Memory (1913-1914) by Augustus Lukeman, for the Ida and Isidor Straus Memorial, Straus Park, Manhattan, New York City

3. Landmarks: Merged, Moved

By Gene Stavrou
May 2022

Defining LANDMARK relationships (continued)

The first building to be called the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel started as two hotels: the Waldorf Hotel and the adjoining Astoria Hotel.

Merged

So, the Waldorf-Astoria facing Fifth Avenue between 33rd and 34th Streets succeeded both the Waldorf Hotel and the Astoria Hotel. That combined structure was replaced by the Empire State Building in 1931. The present Waldorf-Astoria on Park Avenue succeeded the first Waldorf-Astoria on Fifth.

[Waldorf Hotel (1893)] succeeded_by [Waldorf-Astoria (1897)]
[Astor Hotel (1897)] succeeded_by [Waldorf-Astoria (1897)]
[Waldorf-Astoria (1897)] replaced_by [Empire State Building]
[Waldorf-Astoria (1897)] succeeded_by [Waldorf-Astoria (1929)]

Year is added to the landmark name to differentiate between incarnations. There is only one Empire State Building, so its year is not noted. Although their structures were not physically replaced, The Waldorf and The Astoria ceased to be, so our notation in the database records them as having been replaced on the site as well as succeeded by the first Waldorf-Astoria.

[Waldorf Hotel (1893)] replaced_by [Waldorf-Astoria (1897)]
[Astor Hotel (1897)] replaced_by [Waldorf-Astoria (1897)]

Moved

Buildings are not always permanently sited. For example, Alexander Hamilton's uptown country house, Hamilton Grange, has been lifted off of its foundation and moved twice. The house, built in 1802, predated the 1811 Commissioner's (street grid) Plan, which mapped Manhattan's streets up to 155th Street. A corner of the house, in its original location, would have overlapped with 143rd Street. It was moved to Convent Avenue in the 1889 and then to Saint Nicholas Park in 2006.

[Hamilton Grange (1802)] moved_to [Hamilton Grange (1802, 1889 location)]
[Hamilton Grange (1802, 1889 location)] moved_to [Hamilton Grange (1802, 2006 location)]