ..."
  8. ↑ "The Metropolitan Club One East 60th Street at the corner of Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10022 Tel: (212) 838-7400. Parking is available at: 615 Garage Corporation 11 East 61st Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues New York, NY 10065 Tel: (212) 838-8869." "The Metropolitan Club - American Scandinavian Society".
  9. ↑ The Founder
Bibliography

  • Porzelt, Paul (1982). The Metropolitan Club of New York. Rizzoli International Publications. ISBN 978-0-8478-0423-8.
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