828 Fifth Avenue, The Edward Berwind Mansion

With the demolition of 815 Fifth Avenue, the Edward Berwind Mansion is the southernmost of the surviving townhouses that once lined Central Park from 59th street north to Harlem.  Constructed for a Pennsylvania coal baron in 1896 to plans by the little-known architect Nathan Clark Mellen, the house is in an excellent state of preservation… Continue reading

825 Fifth Avenue

Perhaps J.E.R. Carpenter’s most striking residential project, 825 Fifth Avenue is a 23-story tower with a dramatically pitched red tile roof and contains 66 apartments.  An imposing presence when glimpsed from the park or Madison Avenue (as shown here), it is equally handsome at the street level. The building was completed in 1926.

820 Fifth Avenue

One of the most prestigious Beaux Arts apartment houses facing Central Park, 820 Fifth Avenue was designed by Starrett & van Vleck, a firm better known for their elegant department stores such as Lord & Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue. A bastion of exclusivity even by the standards of the Upper East Side, the building… Continue reading

817 Fifth Avenue

A staid example of the Italian Renaissance Revival by George B. Post & Sons, 817 Fifth Avenue was completed in 1916 and converted to a co-op in 1974.  817 Fifth Avenue contains only 16 apartments. As is common with buildings along Central Park, the entrance is actually on the street rather than the avenue, to… Continue reading

815 Fifth Avenue

A once-grand Italianate mansion designed by noted architect Samuel Warner, little remains of 815 Fifth Avenue’s original appearance – and that little will soon be replaced by a new apartment house with a limestone façade. Vintage photos show an attractive residence very much in keeping with the classic brownstone style. Built in 1871, the house… Continue reading