National Historic Landmark

National City Bank

New York, New York County, New York
Listed
June 1, 1978
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
78001875

About this property

55 Wall Street, formerly the National City Bank Building, is an eight-story building on Wall Street between William and Hanover streets in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. The lowest three stories were completed in either 1841 or 1842 as the four-story Merchants' Exchange and designed by Isaiah Rogers in the Greek Revival style. Between 1907 and 1910, McKim, Mead & White removed the original fourth story and added five floors to create the present building. Since 2006, the banking room has functioned as an event venue called the Cipriani Wall Street, while the upper stories have been a condominium development known as the Cipriani Club Residences. 55 Wall Street's granite facade includes two stacked colonnades facing Wall Street, each with twelve columns. Inside is a cruciform banking hall with a 60-foot (18 m) vaulted ceiling, Corinthian columns, marble floors and walls, and an entablature around the interior. The banking hall was among the largest in the United States when it was completed. The offices of Citibank's predecessor National City Bank were in the corners of the banking hall, while the fourth through eighth floors were used as office space. The facade and part of the interior are New York City designated landmarks, and the building is listed on both the New York State Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as a National Historic Landmark. It is also a contributing property to the Wall Street Historic District, listed on the NRHP. The Merchants' Exchange building replaced a structure that had burned down in the Great New York City Fire of 1835. 55 Wall Street subsequently hosted the New York Stock Exchange, then the United States Custom House until a new Custom House building was developed on Bowling Green in the 1900s. After 55 Wall Street was expanded, it served as the headquarters of National City Bank from 1908 to 1961; Citibank continued to own the building until 1992. The upper stories operated as a hotel from 2000 to 2003. Cipriani S.A. and Steve Witkoff began converting the upper stories to condominiums in 2004, while Cipriani operated the banking room as an event venue.

Location

55 Wall St.
New York, New York County, New York
40.70595, -74.00924

Categories

COMMERCEARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

First National City Bank
Industrial
0 mi
Wall and Hanover Building
Industrial
0 mi
Bank of New York Building
Industrial
0 mi
Beaver Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
Manhattan Company Building
Industrial
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was National City Bank listed on the National Register?

National City Bank was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 1, 1978.

What type of historic resource is National City Bank?

National City Bank is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

Is National City Bank a National Historic Landmark?

Yes. National City Bank has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL), the highest level of federal recognition for historic properties in the United States.

What is the period of significance for National City Bank?

The period of significance for National City Bank is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near National City Bank?

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