Steinway Mansion

Steinway Mansion
Steinway Mansion from 41st Street
Location 18–33 41st St, Astoria, New York City
Coordinates 40°46′43.5″N 73°53′50″W / 40.778750°N 73.89722°W / 40.778750; -73.89722Coordinates: 40°46′43.5″N 73°53′50″W / 40.778750°N 73.89722°W / 40.778750; -73.89722
Area less than one acre (4,000 m2)
Built 1858
Architectural style Italianate villa
NRHP reference # 83001780[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP September 8, 1983
Designated NYCL February 15, 1967

The Steinway Mansion is a historic home located on a one-acre hilltop in the Astoria section of Queens, New York City. It was built in 1858, originally on 440 acres (1.8 km2) on the Long Island Sound, by Benjamin Pike, Jr., born in 1809, a noted manufacturer of scientific instruments located in lower Manhattan. After his death in 1864, his widow sold the Mansion to William Steinway of Steinway & Sons in 1870. Jack Halberian purchased the Mansion in 1926 and upon his death in 1976, his son Michael Halberian began an extensive restoration. The house had been for sale since his death in 2010. It was landmarked by the City of New York in 1966.[2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The property was purchased by undisclosed buyers in 2014.[1]

The Steinway Mansion is a large Italianate Villa style dwelling. The architect is unknown. It is constructed of granite and bluestone with cast iron ornamentation and has a two-story, T-shaped central section, with a slate covered gable roof. It has a one-story library wing with large bay windows. It features a four-story tower topped by a balustrade and octagonal cupola. There are three porches supported by cast iron Corinthian order columns. There are five Italian marble fireplaces, pocket doors that hold original cut glass depicting many of Pike's 19th-century scientific instruments. The center main hall contains elaborate carved walnut balustrades, a two-story domed rotunda topped with a central stained glass skylight and 12-foot (3.7 m) ceilings throughout. There are three large underground cisterns designed to collect rain water from the roof for grounds irrigation and a 1000-gallon (3,800 l) copper tank in the attic to furnish the house with a pressurized water system for bath and kitchen use.

In the film The Pursuit of Happiness (1971) three scenes feature extensive interior and exterior shots of the mansion. In 2006, a documentary film titled The Steinway Mansion was produced and includes extensive interviews with Michael Halberian and Henry Steinway and many rare photos.[3] It is located at 18–33 41st Street, Astoria, New York City.

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. ↑ Larry E. Gobrecht (n.d.). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Steinway House". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2011-01-16. See also: "Accompanying six photos".
  3. ↑ The Steinway Mansion, documentary by James Sebastian on YouTube
  • Media related to Steinway Mansion at Wikimedia Commons
  • The Friends of Steinway Mansion
  • "Astoria Residents Tour Steinway Mansion" by Jason D. Antos, Queens Gazette, October 13, 2010
  • "A Mansion of Dreams Awakes in Urban Peril" by Raymond Hernandez, The New York Times, April 15, 1993
  • Barron, James (February 8, 2011). "Uncertain Coda for Mansion With a Musical Heritage". The New York Times. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
  • Public hearing (December 27, 1966), New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission
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