Morningside Heights: A History of Its Architecture and Development

Andrew Dolkart

Published by Columbia University Press 1998

Morningside Heights

A History of Its Architecture and Development

Andrew Dolkart

In the series Columbia History of Urban Life

https://doi.org/10.7312/dolk07850

Overview
Contents

About this book

The book tells the stories of the excitement surrounding the initial plans for an Episcopal cathedral and the ultimate failure of this grandiose project; the efforts of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. to build a rival nondenominational church (Riverside Church); the development of Charles McKim's inspired designs for Columbia's campus; the efforts of Barnard and Teachers College to build impressive campuses adjacent to Columbia; and the later projects of Union and Jewish theological seminaries and the Institute of Musical Art (late the Juilliard School) to erect buildings that would be part of the larger institutional concentration, but world provide each with a unique architectural identity.

Morningside Heights, the institutional heart of New York City, is also one of the city's most architecturally distinguished neighborhoods. The high plateau that forms Morningside Heights is geographically isolated within the city and remained largely undeveloped even as neighboring Harlem and the Upper West Side became prestigious residential communities. At the end of the nineteenth century, institutions relocated to the plateau where sizable plots were available at a convenient distance from the built-up city. In 1887 Episcopal Bishop Henry Potter announced plans for the construction of a great cathedral at the edge of the plateau. The cathedral was soon followed by Columbia College and St. Luke's Hospital, which contemplated grand complexes, and by newer institutions such as Barnard College and Teachers College that were intent on establishing a presence in the rapidly growing city. Thus, Morningside Heights became indelibly associated with New York's educational, medical, and religious foundations, and was appropriately dubbed "the Acropolis of New York."

In this extensively illustrated book, Andrew S. Dolkart explores the architecturally varied complexes built by these organizations. He traces the successes and failures of each building project, as trustees and supporters struggled to raise funds in order to construct great campuses in a city where residents were not always generous in their support of such endeavors. Commissioning designs from some of city's and the nation's leading architects, the Morningside Heights institutions created a richly diverse ensemble of buildings.

The book tells the stories of the excitement surrounding the initial plans for an Episcopal cathedral and the ultimate failure of this grandiose project; the efforts of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. to build a rival nondenominational church (Riverside Church); the development of Charles McKim's inspired designs for Columbia's campus; the efforts of Barnard and Teachers College to build impressive campuses adjacent to Columbia; and the later projects of Union and Jewish theological seminaries and the Institute of Musical Art (late the Julliard School) to erect buildings that would be part of the larger institutional concentration, but world provide each with a unique architectural identity.

Dolkart also traces the history of the surrounding residential neighborhood, providing the first comprehensive analysis of the design and construction the early-twentieth-century speculative apartment houses that typify so many New York neighborhoods. Based on extensive research and incorporating more than 200 photographs, Morningside Heights will appeal to anyone interested in architecture, urban development, or the history of New York City, as well as those associated with the neighborhood or its institutions.

Author / Editor information

Andrew S. Dolkart teaches at the Columbia University School of Architecture and has written and lectured extensively about New York's architecture and development. He is the author of the Guide to New York City Landmarks, has curated numerous exhibitions, and is well-known for his walking tours of New York City neighborhoods.

Reviews

While Dolkart focuses on aesthetics, his analysis of taste and design is informed by a penetrating knowledge of Manhattan's social history. The resulting book, gracefully written and generously illustrated, will appeal to historians, residents, and anyone whose search for scarce parking on the Heights has taken them past buildings which astonish and delight.... Dolkart adeptly explains the social implications behind... artistic decisions.... the work is a remarkable social portrait.

Robert A. M. Stern:
Every town, hamlet, and neighborhood deserves an historical portrait by Andrew Dolkart. His history of Morningside Heights is a magnificent work of scholarship that grows out of a true love of urbanism and a profound respect for the contribution of architects and developers, whether high-minded or not-so, to the vitality of place.

Thorough analysis of this architecturally rich neighborhood.

Combines recondite research with bare-knuckle history, interweaving the nuts and bolts of neighborhood-building with a messy human drama of rivalry, greed, marketing, bigotry and idealism.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
Chronology Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xiii
Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. At Bloomingdale The Pre-History of Morningside Heights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	13
2. Building for the Spirit The Cathedral of St. John the Divine and Riverside Church Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	37
3. Building for the Body St. Luke’s Hospital and Other Health-Related Facilities on Morningside Heights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	85
4. Building for the Mind I Columbia University and the Transformation of Morningside Heights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	103
5. Building for the Mind II The Growth and Expansion of Columbia Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	157
6. Building for the Mind III Barnard College and Teachers College— Women’s Education on Morningside Heights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	203
7. Building for the Mind and Spirit Theological Seminaries and a Musical Institute on Morningside Heights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	245
8. Building for Profit The Development of a Residential Community on Morningside Heights Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	275
Afterword: Morningside Heights in the Second Half of the Twentieth Century Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	325
Appendix: Building List Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	341
Abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	357
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	359
Selected Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	465
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	469
Photo Credits Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	499

Language: English
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Main content: 544
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 5
- Other: 155 photos, 5 maps

eBook

Published: September 25, 2015
ISBN: 9780231534819