341-347 Fifth Avenue

A heavily ornate design by Maynicke & Franke, 341-347 Fifth Avenue was completed in 1907.  The contrast of limestone carvings and red brick suggests the much larger Brunswick Building at 213-231 Fifth Avenue at Madison Square.

315 Fifth Avenue

The Rock Building at 315 Fifth Avenue is a handsome 1906 design by Maynicke & Franke.  Featuring numerous Baroque details, it is similar in scale and effect to many of the firm’s buildings further south on The Ladies Mile.  The renowned bookstore Brentano’s was the original ground floor tenant. The façade has been recently cleaned and… Continue reading

200 Fifth Avenue

A masterwork of the firm of Maynicke & Franke, 200 Fifth Avenue replaced the palatial Fifth Avenue Hotel, a legendary establishment that was one of the world’s first luxury hotels, boasting bathrooms in every suite and New York’s first hotel passenger elevator, Otis Tufts’ not-very-appealing-sounding “vertical screw railway”. The current building was much praised at… Continue reading

149-151 Fifth Avenue

Built in 1917-1918, 149-151 Fifth Avenue is the final building constructed on the Ladies’ Mile to designs by Robert Maynicke and represents the evolution of both the firm of Maynicke & Franke and of commercial architecture in New York. On the cusp of the Roaring Twenties the Beaux Arts style was becoming passe and Art Deco had… Continue reading

114 Fifth Avenue

A work by the firm of Maynicke & Franke, 114 Fifth Avenue was built in 1909. The detailing is restrained: the delicate balconies echo those at the Constable Building across the street.  At 18 stores, it is one of the taller buildings in the district.   Maynicke & Franke is the partnership that included the prolific… Continue reading