Chester A. Arthur Home

Chester A. Arthur House

The Residence of Chester A. Arthur, 2007
Location 123 Lexington Avenue, Manhattan, New York City, New York
Coordinates 40°44′34″N 73°58′55″W / 40.74278°N 73.98194°W / 40.74278; -73.98194Coordinates: 40°44′34″N 73°58′55″W / 40.74278°N 73.98194°W / 40.74278; -73.98194
Area less than one acre
Built 1886
Architectural style Renaissance, Other
NRHP Reference # 66000534[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP October 15, 1966[1]
Designated NHL December 12, 1965[2]

The Chester A. Arthur Home was the residence of the 21st President of the United States, Chester A. Arthur (1829–1886), both before and after his four years in Washington D.C. while serving as Vice President and then as President. Located at 123 Lexington Avenue in New York City, Arthur spent most of his adult life living in the residence. While Vice President, Arthur retreated to this house after the July 2, 1881 shooting of President James Garfield. Arthur was in residence here when Garfield died on September 19, and took the presidential oath of office in this building.[3] A commemorative bronze plaque was placed inside the building in 1964 by the Native New Yorkers Historical Society and New York Life Insurance, and the house was designated a National Historic Landmark on January 12, 1965.[2][3]

Description and history

The Chester A. Arthur Home is located in Manhattan's Kips Bay neighborhood, on the east side of Lexington Avenue between 28th and 29th Streets. It is a five-story masonry structure with Romanesque Revival styling. It is three bays wide, and has an elaborate cornice, which obscures its low-pitch or flat roof. Windows on the upper three floors are set in segmented arch openings, with splayed stone lintels and bracketed sills. The lower two floors have been converted into a retail space, with a modernized storefront, and the upper floors have been converted to apartments. The interior of the house has relatively little historic integrity.[3]

Chester Alan Arthur moved to New York City in 1848, where he engaged in the practice of law, and in Republican Party politics. He rose in the city's Republican machine to become Collector of the Port of New York, a major patronage post. He was chosen to be James Garfield's running mate in the 1880 election, and became president after Garfield died on September 19, 1881, from wounds incurred in an assassination attempt a few days earlier. Arthur took the oath of office in this house, and retired to it after his term ended in 1885. He died here the following year.[3]

The house was later purchased by William Randolph Hearst[4] It has since undergone many changes. Today, the building houses Kalyustan's, a Mediterranean grocery store, on the first two floors, and apartments on the top three.

It is the only surviving building in New York City where a president was inaugurated.[5]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 "Chester A. Arthur House". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. 2007-09-10.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Chester A. Arthur Home" (pdf). National Park Service. 1978. Retrieved 2017-05-22.
  4. ↑ "The Chester A. Arthur House – 123 Lexington Avenue". March 22, 2014.
  5. ↑ Roberts, Sam (December 7, 2014). "Where a President Took the Oath, Indifference May Become Official". The New York Times.
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