1107 Fifth Avenue

1107 Fifth Avenue replaced the enormous Hutton Mansion – and did so only after Mrs. E. F. Hutton ensured that her house would be virtually replicated as the building’s triplex penthouse.  The uppermost floors of this building echo the original structure, with the Palladian window visible at the upper part of the photo taking the… Continue reading

Just Off Fifth: 9 East 91st Street, the John H. Hammond House

The third of the three remarkable large-scale freestanding houses to line the north-side block of East 91st Street between Fifth and Madison, 9 East 91st Street was designed in 1903 by Carrere & Hastings for banker John H. Hammond, whose sister-in-law was Mrs. Burden, owner of the house next door at 5 East 91st.  Called… Continue reading

Just Off Fifth: 5 East 91st Street, the James Burden Mansion

A worthy neighbor to the larger Kahn Mansion at 1 East 91st Street, the James Burden Mansion at 5 East 91st Street has been called “the finest Beaux Arts townhouse in the city” by the New York Landmarks Commission.  A sumptuous yet stately 1902-1905 design by Warren & Wetmore, 5 East 91st Street is also… Continue reading

1 East 91st Street, The Otto Kahn Mansion

Possibly the best surviving Fifth Avenue mansion, the Otto Kahn Mansion at 1 East 91st Street is certainly one of the largest, containing nearly 80 rooms.  Designed by C.P.H. Gilbert and J. Armstrong Stenhouse, the house has an archeological correctness to it that was unusual for the period.  Constructed over a four year period from… Continue reading

2 East 91st Street, The Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum

One of the most remarkable survivors on Fifth Avenue, 2 East 91st Street, the Andrew Carnegie Mansion, was designed by Babb, Cook & Willard for Andrew Carnegie, who requested “The most modest, plainest and roomiest house in New York.”  One may assume that Mr. Carnegie was speaking ironically as the house is one of the… Continue reading