Vol. XXX, No. 6. DECEMBER, 1911. COVER DESIGN. Drawing by Vernon Howe Bailey. Page THE PASSING OF MADISON SQUARE GARDEN . 513 SOME REMARKS PROMPTED BY THE PENDING DEMOLI- TION OF NEW YORK'S FAMOUS SHOW BUILDING. Illustrations from Drawings by Vernon Howe Bailey. THE PALACE OF THE POPES AT AVIGNON Frederic Lees 523 ITS HISTORY AND RESTORATION. Illustrations from Photographs by the author. CURRENT ARCHITECTURE. Portfolio . 538 Fifth Fifth Piano Salesroom Store ; Avenue Jewelry ; Avenue First National Bank, Cleveland, Ohio; Connecticut State Armory and Arsenal, Residence of Clinton MacKenzie and No. 68 East 56th Street, New York City. ARCHITECTURE OF AMERICAN COLLEGES Montgomery Schuyler 549 IX-UNION, HAMILTON, HOBART, CORNELLand SYRACUSE Illustrations from Photographs. SOME CENTURY-OLD DOORWAYS IN RURAL NEW ENGLAND 575 Nine Plates from Photographs by A. G. Byne. EARLY AMERICAN CHURCHES Aymar Embury II. 584 WILLIAMSBURG, VA. ; BENNINGTON, VT.; AUGUSTA, GA.; and GUILFORD, CONN. NOTES AND COMMENTS 597 CROSS INDEX, VOLUME XXX Past Six Numbers Indexed according to Articles, Plate Illustrations, Clas- sified Buildings and Architects (home office, etc.) Page numbers of each issue will be found on the back of the binding for ready reference. Published by THE ARCHITECTURAL RECORD COMPANY . W. CLINTON W. SWEET Vice-President HARRY DESMOND . T. FRED W. DODGE Secretary . FRANKLIN MILLER HARRY W. DESMOND Editor RUSSELL F. WHITEHEAD .... Associate Editor RALPH REINHOLD Business Manager 11-15 EAST TWENTY-FOURTH STREET, NEW YORK CITY Subscription (Yearly) $3.00. Published Monthly Copyright, 1911, by "THE ARCHITECTURAL RECORD COMPANY." All rights reserved. Entered My 22. 1902, as second-class matter. Post Office at New York, N. Y. Act of C^neress of March 3d, 1879 Record Co. Copyright 1911. The Architectural OF MADISON SQUARE GARDEN AS SEEN FROM THE TWENTY-SEVENTH FLOOR THE METROPOLITAN TOWER. ARCHiTECTVRAL RECORD DECEMBER, 1911 VOLVME XXX NVMBER. VI THE PASSING OF MADISON SQVAR.E GARDEN SOME R.EMARJCS OF NEW YORK'S PR.OMPTED BY FAMOVS SHOW THE PENDING BVILDINGttSSJ'ft DEMOLITION VERNON HOWE BAILEY To TIII-: CASUAL OBSERVER, "the man in and 3Oth Street, and its freight station the street," the passing of the Madison at Chambers Street, until in 1868 Com- Square Garden is even more inscrutable modore Vanderbilt persuaded Trinity than it is lamentable. The building did Church to sell its birthright of St. John's so appear, according to the consecrated Park to him for that purpose and for an to "meet a felt want" and even million. In those he phrase, long ; years cap- it has so adequately and so admirably tured the Harlem and converted it from met that want. The importance of the a rival of the Hudson River into an civic function the great interior has ful- humble auxiliary to it, discontinuing the filled was made evident beforehand by through trains and the competition and the demand upon it when it was simply degrading the Harlem, from the control the largest enclosed space on Manhattan of which he had extruded Daniel Drew, Island. That it was in its original es- into a local road. Presently the popular tate as the Harlem Station in those old murmurs against the killing of foot-pas- the on the cross streets above ^days, unremembered, probably, by sengers -.pd majority of the readers of this article, Street by the trains became formidable. when the Harlem Railroad was an inde- With the building up and population of pendent entity and a formidable rival the region, the occasional homicides be- of the Hudson River road for the traffic came something like a chronic massacre, to Albany. In those days one went to and the expense to the road of these 26th Street and Fourth Avenue to take accidents incidental to its operation a the Harlem train, although the train was matter for serious consideration. Where- dragged by horse-power as far as 42d upon, by arrangement with the city, the Street, where steam was substituted. Fourth Avenue improvement was made The sole passenger station of the Hud- which avoided grade crossings from 42d son River road was at Tenth Avenue Street to the Harlem River. The next THE ARCHITECTURAL RECORD. step, or rather an integral part of the erly "accommodated." Athletic contests, same scheme, was the construction of horse shows, monster concerts these the Grand Central Station, which, after were some of the forms of popular en- one extensive addition and two recon- tertainment to which that old shed lent structions, has now ait last been demol- itself. It did not "accommodate" any ished. Naturally and necessarily .this be- of them except, perhaps, the long dis- came the point of departure for both the tance walking or "go-as-you-please" con- roads, once competitive and now co-op- tests, for which it had a track at least erative. The Hudson River tracks d\- as long as that of its successor. It was verged above the Harlem to the river an abominable place for music, as, for from which it took its name; the Tenth that matter, was its successor, and as Avenue Station of the Hudson River was any place available which would sank to the position of a station for hold a great crowd. The Wagner Festi- suburban and even interurban traffic, and val of 1882 was held in the Seventh the Fourth Avenue Station, completely Regiment Armory, with results that left deprived of its function, came into the much to desire, so far as the effect of market as unimproved real estate. the music was concerned. But it was But, before the improvement which it probably the insufficiency of accommoda- seems we are now to lose for any pub- tion for the horse show that had more lic purpose, it became evident, as was re- to do than any other single consideration marked at the outset, that there was a with the erection of the Madison Square public demand for just such a great en- Garden. The building we are now to closed space. It was the largest enclo- lose was planned with special regard to sure in Manhattan, which was then the that entertainment. Unless memory is City of New York, possibly excepting at fault, the leading spirits in the erec- the Seventh Regiment Armory, though tion of the new building were leading that came a little later. The area was spirits also in the Horse Show Associa- virtually the same as the plot extending tion. To accommodate a horse show from Third to Lexington and from street would not be as plausible a motive now to street in the sixties, and from Fourth as it was in the late eighties, when the to Madison and from street to street in project took shape, the building having the twenties. The only other equal area been begun, as the inscription on the under a single roof is that of the Metro- Fourth Avenue front sets forth, in 1889. politan Life, and even the youngest Now, it looks doubtful whether there will reader remembers how that area was much longer be any occasion for a show slowly and with difficulty acquired by of horses, except in a palaeological buying out the owners of all the small museum ! lover of holdings which occupied it, until it had However that may be, every all been brought under a single control architecture, and for that matter every and could be made the site for one mag- citizen with a decent share of public nificent building. The abandoned sta- spirit, has reason to be glad that it was tion of the Harlem was almost imme- put into the hearts of some men to build diately upon its abandonment found to a great building for public entertainments kind and have a public use. It was simply a of a "monster" or spectacular ; deserted trainshed. It had never had particularly that it was put into their any other pretension than that of shel- hearts to choose Stanford White to be tering cars in and out of service, and the architect of the edifice with which lacked conveniences for any more com- his name has become so closely and so it des- plicated and specialized occupancy. As tragically connected, since was to architecture, it was as innocent of tined to be the place of his own death the pretence of that as of the reality. by murder that he was so enthusiastical- far had less Nevertheless, it was made available for ly rearing. We have thus several descriptions of "big show," which to say than might reasonably be expected could not be held elsewhere, and which of an architectural periodical about the could here be at least given, if not prop- architectural aspects of the enterprise; Copyright 1911, The Architectural Record Co. MADISON SQUARE GARDEN PROM TWENTY-EIGHTH STREET AND MADISON AVE METROPOLITAN TOWER IN THE BACKGROUND. Copyright 1911, The Architectural Record Co. PORTE-COCHERE MADISON SQUARE GARDEN. Fourth Avenue Fagade. New York City. r/7 The Architectural Record Co. Copyright 1911, COLONNADE MADISON SQUARE GARDEN. .Madtson -Avemie Eagad.e New. YoricC.it>';. Copyright 1911, The Architectural Record Co. TERRA GOTTA DETAIL SHOWING ENRICHMENT ON MADISON AVE. FACADE MADISON SQUARE GARDEN. THE PASSING OF MADISON SQUARE GARDEN. 519 and yet it is certain that the genuine and source of effect; while the groupings and extensive public regret which will follow the projections quite fail to substi- the demolition of the Garden will be in tute any other in the interest of the fea- great part for the loss of its architec- tures taken singly. The arcade sur- ture. Here, however, we must distin- rounding the building at the west end is guish. It is the tower that will be re- a piece of entirely decorative architec- gretted.