Wolcott Hotel
Encyclopedia
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
was built in the 1900s at 4 West 31st Street near 5th Avenue by William C. Dewey and designed by architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
John H. Duncan
John H. Duncan
-Biography:He was the designer of the Wolcott Hotel. One of the most famous architects in the United States at the turn of the 20th century, his popularity rose after being selected as the architect of what is now Grant's Tomb, another "reconstruction" of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus .Another of...
. Duncan used a bold Beaux-Arts style combined with French Neo Classicism
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
. Architects' and Builders' Magazine, in an extensive article about Wolcott published in September 1903, wrote on the exterior design.
It was completed in March 1904, and leased by Dewey to James H. Breslin a prominent hotel man at the time. Later accounts mention labor strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
s caused delays going past Deweys fininancing due for repayment. In early 1905 The American Mortgage Company repossessed the building, after which Dewey retired. Breslins lease remained, he moved in after the opening on March 1, 1904. The hotel was popular with travelers, but also housed many permanent residents. The later history of the hotel was less notable historically but it remains a reminder to this day of turn of the century New York.