Dakota Building
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Dakota, also known as the Dakota Apartments, is a
cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomy, autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned a ...
apartment building at 1 West 72nd Street on the
Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper We ...
of
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, United States. The Dakota was constructed between 1880 and 1884 in the
German Renaissance The German Renaissance, part of the Northern Renaissance, was a cultural and artistic movement that spread among German thinkers in the 15th and 16th centuries, which developed from the Italian Renaissance. Many areas of the arts and sciences ...
style and was designed by Henry Janeway Hardenbergh for businessman Edward Cabot Clark. The building was one of the first large developments on the Upper West Side and is the oldest remaining luxury apartment building in New York City. The building is a
National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
and has been designated a city landmark by the
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the Government of New York City, New York City agency charged with administering the city's Historic preservation, Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting Ne ...
. The building is also a contributing property to the
Central Park West Historic District The Central Park West Historic District is located along Central Park West, between 61st and 97th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on ...
. The Dakota occupies the western side of
Central Park West Eighth Avenue is a major north–south avenue on the west side of Manhattan in New York City, carrying northbound traffic below 59th Street. It is one of the original avenues of the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 to run the length of Manhattan, ...
between 72nd and 73rd streets. It is largely square in plan and built around a central H-shaped courtyard, through which all apartments are accessed. Formerly, there was a garden to the west of the Dakota, underneath which was a mechanical plant serving the Dakota and some adjacent row houses. The facade is largely composed of brick with sandstone trim and
terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...
detailing. The main entrance is a double-height archway on 72nd Street, which leads to the courtyard. The building's design includes deep roofs with
dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a Roof pitch, pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the ...
s, terracotta
spandrel A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame, between the tops of two adjacent arches, or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fil ...
s and panels, niches, balconies, and balustrades. Each apartment at the Dakota had a unique layout with four to twenty rooms. The building is divided into quadrants, each of which has a stair and an elevator for tenants, as well as another stair and another elevator for servants. After Clark announced plans for an apartment complex at the site in 1879, work began in late October 1880. The building was not given its name until mid-1882, and Clark died before the Dakota was completed in October 1884. The Dakota was fully rented upon its completion. The building was managed by the Clark family for eight decades and remained largely unchanged during that time. In 1961, the Dakota's residents bought the building from the Clark family and converted it into a housing cooperative. The Dakota has historically been home to many artists, actors, and musicians, including
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
, who was murdered outside the building on December 8, 1980. The building remained a cooperative into the 21st century.


Site

The Dakota is at 1 West 72nd Street on the
Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper We ...
of
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. The building occupies the western sidewalk of
Central Park West Eighth Avenue is a major north–south avenue on the west side of Manhattan in New York City, carrying northbound traffic below 59th Street. It is one of the original avenues of the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 to run the length of Manhattan, ...
(formerly Eighth Avenue) between 72nd Street to the south and 73rd Street to the north. The Dakota occupies a nearly square
land lot In real estate, a land lot or plot of land is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner(s). A plot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property (meaning practically the sam ...
with an area of . The land lot has
frontage Frontage is the boundary between a plot of land or a building and the road onto which the plot or building fronts. Frontage may also refer to the full length of this boundary. This length is considered especially important for certain types of ...
s of along Central Park West and along 72nd and 73rd streets. Nearby locations include the Majestic apartment building immediately to the south, the
Olcott Hotel The Olcott Hotel is on West 72nd Street in New York City's Upper West Side. It was built by the Lapidus Engineering Company beginning in late 1925. The edifice was one of a number of structures constructed at the time from Central Park West to ...
to the west, the Langham apartment building to the north, and
Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...
(including the Strawberry Fields memorial) to the east. The Dakota's developer Edward Cabot Clark, who headed sewing machine firm Singer Manufacturing Company, selected the building's site based on several characteristics. The building is on the crest of the West Side plateau, which overlooks much of Manhattan. Additionally, 72nd Street is wide, making it one of several major crosstown streets in the Manhattan street grid. Clark also developed 27 row houses on 72nd and 73rd streets, adjacent to the Dakota, which are no longer extant. The two developments were part of Clark's larger plan for a cohesive neighborhood; the row houses were in the middle of the block, where land values were lower, whereas the Dakota was built on the more valuable site next to Central Park. Clark developed another set of row houses at 13–65 and 103–151 West 73rd Street, some of which still exist. All of these houses were designed by Henry Janeway Hardenbergh. The Dakota is one of several apartment buildings on Central Park West that are primarily identified by an official name. Even though a street address was sufficient to identify these apartment buildings, this trend followed a British practice of giving names to buildings without addresses. By contrast, buildings on
Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...
, along the eastern side of Central Park, are mainly known by their addresses. Unlike other large apartment buildings on Central Park West, the Dakota was not named after a previous building on the site. Christopher Gray of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' described the Dakota as one of several apartment buildings that were famous enough "to maintain their names simply in common custom".


Architecture

The Dakota was designed by Hardenbergh for Clark and built between 1880 and 1884. The construction process involved several contractors including stonemason John L. Banta, plumber T. Brieu, iron supplier Post & McCord, carpenter J. L. Hamilton, stonework supplier J. Gillis Se Son and Henry Wilson, and woodwork contractor Pottier & Stymus. There is disagreement over the building's architectural style.
CNBC CNBC is an American List of business news channels, business news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group, a unit of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The network broadcasts live business news and analysis programming during the morning, Day ...
and writers Sarah Bradford Landau and Carl W. Condit described the building as being built in a German
Renaissance Revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range of ...
style, but a contemporary source described the building's design as being patterned after "the period of Francis I". The writer Elizabeth Hawes said in 1993 that the building had been characterized as "Brewery Brick Victorian neo-Gothic Eclectic". The building's design includes deep roofs with
dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a Roof pitch, pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the ...
s, terracotta
spandrel A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame, between the tops of two adjacent arches, or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fil ...
s and panels, niches, balconies, and balustrades. The designs of the dormers, roofs, and windows were influenced by the Northern Renaissance style. The Dakota is a nine-story building; most of the building is seven stories high, although there are also two-story
gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...
s. Some contemporary sources described the building as being ten stories high, including the raised basement, while others classify the Dakota as being eight stories high. The Dakota measures tall and was the tallest building in the neighborhood when it was constructed. Due to the apartments' high ceilings, the Dakota's height was equivalent to that of a standard 15-story building.


Courtyards


Main courtyard

The building is largely square in plan and built around a central H-shaped courtyard. The space measures long and up to wide. The courtyard provides entry to all apartments and doubles as a light court for the interiors of each apartment. A writer for the ''American Architect and Building News'' described the Dakota's courtyard and similar spaces in other buildings as "a safe, pleasant and sheltered place, under the eye of the Janitor, where tenants can enter, but thieves cannot...". The writer also suggested that children could play within the courtyard, but other, unidentified observers believed such a usage attracted unsolicited attention. The apartments are accessed by four passageways, one from each corner of the courtyard.; The main courtyard also functioned as a meeting area for residents, since the rest of the building was designed with "the utmost in personal privacy" as a consideration.; Over the years, the courtyard has hosted events such as parties and Christmas carols. A glass breezeway ran along the western portion of the courtyard. This breezeway had been installed during the 1920s to protect residents from inclement weather. When the courtyard was rebuilt in 2004, the sidewalk under the breezeway was reconstructed with
bluestone Bluestone is a cultural or commercial name for a number of natural dimension stone, dimension or building stone varieties, including: * basalt in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, and in New Zealand * diabase, dolerites in Tasmania, ...
pavers that measure up to long and thick. The Dakota's courtyard originally contained two fountains, which doubled as skylights for the basement. Horse-drawn carriages, entering from 72nd Street, used the courtyard to turn around.; After automobiles supplanted horse-drawn carriages, the Dakota banned automobiles from the courtyard because the space could not support the weight of modern vehicles. The deck of the courtyard was entirely replaced in 2004 because the steel beams that supported it had corroded severely. The modern courtyard is a reinforced-concrete slab, which is covered by granite pavers. A service driveway also runs along the western side of the main courtyard. The driveway descends to the basement, where there is a lower courtyard with the same dimensions as the ground-level courtyard. This driveway was originally used to deliver goods and "commodities of housekeeping", as well as remove garbage and ashes. All servants entered and exited the Dakota through this driveway. The Dakota's distinct upper and lower courtyards differed from that of Hardenbergh and Clark's earlier Van Corlear apartment house at Seventh Avenue and 55th Street, where residents and servants used the same courtyard.


Other spaces

To the west of the Dakota was another garden; both the Dakota and the adjacent row houses were served by a mechanical plant below the garden. The placement of the mechanical plant outside the building was a deliberate measure to reassure residents in case the machinery exploded. There were also tennis and croquet courts within the garden.; Images show that the garden was surrounded by a fence, and the area above the mechanical plant was further enclosed by a hedge. The garden had become a parking lot by the 1950s, and the Mayfair apartment building was developed on the garden's site in 1964. The building is surrounded by a recessed areaway, also described as a dry
moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...
.; The areaway was intended to increase residents' safety, as well as allow natural light and air to enter the basement. An entrance to the
New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...
's 72nd Street station, served by the , is built within this areaway. A cast-iron fence separates the areaway from the sidewalk. The sidewalk was originally made of bluestone slabs.


Facade

Each
elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...
of the facade is divided vertically into bays. There are 11 bays on 72nd Street to the south and Central Park West to the east; 13 bays on 73rd Street to the north; and 17 bays to the west. The Dakota's raised basement is clad with sandstone. The remainder of the facade is made of buff brick, except on the west elevation, which is made of red brick; all of the brick is laid in common bond. The Dakota's use of soft-hued buff brick contrasted with the facade of the Van Corlear, which was a "harsh red". The facade also contains Nova Scotia sandstone trim and
terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...
detailing. The materials and colors were selected to not only complement each other but also to soften the appearance of the building's shadows and massing. The large amount of ornament created the impression of variety between different parts of the facade. The west elevation, facing the former yard, was sparsely ornamented. The exterior walls function as
load-bearing wall A load-bearing wall or bearing wall is a wall that is an active structural element of a building, which holds the weight of the elements above it, by conducting its weight to a Foundation (engineering), foundation structure below it. Structural ...
s, which measure up to thick. The exterior walls taper from on upper stories.


Entrances

The building's main entrance is a double-height archway on 72nd Street to the south. It measures wide and tall. The archway is flanked by pedestals with metal urns, and there is a
Diocletian window Diocletian windows, also called thermal windows, are large semicircular windows characteristic of the enormous public baths (''thermae'') of Ancient Rome. They have been revived on a limited basis by some neo-classical architecture, classical rev ...
in the upper portion of the archway. There is also a security guard's booth to the west of the main entrance. After midnight, residents and visitors are required to ring the security guard to enter the building. Portraits of a man and woman (probably Edward C. Clark's partner Isaac Merritt Singer and Isaac's wife Isabella Boyer Singer) are placed above the doorway. The 72nd Street entrance is a '' porte-cochère'' large enough for horse-drawn carriages to drop off passengers. Many of the horse-drawn carriages were dispatched from the now-demolished Dakota Stables at 75th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, developed by Edward C. Clark's son Alfred Corning Clark. Inside the archway is a groin-vaulted vestibule that leads to the courtyard. There are metal gates on either end of the vestibule. ''Architectural Record'' likened the 72nd Street entrance to a "fortress entry". A "handsome doorway", measuring tall, also led from 73rd Street to the courtyard. The northern entrance on 73rd Street was seldom used except for funerals.


Upper stories

The 72nd Street elevation contains projecting turrets, which rise the entire height of the facade. A depiction of a Native American's head is carved on the facade. Above the second story is a horizontal band course made of terracotta. The band course is decorated with a diaper pattern. Above the sixth story is a stone
cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...
, which separates the seventh story and the roof from the rest of the facade. The cornice is supported by large
brackets A bracket is either of two tall fore- or back-facing punctuation marks commonly used to isolate a segment of text or data from its surroundings. They come in four main pairs of shapes, as given in the box to the right, which also gives their n ...
and is topped by an ornate metal balustrade. The building is topped by gables at each of its corners. The 72nd Street elevation also has a gable above the central entrance. On Central Park West, the central section of the roof is a
hip roof A hip roof, hip-roof or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downward to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope, with variants including Tented roof, tented roofs and others. Thus, a hipped roof has no gables or other ve ...
. Originally, arched balconies connected the gables. The roof is covered with slate tiles. Dormer windows and
corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal keyed into and projecting from a wall to carry a wikt:superincumbent, bearing weight, a type of bracket (architecture), bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in t ...
ed brick chimneys protrude from the roof at multiple locations. The dormer windows are arranged in two to four levels and alternately contain either stone or copper frames. There are also turrets, finials, and flagpoles along the roof.


Structural features

The Dakota was designed as a fireproof structure. According to construction plans, the foundation walls were made of bluestone blocks, extended deep, and measured thick. The perimeter walls tapered in thickness from at the first story to above the sixth story. The
superstructure A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships. Aboard ships and large boats On water craft, the superstruct ...
includes rolled steel beams on each floor, spaced every and measuring deep. Between these rolled beams were brick or terracotta arches. The floor surfaces consist of earthen subfloors above 9-inch-thick slabs of concrete.; Partitions in the hallways are made of "fireproof blocks", while partitions in other parts of the building are made of either "fireproof blocks" or brick. The thick walls, floor slabs, and partitions also provided noise insulation. The strength of the Dakota's superstructure rivaled that of contemporary office buildings. The mechanical plant to the west measured and contained electrical generators, steam boilers, and steam engines. The plant's roof was constructed of brick arches and iron beams, and the garden was planted above it. The generators became obsolete in the 1890s after the neighborhood was connected to the city's power grid, and the boilers and engines were relocated to the Dakota's basement. The steam plant in the basement, as well as the building's hydraulic elevators, were powered by water that was collected from the roof and from underneath each apartment's radiators. The radiators in each apartment were placed under the window sills.; The basement had a coal bunker with a capacity of . From the beginning, the building was equipped with "a complete system of electric communication", including electric bells that were used to request the elevators. The Dakota had telegraph wires leading to a florist's shop, a fire station, a nearby stable, and the messenger's and telegraph offices. There were 300 electric bells and 4,000 electric lights, all powered by the mechanical plant. The attic had six water tanks, each with a capacity of . The pumps could draw up to of water per day, and over of pipes delivered water to each apartment.


Interior


Hallways, elevators, and stairs

The passageways from the courtyard lead to ground-level spaces with wooden paneling and marble
wainscoting Panelling (or paneling in the United States) is a millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was developed in antiquity t ...
.; Between the first and second stories, the walls of the staircases are wainscoted with marble. The hallways on the upper stories are wainscoted in wood, while the ceilings and walls are made of plaster. Because the Dakota was one of the city's earliest luxury apartment buildings, the floor plans resembled those of traditional row houses. Consequently, the hallways were generally long and narrow at the Dakota, compared with later developments such as 998 Fifth Avenue. In any case, because the Dakota had four entrances with their own elevators and stairs, there were very few public hallways on the upper stories. This gave residents a feeling of privacy, since tenants were largely separated both from each other and from servants. The interior has eight elevators, four each for residents and servants. At each corner of the courtyard, four wrought-bronze staircases and four residents' elevators lead from the entrances to the upper stories. Each corner of the building has a brick shaft with one elevator and one staircase; this roughly divides the Dakota into quadrants. The tenants' staircases contained marble treads. The elevator cabs were manufactured by Otis Elevators and were finished in mahogany. In the original plans, each elevator served two apartments per floor. Each elevator served a small foyer on each floor that provided access to the two apartments. These foyers were intended to be "almost as private and convenient" as entrances to typical brownstone row houses. In some cases, an elevator served only one apartment on a floor, so the elevator doors opened directly into that tenant's foyer. In place of
dumbwaiter A dumbwaiter is a small freight elevator or lift intended to carry food. Dumbwaiters found within modern structures, including both commercial, public and private buildings, are often connected between multiple floors. When installed in restauran ...
s, the building contains four service elevators and four iron staircases for servants. The service elevators and staircases are placed near the center of each side of the courtyard. Each service stair and elevator served two apartments per floor. The service elevators, among the first in the city, lead to the kitchens of the apartments. All of the elevators were originally hydraulic cabs with water tanks at the bottom.


Apartments


= Layouts

= Each of the Dakota's apartments had a unique layout and contained four to twenty rooms. The initial plans had called for six or eight apartments of about equal size on each of the seven lowest floors. The largest apartments were on the lower floors, as elevators were still a relatively new technology, and Hardenbergh thought a lower-floor apartment would be more attractive to people who had moved from townhouses. As the building was being constructed, Clark changed the specifications to accommodate individual tenants, resulting in substantial changes to the formerly standardized floor layouts. ''Look'' magazine characterized the differing apartment layouts as a legacy of the "rugged individualism" that had been common when the Dakota opened.; The Dakota's construction drawings are no longer extant, so the original arrangement of the apartments is known only from written descriptions. Many floor plans for individual apartments have been published over the years, and the Dakota's modern floor plans have been reconstructed based on these documents. Many of the original apartments have been subdivided, though the Dakota's co-op board has endorsed numerous renovations that restored an apartment's original floor plans. There were either nearly 500 rooms or 623 rooms in total. While most of the building contained fully-equipped apartments, with their own entrances and service elevators/stairs, part of the second floor was divided into smaller apartments and guest rooms. Apartments had a reception area, a drawing room, a library, a kitchen, a pantry, a bath, four bedrooms, one full bathroom, and butlers' and maids' quarters. Larger apartments had up to nine bedrooms, as well as additional spaces like a billiards room, boudoir, or library. Some of the apartments also have balconies, which blend in with the building's overall design. Clark's apartment on the sixth floor had 18 rooms, including a drawing room that rivaled the design of the ground-floor dining room, in addition to 17 fireplaces. In the book ''New York 1880'', architect Robert A. M. Stern and his co-authors wrote that Clark's apartment was intended to attract row house occupants by "dramatiz ngthe value of height".


Materials and dimensions

Ceiling heights ranged from at the first story to at the eighth story.; The largest drawing room in the building was long and contained a classical fluted column instead of a partition. Parlors were generally either or . Typical antechambers in the Dakota measured ; drawing rooms, ; bedrooms, ; and dining rooms, . Each apartment contained fixtures and materials that were similar to those in contemporary brownstone row houses. The kitchens and bathrooms contained modern fixtures, though other decorations such as moldings, woodwork, and floor surfaces were similar to those in many row houses. The parqueted floors are inlaid with
mahogany Mahogany is a straight- grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Universit ...
,
oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...
, and
cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet '' Prunus avium'' and the sour '' Prunus cerasus''. The na ...
, which are laid on top of the earthen subfloors and concrete slabs. Each apartment's dining rooms, reception rooms, and libraries were wainscoted in oak, mahogany, and other woods. The kitchens had marble wainscoting and Minton tile, while the bathrooms contained porcelain bathtubs. Other decorations included wood-burning fireplaces with tiled
hearth A hearth () is the place in a home where a fire is or was traditionally kept for home heating and for cooking, usually constituted by a horizontal hearthstone and often enclosed to varying degrees by any combination of reredos (a low, partial ...
s; brass fixtures; and carved mirrors and mantels. Some apartments had plaster ceilings. Some of the Dakota's interior decorations, such as carved marble fireplace mantels, were uncommon even in mansions of the time. The decorations, along with the apartments' layouts, were intended to give the apartments a "palatial" feel. Residents customized their apartments to fit their needs and, in some cases, their occupations. A ''Look'' magazine article in the 1960s described interior designer and antique dealer Frederick P. Victoria as having decorated his apartment with wood "draperies" and antique clocks. Artist Giora Novak occupied a minimalist space within the building's former dining room, which he decorated with his own artwork,; while interior designer Ward Bennett repurposed a servant's living area under the roof as a studio. Dancer
Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...
placed classical paintings in his living room and theatrical artwork in other rooms. Some units have been substantially redesigned; for example, a four-bedroom unit was renovated in the modern style in the 2010s.


Other features

The Dakota's basement contained a laundry, storerooms, a kitchen, and the mechanical plant. The main section of the basement is directly under the courtyard and has an asphaltum floor. On one side of the basement were heated and illuminated storerooms in which tenants could store items for free. There was also a wine cellar, which was empty by the 1960s. The quarters of the house staff were in the basement and included bedrooms; bathrooms and dining rooms for men and women; and a smoking room and reading room for men. Residents could also order food from the basement kitchen to be delivered to their rooms. After World War II, the kitchen was closed and became a studio apartment for Giora Novak. The building had several common areas for residents, including a dining room and a ballroom. The first floor contained the building's main dining room, as well as a smaller private dining room and a reception room. The floors were made of inlaid tiles of marble, while the walls had English oak wainscoting, above which were bronze bas-reliefs. The ceiling was also made of carved English oak. On one side of the dining room was a fireplace with a Scotch brownstone mantel, giving the room the quality of an "old English baronial hall". The original plans had called for the dining area to be accessible to the general public, but the plans were modified before the building opened, and the dining room only served residents. The Dakota also had a ladies' reception room with an artwork. There was a florist, a messengers' office, and a telegraph office for residents. The Dakota's in-house staff included a house manager, doormen, chambermaids, janitors, hall servants, and repairmen. In addition to the Dakota's in-house staff, each tenant could employ up to five of their own servants on site, though residents typically had up to three servants. Other staff, such as laundry workers, manicurists, and hairdressers, did not live in the building. Servants employed by the residents, as well as visiting servants, occupied the eighth and ninth floors. The upper-story servants' quarters contained dormitories, bathrooms, laundry rooms, and dryer rooms. The servants' quarters had been converted into apartments by the 1950s. Beside servants' quarters, there was a playroom and a gymnasium on the roof, which was labeled as the "tenth story".


History

The construction of Central Park in the 1860s spurred construction on the
Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the boroughs of New York City, borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by 96th Street (Manhattan), 96th Street to the north, the East River to the e ...
of Manhattan, but similar development on the
Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper We ...
was slower to come. This was in part because of the West Side's steep topography and its dearth of attractions compared with the East Side. In the late 19th century, hundreds of empty lots were available along the west side of Central Park. Major developments on the West Side were erected after the Ninth Avenue elevated line opened in 1879, providing direct access to
Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...
. A group of businessmen formed the West Side Association the same year. Edward C. Clark believed that the line's presence would encourage the growth of a middle-class neighborhood on the West Side. At a speech in December 1879, Clark told the West Side Association: "There are but few persons who are princely enough to wish to occupy an entire palace...but I believe there are many who would like to occupy a portion of a great building." In the decade before the Dakota was built, the city's population had increased by at least 100 percent, but the Upper West Side contained only a few assorted saloons, inns, and other buildings. The modern-day Dakota Apartments was one of the first large developments on the Upper West Side, built at a time when large apartment blocks were still associated with
tenement A tenement is a type of building shared by multiple dwellings, typically with flats or apartments on each floor and with shared entrance stairway access. They are common on the British Isles, particularly in Scotland. In the medieval Old Town, E ...
living. The Dakota is also New York City's oldest surviving luxury apartment building, although it was not the first such structure to be built in the city. Only a few large apartment houses in the city predated the Dakota, including the Manhattan Apartments (built in 1880) and Windermere Apartments (built in 1883). During the early 19th century, apartment developments in the city were generally associated with the working class, but by the late 19th century, apartments were also becoming desirable among the middle and upper classes. Between 1880 and 1885, more than ninety apartment buildings were developed in the city.


Development

In 1879, Clark announced plans for an apartment complex at the intersection of 72nd Street and Eighth Avenue (the latter of which was renamed Central Park West in 1883). At the time, the vast majority of development on Manhattan Island was south of 23rd Street. Clark said he wanted "to make money" from the apartment building, even though it was a speculative development that was not being built with specific tenants in mind. Hardenbergh filed plans for an eight-story "Family Hotel" at the site in September 1880, at which point it was planned to cost one million dollars. Hardenbergh simultaneously designed several dozen low-rise row houses for Clark on 73rd Street. The row houses and the large apartment building were part of a larger plan that Clark had for the Upper West Side. John Banta was hired as the apartment house's general contractor. In early October 1880, about two weeks before construction began, the ''Real Estate Record and Guide'' reported that the building was to be a "residential hotel" with between 40 and 50 suites, each with five to twenty rooms. Construction commenced at the end of October 1880. The building initially did not have a name, even after the foundations were completed in early 1881. By that October, the building had been constructed to the second story, although the ''Real Estate Record'' wrote that "it is hardly to be expected that it will be under roof before the winter sets in". As part of the project, Clark also excavated an
Artesian well An artesian well is a well that brings groundwater to the surface without pumping because it is under pressure within a body of rock or sediment known as an aquifer. When trapped water in an aquifer is surrounded by layers of Permeability (ea ...
measuring about deep and wide. Work was slightly delayed by a
labor strike Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike in British English, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became co ...
in March 1882. The exterior walls were up to the sixth story by that May, and the builders estimated that the edifice would be completed in 18 months. The building was renamed the "Dakota" by June 1882. At the time, the development was still within a rural part of Manhattan. One story claims that the name arose because it was remote like the
Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of ...
was. Though the Clark family never denied this story, its veracity is disputed, as contemporary publications did not discuss the building's remoteness. The earliest recorded appearance of this claim was in 1933, when the Dakota's longtime manager told the ''
New York Herald Tribune The ''New York Herald Tribune'' was a newspaper published between 1924 and 1966. It was created in 1924 when Ogden Mills Reid of the '' New York Tribune'' acquired the '' New York Herald''. It was regarded as a "writer's newspaper" and compet ...
'': "Probably it was called 'Dakota' because it was so far west and so far north". The more likely origin for the "Dakota" name was Clark's fondness for the names of the then-new western states and territories. Back in 1879, Clark had proposed naming the Upper West Side's north-south avenues after states or territories in the Western United States, though his suggestions had been ignored. The Dakota's remoteness did directly give rise to the nickname "Clark's Folly". Clark died in 1882 and bequeathed the apartment complex to his oldest grandson, Edward Severin Clark, who at the time was 12 years old. After Edward C. Clark's death, Hardenbergh never designed another building for the Clark family; their final collaboration, the Ontiora at Seventh Avenue and 55th Street, was similar in design to the Dakota. Work on the Dakota was delayed in August 1883 when the plasterers went on strike to protest the employment of non-union laborers at the site. Other tradesmen joined the strike but returned to work within a month. The mechanical equipment was being installed in the building by March 1884. The ''Real Estate Record'' said the next month: "The 'Dakota' is at last near completion and is receiving its finishing touches prior to its opening in May, when it will be quite ready for dwelling purposes." In September 1884, the ''Real Estate Record'' reported that the Dakota "will be ready for occupancy October 1" at a yearly rent of $1,500 to $5,000 (equivalent to between $ and $ in ) and that one-quarter of the units had already been rented. Elizabeth Hawes wrote that Clark promoted the Dakota as offering "convenience, a short-cut route to opulent living with none of the problems of upkeep, and at a fraction of the expense that went with owning a private house".


Clark family ownership


1880s and 1890s

The Dakota was completed by the week of October 24–27, 1884. The building was fully rented upon its completion, though detractors considered the building to be isolated and criticized the Dakota as an "intrusion" onto Central Park's landscape. According to historical records, the Dakota's earliest residents were active in a variety of industries. The residents included lawyers, brokers, merchants, and clothiers, although they also included a cigar merchant, a coal-mine operator, and a stenographer. All of the Dakota's residents were wealthy, although not particularly famous. None of the early residents were included in the " Four Hundred", a list of prominent individuals in New York society during the
Gilded Age In History of the United States, United States history, the Gilded Age is the period from about the late 1870s to the late 1890s, which occurred between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was named by 1920s historians after Mar ...
. This was because of its remoteness; in the days before telephones became popular, people tended to make in-person social visits. It often took an hour just to reach the Dakota from the
Ladies' Mile Historic District The Ladies' Mile Historic District was a prime shopping district in Manhattan, New York City, at the end of the 19th century, serving the well-to-do " carriage trade" of the city. It was designated in May 1989, by the New York City Landmark Pres ...
, which in the 1890s was the city's commercial center. A law, restricting the height of large apartment houses in New York City to , passed the year that the building was completed. The Dakota's address was originally 301 West 72nd Street, since the address numbers of buildings on Manhattan's west–east numbered streets were based on the building's distances from
Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...
. In 1886, house numbers on the Upper West Side were renumbered based on distance from Central Park West (Eighth Avenue), so the Dakota became 1 West 72nd Street. In its first two years, the Dakota was not profitable, and the surrounding blocks were still not developed, particularly the lots to the north. Even in 1890, the row houses on the same block were bringing more income than was the Dakota. By the early 1890s, there was a waiting list for vacant apartments. According to the
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the Government of New York City, New York City agency charged with administering the city's Historic preservation, Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting Ne ...
(LPC), the Dakota, along with the
American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Located in Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 21 interconn ...
several blocks north, helped establish the "early character" of Central Park West. The Dakota's completion spurred the construction of other large apartment buildings in the area, several of which were named after regions in the western United States. Other buildings, including a church, fire station, and rowhouses, also were developed nearby. Nonetheless, the Dakota remained the only large apartment building in the neighborhood until the end of the 19th century. A major reason was the lack of electricity in the area, since large apartment buildings needed electricity for their elevators, but the city did not install electric ducts along Central Park West until 1896. The Dakota had its own power plant, so the lack of municipal electric service did not affect the building.


1900s to 1950s

The Clarks tried to sell off an adjacent plot to the north, between 73rd and 74th streets, in 1902 with the proviso that no building on that site be taller than the Dakota. The Clarks were unable to sell the plot with that restriction, and the Langham apartment building was erected on the site. Images show that, in the first decades of the 20th century, some dormer windows were added on the roof of the building. Through the early 20th century, the Clark family retained ownership of the Dakota. A ''New York Herald Tribune'' article in 1929 noted that the Clarks have "for years resisted all attempts at purchase". ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' wrote in the 1920s that the Dakota "has always maintained its old-time popularity". Whereas the Dakota underwent few alterations in its first fifty years, the neighborhood changed dramatically during that period. The Dakota's main entrance on 72nd Street originally faced some shacks and gardens, but the high-rise Majestic Apartments overlooked the main entrance by the early 1930s. Edward S. Clark died in 1933, just before the Dakota's 50th anniversary, and his brother Stephen Carlton Clark took over the building's operation. Stephen Clark intended to continue operating the Dakota and preserve the garden to the west. At the time, two of the tenants had lived there since its opening, and four of the other original tenants had died in the preceding three years. For the next three decades, the Dakota remained largely unchanged, and the building even retained its original elevators. The Clarks were responsible for all repairs and maintenance and were subject to little, if any scrutiny. By the 1950s, the servants' quarters on the upper stories had been converted to apartments. At the time, many tenants were diplomats, theatrical figures, or publishers. The building particularly appealed to theatrical figures because of its proximity to the Broadway Theater District, which was also on the West Side. There was also a long waiting list of potential tenants, and apartments rented for a relatively low $6,000 to $7,000 per year (equivalent to between $ and $ in ). Some tenants, most of whom were friends of Stephen Clark, did not pay rent at all. Residents tended to live in the building for several decades, leading ''The New York Times'' to observe: "It is reported that no Dakotan leaves the building permanently unless it is feet first".


Cooperative conversion


1960s to 1980s

In January 1961, the Glickman Corporation paid $4.6 million (equivalent to $ million in ) for the Dakota and an adjoining lot that contained the building's boiler room. Glickman planned to build New York City's largest apartment building on the combined site. The residents announced plans to buy the building from the Glickman Corporation in April 1961 for $4.8 million (equivalent to $ million in ). Glickman dropped its plans to redevelop the Dakota and instead sold the adjacent site in August. That November, the Dakota's tenants bought the building, which became a cooperative. The Mayfair was completed on the adjacent site in 1964; according to ''The New York Times'', no plans were ever filed for a larger building on the Dakota's site. Under the co-op arrangement, the residents were obligated to share all maintenance and repair costs, which the Clark family had previously handled. The Dakota was one of twelve apartment buildings on Central Park West to be converted into housing cooperatives in the late 1950s and early 1960s. By the mid-1960s, members of the co-op had to pay fees of up to $14,400 a year (equivalent to $ in ), in addition to a one-time down payment of no more than $60,000 on their apartments (equivalent to $ in ). At the time, the building employed about 30 staff. The Dakota's board of directors announced in 1974 that the roof would need to be replaced, since the slate tiles had started to fall off and the copper trim had deteriorated. Since the building had been designated a New York City landmark five years prior, the
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the Government of New York City, New York City agency charged with administering the city's Historic preservation, Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting Ne ...
(LPC) had to review every proposed modification to the exterior. The LPC hired experts who determined that a full restoration would cost $1 million (equivalent to $ million in ), which amounted to an additional $10,000 assessment for each of the Dakota's 95 tenants. The board of directors decided to instead conduct a smaller-scale renovation. The Joseph K. Blum Company added waterproofing to the Dakota's roof for $160,000 (equivalent to $ million in ). The Dakota's board also voted in 1975 to ban the installation of air conditioners that protruded through the building's facade, since the LPC would have to approve every air conditioner that was installed. The Dakota gained attention when
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
, a resident and former member of the rock band
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
, was shot dead outside the building on December 8, 1980. According to the ''Chicago Tribune'', the Dakota became a makeshift memorial for Lennon, especially among fans of the Beatles. The murder also prompted concern among residents, who demanded more stringent security; all visitors were already required to pass through the security booth on 72nd Street. Years after Lennon's death, the Dakota's residents tended to eschew publicity. The Dakota's board had rejected numerous high-profile personalities who had wanted to move into the building. By then, there were 93 apartments, and the original floor plans had been rearranged extensively. Residents generally continued to live in the building for prolonged periods. The recessed areaway around the Dakota was restored in the mid-1980s, and architectural firm Glass & Glass began drawing up plans for a full restoration of the building. By the late 1980s, people in the financial industry comprised an increasing proportion of the Dakota's residents; previously, many had worked in the arts.


1990s to present

By 1992, the Dakota's facade was being cleaned. New mortar had been applied to the brickwork in the facade, but the light color of the mortar contrasted sharply with the darkened bricks. The Dakota's board decided to repair the most deteriorated bricks rather than replace the whole facade. The project was budgeted using unit pricing, since it was impossible to know how many bricks needed to be repaired until the entire facade had been examined. The repairs ultimately cost $5 million, amounting to an average assessment of $50,000 for each tenant. The LPC gave craftsmanship awards to the restoration architects, Ehrenkrantz & Eckstut Architects and Remco, in 1994. The fireplaces were also restored in the late 1990s or early 2000s, requiring some of the fireplace
flue A flue is a duct, pipe, or opening in a chimney for conveying exhaust gases from a fireplace, furnace, water heater, boiler, or generator to the outdoors. Historically the term flue meant the chimney itself. In the United States, they a ...
s to be replaced. The Dakota's maintenance expenses were shared among fewer residents and tended to be much higher than at other nearby co-ops. For instance, Lennon's widow
Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...
paid a monthly fee of $12,566 for her apartment in 1996, while a similarly-sized apartment at the nearby San Remo had a monthly maintenance cost of $6,000. The Dakota's board announced in 2002 that it planned to restore the interior courtyard, and it hired Higgins & Quasebarth as a consulting architect. At the time, the upper level of the courtyard had severe leaks, and the breezeway on the western side of the courtyard was "practically held up by paint". The LPC approved all aspects of the planned renovation. Some residents wanted the glass breezeway in the courtyard to be removed, citing aesthetic concerns; preservationists said the general public would have not been able to see the breezeway anyway, since security had been tightened after Lennon's murder. The restoration of the courtyard started in February 2004 and was completed seven and a half months later. High demand for units at the Dakota continued into the 21st century. The Dakota had 85 co-op units by the 2010s. Some of the smaller apartments had been combined over the years, and several units were restored to their original layouts. The building's facade was again renovated starting in 2015. The project was completed two years later for $32 million.


Residents

According to a 1996 article in '' New York'' magazine, many brokers classified the Dakota as one of five top-tier apartment buildings on Central Park West, largely because of its residents, large scale, and "historical prestige". The others were 88 Central Park West,
101 Central Park West 101 Central Park West is a residential building on Central Park West, between 70th and 71st Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The apartment building was constructed in 1929 in the Neo-Renaissance style by architects ...
, the San Remo, and the Beresford. As at other luxury apartment buildings in New York City, some of the Dakota's residents use their units as pieds-a-terre rather than as their primary residences. Notable residents of the Dakota have included: *
Richard Adler Richard Adler (August 3, 1921 – June 21, 2012) was an American lyricist, writer, composer and producer of several Broadway shows. He is best known for his work with Jerry Ross (composer), Jerry Ross on the musicals ''The Pajama Game'' (1954) a ...
, lyricist *
Lauren Bacall Betty Joan Perske (September 16, 1924 – August 12, 2014), professionally known as Lauren Bacall ( ), was an American actress. She was named the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 20th-greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the America ...
, actress * Harley Baldwin, real estate developer and art dealer * Walter Becker, songwriter, musician, co-founder of Steely Dan * Ward Bennett, architect and designer *
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...
, composer and conductor * Graydon Carter, former editor of '' Vanity Fair'' * Connie Chung, newscaster *
Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me (Ba-Ba-Baciami Piccin ...
, singer and actress * Harlan Coben, author *
Bob Crewe Robert Stanley Crewe (November 12, 1930 – September 11, 2014) was an American songwriter, dancer, singer, manager, and record producer. Crewe co-wrote and produced a string of Top 10 singles with Bob Gaudio for the Four Seasons. As a songw ...
, songwriter, record producer, and artist *
José Ferrer José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón (January 8, 1912 – January 26, 1992) was a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican actor and director of stage, film and television. He was one of the most celebrated and esteemed Hispanic and Latino Americans, Hi ...
, actor *
Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (February 10, 1937 – February 24, 2025) was an American singer and pianist known for her emotive, genre-blending ballads that spanned R&B, jazz, Folk music, folk, and pop and contributed to the birth of the quiet storm ...
, singer * Buddy Fletcher, businessman * Charles Henri Ford, poet, artist, and publisher *
Ruth Ford Ruth Ford (July 7, 1911 – August 12, 2009) was an American actress and model. Her brother was the Bohemianism, bohemian surrealist Charles Henri Ford. Their parents owned or managed hotels in the American South, and the family regularly move ...
, actress * Ketti Frings, playwright *
Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Possessing a strong contralto voice, she was celebrated for her emotional depth and versatility across film, stage, and concert performance. ...
, actress *
Lillian Gish Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993) was an American actress best known for her work in movies of the silent era. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was dubbed the "F ...
, actress * Paul Goldberger, architecture critic * Ydessa Hendeles, art collector *
Judy Holliday Judy Holliday (born Judith Tuvim, June 21, 1921 – June 7, 1965) was an American actress, comedian, and singer.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', June 9, 1965, p. 71. She began her career as part of a nightclub act before working in Bro ...
, actress * William Inge, playwright * Charles Douglas Jackson, Time Inc. executive * Charles Henry Jones, American journalist, editor, and political figure * Michael Kahn, theatre director *
Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), known professionally as Boris Karloff () and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstei ...
, actor * Sidney Kingsley, playwright *
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
, musician and composer; murdered at the Dakota in 1980 *
Sean Lennon is a British-American musician, songwriter, and producer. He is the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and half-brother to Julian Lennon. Over the course of his career, he has been a member of the bands Cibo Matto, the Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tige ...
, musician and composer; son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono * John Madden, football coach and commentator *
Marya Mannes Marya Mannes (November 14, 1904 – September 13, 1990) was a 20th-century United States, American writer and critic, known for her caustic but insightful observations of American life. Mannes also wrote under the pen name of "Sec." Life and caree ...
, author and critic * Henry Masterson III, philanthropist * Frederick S. Mates, financier * Albert Maysles, documentary filmmaker * John B. McDonald, contractor who worked on the first line of the New York City Subway * Jo Mielziner, theatrical set designer * Walter Millis, writer *
Joe Namath Joseph William Namath (; ; born May 31, 1943), nicknamed "Broadway Joe", is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for 13 seaso ...
, football player *
Rudolf Nureyev Rudolf Khametovich Nureyev (17 March 19386 January 1993) was a Soviet-born ballet dancer and choreographer. Nureyev is widely regarded as the preeminent male ballet dancer of his generation as well as one of the greatest ballet dancers of all ...
, dancer *
Rosie O'Donnell Roseann O'Donnell (born March 21, 1962) is an American talk show host, comedian, and actress. She began her comedy career as a teenager and received her breakthrough on the television series ''Star Search'' in 1984. After a series of television ...
, actress *
Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...
, artist, widow of John Lennon; lived there until 2023 * Jack Palance, actor * Ruth Porat, CFO of Alphabet and Google *
Eric Portman Eric Harold Portman (13 July 1901 – 7 December 1969) was an English stage and film actor. He is probably best remembered for his roles in three films for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger during the 1940s. Early life Born in Halifax, ...
, actor * Maury Povich, television host * Gilda Radner, comedian * Thomas Reardon, neuroscientist and technologist * Rex Reed, critic *
Jason Robards Jason Nelson Robards Jr. (July 26, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he gained a reputation as an interpreter of the works of playwright Eugene O'Neill. Robards received numerous accola ...
, actor *
Jane Rosenthal Jane Rosenthal (born September 21, 1956) is an American film producer.
, film producer *
Wilbur Ross Wilbur Louis Ross Jr. (born November 28, 1937) is an American businessman who served as the 39th United States Secretary of Commerce from 2017 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ross was previously cha ...
, financier * Robert Ryan, actor * Zachary Scott, actor * Eugenia Sheppard, writer *
Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...
, musician * Harper Simon, musician and composer; son of Paul Simon * Ruth P. Smith, advocate * Michael Wager, actor *
Teresa Wright Muriel Teresa Wright (October 27, 1918 – March 6, 2005) was an American actress. She won the 1942 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Carol Beldon in ''Mrs. Miniver''. She was nominated for the same award in 1941 for her ...
, actress The Dakota's co-op board, which decides whether to allow prospective tenants, has a reputation for selectivity. In 2011, ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' characterized the board as having "high standards and aversion to notoriety". A
CNBC CNBC is an American List of business news channels, business news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group, a unit of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The network broadcasts live business news and analysis programming during the morning, Day ...
report in 2012 noted that one set of prospective tenants had to pay several thousand dollars for a background check, as well as submit several years' worth of financial and tax documents, and that even these measures did not guarantee that the tenants would be accepted. The Dakota's board maintains a set of house rules for residents and their guests; in 2011, ''The New York Times'' characterized several of the rules as appearing "like they could have been drafted when the building opened". For example, "domestic employees, messengers and trades people" are required to use the service elevators, and healthcare and childcare providers must be accompanied by clients when they use the passenger elevators. Other rules include a restriction against leaving more than one car unattended in the driveway; a prohibition on "dance, vocal or instrumental instruction" in apartments; and a restriction on playing musical instruments or using a phonograph, radio, or TV loudspeaker between 11 p.m. and 9 a.m. Residents cannot throw away their apartments' original fireplace mantels or doors and must instead put them in a storage area in the basement. On numerous occasions, the board has refused to allow high-profile personalities to move into the building, including musicians
Gene Simmons Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; ; born August 25, 1949) also known by his stage persona "The Demon", is an Israeli-born American musician. He was the bassist and co-lead singer of the hard rock band Kiss (band), Kiss, which he co-founded wit ...
,
Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...
,
Carly Simon Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Billboard Hot 100, top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation (song), Anticipatio ...
,
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
, and
Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
, as well as baseball player
Alex Rodriguez Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez (born July 27, 1975), nicknamed "A-Rod", is an American former professional baseball shortstop, third baseman and designated hitter and current businessman. Rodriguez played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (ML ...
, and comedian
Judd Apatow Judd Apatow (; born December 6, 1967) is an American director, producer, screenwriter, and comedian known for his work in comedy films. Apatow is the founder of Apatow Productions, through which he wrote, produced, and directed his films ''The 4 ...
. In 2002, the board rejected corrugated cardboard magnate Dennis Mehiel; he was only allowed to move into the building 20 years later. Another prospective tenant sued the Dakota's board in 2015 after the board prohibited him from moving into a unit he had bought 16 years prior. Former resident Albert Maysles, who had unsuccessfully tried to sell his unit to
Melanie Griffith Melanie Richards Griffith (born August 9, 1957) is an American actress. Born in Manhattan to actress Tippi Hedren, she was raised mainly in Los Angeles, where she graduated from the Hollywood Professional School at age 16. In 1975, 17-year-old ...
and
Antonio Banderas José Antonio Domínguez Bandera (born 10 August 1960), known professionally as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish actor. Known for his work in films of several genres, he has received numerous accolades, including a Cannes Film Festival Award ...
, told ''The New York Times'' in 2005: "What's so shocking is that the building is losing its touch with interesting people. More and more, they're moving away from creative people and going toward people who just have the money." Investor and resident Buddy Fletcher filed a lawsuit in 2011, claiming that the board had made racist remarks against would-be residents on numerous occasions, but a New York state judge dismissed Fletcher's suit in 2015.


Impact


Reception

Before The Dakota was completed, architectural critic Montgomery Schuyler was skeptical of the building's potential, saying: "At present, it is too isolated to come to anything like an immediate favor with the wealthy classes..." By the time the Dakota opened, it was widely acclaimed. The '' New York Daily Graphic'' wrote that the building was "one of the most perfect apartment houses in the world". The ''Real Estate Record and Guide'' wrote in 1884: "The owners have been fortunate in their architect, and Mr. Hardenbergh has been fortunate in his clients." Two years later, H. W. Fabian referred to the Dakota as the "most excellent of any of the kind in New York", and M. G. Van Rensselaer said the Dakota was the only apartment building she had ever seen that "merits praise". Elizabeth Hawes said in her 1993 book ''New York, New York'' that the building looked "both important and unlikely" when it had been completed. Schuyler, reappraising the building in 1896, said: "The architectural results were so successful that it is a very considerable distinction to have designed the best apartment house in New York." ''Architectural Record'' spoke critically of the building's high quality, saying in 1902 that the fact that the Dakota was the best-designed apartment house along Central Park West "is not especially encouraging as an architectural sign of the times". On the Dakota's 50th anniversary, the ''New York Herald Tribune'' described the building as standing "firmly on its unimpeachable foundations; somewhat shorter than its neighbors but immeasurably more impressive". Commentary continued in later years. A ''New York Times'' article in 1959 described the Dakota's design as ranging "Victorian Kremlin" to "Middle Eastern Post Office", while ''Look'' magazine called the building a "maze of imaginative, distinctive living". Architect Robert A. M. Stern wrote in 1999: "The Dakota was an undisputed masterpiece, far and away the grandest apartment house of the Gilded Age in New York and rivaling, if not exceeding, in logic and luxury any comparable building in Paris and London". Christopher Gray said in 2006 that "The Dakota remains Mount Olympus in the mythology of New York apartment houses, its baronial majesty the gauge by which all others must be judged." ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' referred to the Beresford, the Dakota, and the San Remo as the "three grand dames of the West Side". Contemporary critics also commented about specific architectural elements of the Dakota. The ''Real Estate Record and Guide'' dubbed the dining suite as "the handsomest dining room in Manhattan". ''American Architect and Architecture'' wrote: "the court-yard is symmetrically and handsomely shaped". ''American Architect'' had only one complaint: "The service-entrances to the suites are situated upon the same court-yard, so that grocers' wagons and ice-carts are almost always to be seen standing about in the space which should be reserved exclusively for more fashionable equipages, and for the promenades of the tenants of the house." Hardenbergh, who remained involved in his designs after their completion, wrote a letter objecting to ''American Architect'' characterization of the courtyard.


Cultural impact and legacy

Though the Dakota had an unusual design for its time, only one other luxury "communal palace" followed it: the Osborne on 57th Street. After the Dakota was completed, ornamental-iron contractor
Hecla Iron Works Brooklyn Bowl is a music venue, bowling alley and restaurant in the Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. Founded in 2009, it is located in the former Hecla Iron Works Building at 61 Wythe Avenue. It is known for ...
published advertisements of the building in ''
Architectural Record ''Architectural Record'' is a US-based monthly magazine dedicated to architecture and interior design. Its editor in chief is Josephine Minutillo. ''The Record'', as it is sometimes colloquially referred to, is widely-recognized as an important ...
''. The building and its inhabitants have been detailed in numerous periodicals, including ''Look'' and ''
Architectural Forum ''Architectural Forum'' was an American magazine that covered the homebuilding industry and architecture. Started in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1892 as ''The Brickbuilder'', it absorbed the magazine ''Architect's World'' in October 1938. Ownershi ...
''. Illustrations of the building appeared on several magazine covers, including the July 12, 1982, issue of ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...
'' magazine and the 1979 Christmas catalog for Brentano's bookstore. Numerous replicas of the building have been created, including a model at Legoland Florida, as well as merchandise such as tissue boxes. The American Institute of Architects' 2007 survey ''America's Favorite Architecture, List of America's Favorite Architecture'' ranked the Dakota among the top 150 buildings in the United States. The Dakota's history is detailed in at least two books. Stephen Birmingham's book ''Life at the Dakota'' was published in 1979, while historian Andrew Alpern's book ''The Dakota: A History of the World's Best-Known Apartment Building'' was published in 2015. Nonetheless, relatively little scholarly material about the Dakota has been published. According to
Wilbur Ross Wilbur Louis Ross Jr. (born November 28, 1937) is an American businessman who served as the 39th United States Secretary of Commerce from 2017 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ross was previously cha ...
, a former president of the Dakota's board, a planned "centennial art book" about the building was canceled in 1984 because the Dakota was so poorly documented. The Dakota has also appeared in several popular media works, including Roman Polanski's 1968 film ''Rosemary's Baby (film), Rosemary's Baby'' and Bradley Cooper's ''Maestro (2023 film), Maestro''. The ''Chicago Tribune'' wrote that the "building's grim presence was introduced to most Americans" in that film. The building was also depicted in Jack Finney's 1970 novel ''Time and Again (Finney novel), Time and Again''. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Dakota as a New York City landmark in February 1969. The Dakota was also added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1972 and was re-added to the NRHP as a
National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
in 1976. The Dakota is also part of the
Central Park West Historic District The Central Park West Historic District is located along Central Park West, between 61st and 97th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on ...
, which was designated as an NRHP district in 1982, as well as the Upper West Side Historic District, which became a New York City historic district in 1990.


See also

* List of National Historic Landmarks in New York City * List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 59th to 110th Streets * National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan from 59th to 110th Streets


References


Notes


Citations


Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dakota, The 1884 establishments in New York (state) Apartment buildings in New York City Assassination sites Central Park West Historic District Clark family, * Condominiums and housing cooperatives in Manhattan Eighth Avenue (Manhattan) Henry Janeway Hardenbergh buildings National Historic Landmarks in Manhattan New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan Residential buildings completed in 1884 Residential buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan Upper West Side Historic district contributing properties in Manhattan Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in New York (state) New York State Register of Historic Places in New York County Renaissance Revival architecture in New York City 1880s architecture in the United States