Building of the Day: 177 Montague Street
The BOTD is a no-frills look at interesting structures of all types and from all neighborhoods. There will be old, new, important, forgotten, public, private, good and bad. Whatever strikes our fancy. We hope you enjoy. Address: 177 Montague Street Name: Chase Bank, originally Brooklyn Trust Company Neighborhood: Brooklyn Heights Year Built: 1913-1916 Architectural Style:…
The BOTD is a no-frills look at interesting structures of all types and from all neighborhoods. There will be old, new, important, forgotten, public, private, good and bad. Whatever strikes our fancy. We hope you enjoy.
Address: 177 Montague Street
Name: Chase Bank, originally Brooklyn Trust Company
Neighborhood: Brooklyn Heights
Year Built: 1913-1916
Architectural Style: Renaissance Revival/Beaux Arts
Architects: Edward York and Phillip Sawyer
Why chosen: Modeled after a 17th century Italian palazzo, this is one of NYC’s most beautiful banks, by partners who worked together at McKim, Mead, and White. They also designed many of Manhattan’s most impressive banks, including the Federal Reserve, in the Financial District, and the Bowery Bank on 42nd St. Both the interior and exterior of this bank are landmarked, and worthy of a visit.
GMAP
This is a great building; it really adds to the “downtown” feel of the courthouse area.
1910, that supermarket actually is inside a converted church.
It is worth getting a safe deposit box at this bank just to have a look at the magnificent vault in the basement. It is like a movie set.
I used to live near the supermarket on Henry and Degraw in Carroll Gardens. It has an unusual peak with a circlular inset on the facade making it look like a church steeple. We always refered to it affectionately as “Our Lady of MetFood”.
I wasn’t going to post today as I am finding the general level of snarkiness raher high. Like sunspots, it comes and goes. But I wanted to write, particularly for Montrose, who probably already knows it anyway, that while the exterior of this building was indeed modeled after the great seventeenth century Palazzo della Gran Guardia, in Verona, the interior was modelled after a much more ancient prototype.
The banking hall is modeled after the tepidarium (warm water pool) of the Baths of Caracalla in Rome. York & Sawyer was one of the great firms. We are lucky that this masterpiece survives so perfectly.
I love the incription inside the bank over the front door:
“Commerce defies every wind, outrides every tempest, and invades every zone”
The same incription is on the Department of Commerce Builidng in DC. It’s a quote from American historian George Bancroft.
How about a Cathedral of Commerce!
“The Church of Money.”
Good one.
There is a nearby Chase ATM at the SW corner of Montague & Court – sharing an entrance with yet another drug store. Plus another Chase at Schermerhorn and Court.
I’m glad they didn’t muck up the exterior of this magnificent building with ATMS.
The worst Chase branch. No exterior ATM’s!
***Bid half off peak comps***