1936

Manhattan: Cooper Square (North) - 6th Street (East) - Astor Place

Cooper Square, east side, north from, but not including East 6th Street to Astor Place, showing Cooper Park; a triangular area between East 6th and 7th Streets. Directly north of same, is the Cooper Union Institute, and facing (side with clock) on East 7th Street. Fourth Ave., which starts at this point, forms the western side. At the extreme north end of the park is a statue of Peter Cooper; the founder. January 13, 1936. P. L. Sperr. The Institute according to the New York Times of July 7, 1938 is undergoing general renovations, consisting mainly of repainting the exterior and reconstruction of the original elevator cage and shaft. This structure, often credited with being Manhattan's first "sky-scraper," was started in 1856 by the founder, and is said to be the first building in which iron was used as part of the interior framework. Since no iron girders were being manufactured at that time, Cooper utilized ordinary railroad rails from his iron mills in New Jersey and Pennsylvania for the floor beams and arches. Since it was completed in 1859, the finish has been a dark reddish brown to match the brownstone which comprises most of the exterior. A warm sandstone color is now being applied to bring out the architectural details; the old reddish brown paint being used only on the exterior of the fourth and fifth floors, which were constructed of Caen stone because labor difficulties halted the shipments of brownstone in 1858. The elevator was installed around 1863 and was incorporated in a cylindrical shaft. The major change here is the reconstruction of the cage.

Photo from the New York Public Library - Milstein Collection