Tweed Courthouse

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Tweed Courthouse
(U.S. National Register of Historic Places)
The main facade of the Tweed Courthouse, before restoration of front steps
Location:	52 Chambers Street (Manhattan)
Built/Founded:	1861–72 and 1877-81
Added to NRHP:	1984
Governing body:	The City of New York

The old New York County Courthouse is known as the Tweed Courthouse, built in the American Victorian style with funds obtained by the infamous William M. "Boss Tweed". The courthouse is located at 52 Chambers Street, constructed from 1861–1872 by the architect John Kellum and Thomas Little. Construction was interrupted when the crimes of Tweed and the "Tammany Hall" dynasty were disclosed to the public.

The project was completed by architect Leopold Eidlitz who added the rear wing and interior renovations from 1877–1881. The building was designated as a New York City Landmark and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Modern restoration and historic preservation of the courthouse were completed in 2001 and the building is now home to the New York City Department of Education. This is second oldest city government building in New York City, after City Hall.^[1]

1 Architecture
2 History
3 Preservation
4 See also
5 References
6 External links
7 Gallery

[edit] Architecture

The building is composed of a central section with two projecting wings, with an addition in the center on the south facade. The entry portico on the main facade rises three and a half stories from a low granite curb, supported by four Corinthian columns. Granite panels are anchored to the outside of the brick structure, with rusticated stone at the basement level.

The north wing was designed by Kellum in the style of the Renaissance palazzo, described as the "Anglo-Italianate" style to reveal the influence of British Victorian architecture that was the foundation of the popular American Victorian style. The southern wing of the courthouse was constructed in the Romanesque style by the German architect and theoretician Leopold Eidlitz who added the wide rotunda enclosing the central courtyard. On the east and west sides of the rotunda are sets of cast iron stairs that run from the first to the third floors. The pillars on the interior were faux painted to resemble marble pillars, and the cast iron handrails at the staircase were painted with a wood-grained finish.

[edit] History

Second floor court chambers before restoration

The building was built on a location previously occupied by the public commons and a poorhouse.^[2] Tweed became one of the wealthiest New Yorkers of the day by using the construction of the building as a pretext to embezzle millions of dollars from the city government and the public. After a series of disruptions during the Civil War, the Tweed courthouse was finally finished in 1881, more than 20 years after work began. The total cost of construction is estimated at $11 million to $12 million but the amount of money pocketed by the Tammany Hall group is unknown.

John Kellum began his career as a house carpenter. later forming the firm King & Kellum in 1846 with Gamaliel King, architect of Brooklyn Borough Hall. The firm designed commercial buildings, including the landmarked Cary Building at 105-107 Chambers Street, one of the earliest cast-iron facades in New York City. Kellum started his own practice in 1860, and designed several buildings for Alexander T. Stewart, including his department store at Broadway and 10th Street, which burned down in 1956, and the master plan for Garden City, Long Island. Thomas Little, a member of the New York City Board of Supervisors, was given credit along with Kellum, but it is believed that the major design credit belongs to Kellum.

Leopold Eidlitz was best known for his work on the New York State Capitol. He was hired in 1876 to finish the courthouse after the original architect died before completion, adding the building's south wing and domed rotunda. The Romanesque style of his work transformed the appearance of the courthouse, in cotrast to Kellum's intricate cast-iron design.

[edit] Preservation

Interior view of the rotunda

The courthouse was restored in 1999 at a cost of $85 million. Building preservation specialists carefully removed as much as 18 layers of paint to reveal the original brick walls and cast iron in order to recreate the original paint colors. The skylights and structure of the roof over the rotunda were replaced, marble and glass tiled floors were restored and additional detail was carved into the capitals of the exterior columns at the portico. The original ventilation shafts in the building's walls were used for modern heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to maintain the appearance of the interior spaces. In addition, the front steps, which had been removed to accommodate a widening of Chambers Street, were restored.[1]

The Guide to New York City Landmarks characterizes the building as containing "some of the finest mid-19th century interiors in New York."

Today, Tweed Courthouse houses the New York City Department of Education with offices and classrooms also occupied by City Hall Academy. The building has served as a location for the films "The Verdict," "Dressed to Kill," and "Kramer versus Kramer." Tours are offered by appointment every Tuesday at 10 a.m. and Friday at 2 p.m.[2]