Brooklyn Union Gas Company Headquarters
Encyclopedia
The Brooklyn Union Gas Company Headquarters, also known as 180 Remsen Street, and since 1962 the St. Francis College Arts Building, is a notable building in Brooklyn, New York. Designed by Brooklyn architect Frank Freeman
and completed in 1914, it is a designated New York City landmark
.
The Gas Company continued to occupy the building for the next 47 years. In 1962, it was sold and became the St. Francis College Arts Building. In May 2009, the Landmarks Preservation Committee voted in support of designating the building a New York landmark. It was approved on May 10, 2011.
style, the Brooklyn Union Gas Company Building was completed during his later, Neoclassical
period, and is more restrained than his earlier work. The eight-story building is divided into three sections.
The ground floor, constructed of granite
, consists of a large central entranceway flanked by a pair of large windows on either side. Above the entrance is a shallow portico
supported on two Roman Doric
columns, above which is a heavy, decorated cornice
running the width of the building. The next four floors are of a very simple design, consisting of four rows of unadorned rectangular windows surmounted by a plain cornice. The final two floors consist of two more rows of windows, spaced by a series of six Ionic
columns rising to an entablature and, at the top of the building, a heavy stone cornice. The structure as a whole has been characterized as "a fine, stately office building demonstrating Freeman's infinite versatility."
Frank Freeman
Frank Freeman was a Canadian-American architect based in Brooklyn, New York. A leading exponent of the Richardsonian Romanesque architectural style who later adopted Neoclassicism, Freeman has been called "Brooklyn's greatest architect"...
and completed in 1914, it is a designated New York City landmark
Landmark
This is a list of landmarks around the world.Landmarks may be split into two categories - natural phenomena and man-made features, like buildings, bridges, statues, public squares and so forth...
.
History
The Brooklyn Union Gas Company was originally established in 1825 as the Brooklyn Gas Light Company, changing its name after a series of mergers in 1895. Rapid growth in the early 1900s prompted the company to establish a new headquarters at 180 Remsen St., Brooklyn. Noted Brooklyn architect Frank Freeman was commissioned to design the new headquarters, which was built in 1914.The Gas Company continued to occupy the building for the next 47 years. In 1962, it was sold and became the St. Francis College Arts Building. In May 2009, the Landmarks Preservation Committee voted in support of designating the building a New York landmark. It was approved on May 10, 2011.
Description
Although architect Frank Freeman is best known for his work in the Richardsonian RomanesqueRichardsonian Romanesque
Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after architect Henry Hobson Richardson, whose masterpiece is Trinity Church, Boston , designated a National Historic Landmark...
style, the Brooklyn Union Gas Company Building was completed during his later, Neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
period, and is more restrained than his earlier work. The eight-story building is divided into three sections.
The ground floor, constructed of granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
, consists of a large central entranceway flanked by a pair of large windows on either side. Above the entrance is a shallow portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
supported on two Roman Doric
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
columns, above which is a heavy, decorated cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
running the width of the building. The next four floors are of a very simple design, consisting of four rows of unadorned rectangular windows surmounted by a plain cornice. The final two floors consist of two more rows of windows, spaced by a series of six Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
columns rising to an entablature and, at the top of the building, a heavy stone cornice. The structure as a whole has been characterized as "a fine, stately office building demonstrating Freeman's infinite versatility."