55th Street (Manhattan)
Encyclopedia
55th Street is a two-mile-long, one-way
street
traveling east to west across Midtown Manhattan
.
Sutton Place South
First Avenue
Second Avenue
Lexington Avenue
Park Avenue
Madison Avenue (Manhattan)
Fifth Avenue
Seventh Avenue
Ninth Avenue
Tenth Avenue
West Side Highway
The route concludes at the West Side Highway (New York Route 9A). Opposite the intersection is the Hudson River
One-way traffic
One-way traffic is traffic that moves in a single direction. A one-way street is a street either facilitating only one-way traffic, or designed to direct vehicles to move in one direction.-General signs:...
street
Street
A street is a paved public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, but is more often paved with a hard, durable...
traveling east to west across Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan, or simply Midtown, is an area of Manhattan, New York City home to world-famous commercial zones such as Rockefeller Center, Broadway, and Times Square...
.
Sutton Place SouthSutton Place, ManhattanSutton Place is the name given to one of the most affluent streets in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States, situated on the border between the Midtown and Upper East Side neighborhoods...
- The route officially begins at Sutton Place SouthSutton Place, ManhattanSutton Place is the name given to one of the most affluent streets in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States, situated on the border between the Midtown and Upper East Side neighborhoods...
which is on a hill overlooking FDR Drive. - Plaza 400 Apartments, 40-story 119 m/392 ft apartment building completed in 1967 (north)
First AvenueFirst Avenue (Manhattan)First Avenue is a north-south thoroughfare on the East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan, running from Houston Street northbound for over 125 blocks before terminating at the Willis Avenue Bridge into The Bronx at the Harlem River near East 127th Street. South of Houston Street, the...
- Terrence Cardinal Cook Building (south)
- Church of St. John the Evangelist (south)
- Bristol Apartments, 33-story apartment building completed in 1973
Second AvenueSecond Avenue (Manhattan)Second Avenue is an avenue on the East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan extending from Houston Street at its south end to the Harlem River Drive at 128th Street at its north end. A one-way street, vehicular traffic runs only downtown. A bicycle lane in the left hand portion from 55th...
- Brevard Apartments, 30-story apartments completed in 1981
- Marymount Manhattan CollegeMarymount Manhattan CollegeMarymount Manhattan College is an urban, coeducational, independent, private, liberal arts college located in Manhattan, New York City, New York with a focus in performing arts. The mission of the College is to educate a socially and economically diverse student body by fostering intellectual...
Dormitory, 48-story, 144 m / 473 ft mixed apartment house and dormitory completed in 2001 (north) - 919 Third Avenue919 Third Avenue919 Third Avenue is an office building in New York City, built in 1971, and is located at the intersection of 3rd Avenue and East 55th Street in Manhattan.919 Third AvenueThe building is 615 feet tall with 47 floors...
, 47-story 188 m / 615 ft building completed in 1971 (north) - P. J. Clarke'sP. J. Clarke'sP. J. Clarke's is a famous saloon, established 1884 and occupying a building located at 915 Third Avenue on the northeast corner of 55th Street in New York City.- History :...
, antique tavern known for holding its own and remaining intact despite attempts to destroy it for 919 Third. (north)
Lexington AvenueLexington Avenue (Manhattan)Lexington Avenue, often colloquially abbreviated by New Yorkers as "Lex," is an avenue on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City that carries southbound one-way traffic from East 131st Street to Gramercy Park at East 21st Street...
- Central SynagogueCentral SynagogueThe Central Synagogue is located at 652 Lexington Avenue on the corner of 55th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York. Built in 1872 in the Moorish Revival style as a copy of Budapest's Dohány Street Synagogue, it pays homage to the Jewish existence in Moorish Spain...
(south) - DLT Entertainment headquarters (south)
- Levin Institute (south)
Park AvenuePark Avenue (Manhattan)Park Avenue is a wide boulevard that carries north and southbound traffic in New York City borough of Manhattan. Through most of its length, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the west and Lexington Avenue to the east....
- Park Avenue Place, 38-story, 144 m 472 ft (143.9 m) office tower completed in 2004 (south)
- Park Avenue Tower, 36-story 171 m 561 ft (171 m) office tower completed in 1987 with a distinctive pyramid roof (north)
- Heron TowerHeron TowerHeron Tower, also referred to as 110 Bishopsgate, is a skyscraper owned by Heron International in the City of London. It was completed in 2011...
, 96 m 314 ft (95.7 m), 25-story building completed in 1986
Madison Avenue (Manhattan)Madison Avenue (Manhattan)Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square to the Madison Avenue Bridge at 138th Street. In doing so, it passes through Midtown, the Upper East Side , Spanish Harlem, and...
- Sony Tower, 37-story 197 m 647 ft (197.2 m) building completed in 1984 originally to be the headquarters of AT&TAT&TAT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
(north) - Finland House, 38-story, 130 m 427 ft (130.1 m) office tower completed in 1970 (north)
- St. Regis Hotel
Fifth AvenueFifth Avenue (Manhattan)Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the center of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. The section of Fifth Avenue that crosses Midtown Manhattan, especially that between 49th Street and 60th Street, is lined with prestigious shops and is consistently ranked among...
- Peninsula Hotel, 21-story, 76 m 250 ft (76.2 m) hotel completed in 1905 (south)
- Fifth Avenue Presbyterian ChurchFifth Avenue Presbyterian ChurchThe Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church is a large congregation of the Presbyterian Church . The church was founded in 1808 as the Cedar Street Presbyterian Church and has been located on Fifth Avenue at 55th Street in midtown Manhattan since 1875. It has approximately 3,250 members from a variety...
(north) - MGM Building, 35-story 127 m 416 ft (126.8 m) office tower completed in 1966 (south)
Avenue of the Americas
- Robert IndianaRobert IndianaRobert Indiana is an American artist associated with the Pop Art movement.-Life and work:Robert Indiana was born Robert Clark in New Castle, Indiana. His family relocated to Indianapolis, where he graduated from Arsenal Technical High School...
Love (sculpture)LOVE (Sculpture)LOVE is a sculpture by American artist Robert Indiana. It consists of the letters LO over the letters VE.The image was originally designed as a Christmas card for the Museum of Modern Art in 1964...
(south) - Capitol-EMI Building 34-story 143 m 470 ft (143.3 m) building (north)
- Burlington HouseBurlington HouseBurlington House is a building on Piccadilly in London. It was originally a private Palladian mansion, and was expanded in the mid 19th century after being purchased by the British government...
, 50 story, 191 m 625 ft (190.5 m) building completed in 1969 (south) - New York City CenterNew York City CenterNew York City Center is a 2,750-seat Moorish Revival theater located at 131 West 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in Manhattan, New York City. It is one block south of Carnegie Hall...
, theatre (north) - CitySpire CenterCitySpire CenterThe CitySpire Center is the tallest mixed-use skyscraper in New York City, located on the south side of West 56th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in Midtown Manhattan. Finished in 1987, it is 248 meters tall and has 73 floors, with a total area of...
(north), 75-story 248 m 814 ft (248.1 m) tower (tallest on street), north - The London NYC 54-floor 180 m 590 ft (179.8 m) tower completed in 1990 (south)
- Hotel Wellington (north)
Seventh AvenueSeventh Avenue (Manhattan)Seventh Avenue, known as Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard north of Central Park, is a thoroughfare on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is southbound below Central Park and a two-way street north of the park....
- Park Central HotelPark Central HotelThe Park Central Hotel is a 31-story, 935-room hotel located at 870 7th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York.Built in the pre-Depression late-twenties, its grand opening took place on June 12, 1927...
, 25-story 109 m 357 ft (108.8 m) tower completed in 1926 most famous for mafia execution in the barber shop (north) - Dream Hotel (south)
- Mutual of New York BuildingMutual of New York Building1740 Broadway is a 26-story building in Midtown Manhattan in New York City which is owned by Vornado Realty Trust...
, 27-story 114 m 375 ft (114.3 m) building completed in 1950 whose sign inspired the song Mony, Mony
Broadway
- Random House TowerRandom House TowerThe Random House Tower and Park Imperial is a 52-story mixed use tower in New York City that is used as the headquarters of Random House and a luxury apartment complex called Park Imperial. The book publisher entrance is on Broadway and goes up to 27 floors, while the apartment complex entrance...
, 52-story 208 m 684 ft (208.5 m) tower (north) - Former original location of Soup Nazi from SeinfeldSeinfeldSeinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
Ninth AvenueNinth Avenue (Manhattan)Ninth Avenue / Columbus Avenue is a southbound thoroughfare on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Traffic runs downtown along its full length...
- Alvin AileyAlvin AileyAlvin Ailey, Jr. was an American choreographer and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York. Ailey is credited with popularizing modern dance and revolutionizing African-American participation in 20th century concert dance...
Dance Hall (north) - Julia Miles Theatre (Off Broadway venue) (south)
- Independent High School (north)
Tenth AvenueTenth Avenue (Manhattan)Tenth Avenue, known as Amsterdam Avenue north of 59th Street, is a north-south thoroughfare on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City. It carries uptown traffic as far as West 110th Street, also known as Cathedral Parkway for the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine...
- Clinton Towers Apartments 39-story apartment completed in 1974
Twelfth Avenue
The road crosses a very small block separating 12th Avenue from the West Side Highway (one of the few places where 12th and the West Side Highway are not the same)West Side HighwayWest Side HighwayThe West Side Highway is a mostly surface section of New York State Route 9A that runs from West 72nd Street along the Hudson River to the southern tip of Manhattan. It replaced the West Side Elevated Highway, built between 1929 and 1951, which was shut down in 1973 due to neglect and lack of...
The route concludes at the West Side Highway (New York Route 9A). Opposite the intersection is the Hudson RiverHudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
External links
- 55th Street: A New York Songline - virtual walking tour