Marc Eidlitz (21 January 1826 – 15 April 1892) was a builder active 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 ...

, where he was prominent in the construction industry, in partnership with his son Otto Eidlitz (1860–1928).

Biography

Marc was born Markus to a Jewish family in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

. He emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1846 with his mother Judith Eidlitz after the death of his father Abraham. Having served a four-year apprenticeship, he set up in business for himself in 1852 - the year of his marriage - and founded the construction firm, Marc Eidlitz & Son in New York City. The firm built the

St. Regis Hotel St. Regis Hotels & Resorts () is an American multinational luxury hotel chain, owned and managed by Marriott International. History Origins In 1904, John Jacob Astor built the St. Regis New York as a sister property to his part-owned Waldor ...

and many other projects. Through his influence, the Masons Builders' Association of New York played a major role in founding the National Association of Builders. In New York, he was President of the Building Trades' Club and of the Germanic Savings Bank. Eidlitz made his home at 123

East 72nd Street 72nd Street is one of the major bi-directional crosstown streets in New York City's borough of Manhattan. The street primarily runs through the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods. It is one of the few streets to go through C ...

, where he died. He had four sons and a daughter. His son Otto Eidlitz took over the business after he died. His brother

Leopold Eidlitz Leopold Eidlitz (March 10, 1823, in Prague, Bohemia – March 22, 1908, in New York City) was an American architect based in New York. He is best known for his work on the New York State Capitol (Albany, New York, 1876–1881), as well as " Ira ...

was a well-known architect, as was Leopold's son,

Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz Cyrus Lazelle Warner Eidlitz (July 27, 1853 – October 5, 1921) was an American architect best known for designing One Times Square in New York City. Educated in Germany, he was also founder of the architecture firm of Eidlitz and McKenzie, p ...

. Marc converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and kept close ties to the German immigrant community, becoming president of Germania Bank in 1888.Kathryn E. Hollida
''Leopold Eidlitz: Architecture and Idealism in the Gilded Age.''
New York: W. W. Norton, 2008, pp. 29–30, 69

Selected commercial commissions

The following structures erected by Eidlitz were all in New York City, unless otherwise identified. *A mission on 20th Street, commissioned by

William Colgate William Colgate (January 25, 1783 – March 25, 1857) was an English-American industrialist who in 1806 founded what became the Colgate-Palmolive company. Early life William Colgate was born in Hollingbourne, Kent, England, on January 25, 1783, ...

Broadway Tabernacle Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

(1857–58) *

Lord and Taylor Lord & Taylor was an American department store chain founded in 1826 by Samuel Lord. It had 86 full-line stores in the Northeastern United States at its peak in the 2000s, and 38 locations at the time of its liquidation in 2021. The Lord & Taylo ...

Building, Broadway and Grand Street *The German Hospital (now

Lenox Hill Hospital Lenox Hill Hospital (LHH) is a nationally ranked 450 bed non-profit, Tertiary care, tertiary, research and academic medical center located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, servicing the tri-state area. LHH is one of the reg ...

at another site) *

Saint Vincent's Hospital Saint Vincent's Catholic Medical Centers (also known as Saint Vincent's or SVCMC) was a healthcare system in New York City, anchored by its flagship hospital, St. Vincent's Hospital Manhattan. St. Vincent's was founded in 1849 and was a majo ...

*Home of the Sisters of Bon Secours *Church of the Incarnation, Madison Avenue and 35th Street * Temple Emanu-El, former building at Fifth Avenue and 43rd Street *St. George's clergy house, 16th Street *

Astor Library The Astor Library was a free public library in the East Village, Manhattan, developed primarily through the collaboration of New York City merchant John Jacob Astor and New England educator and bibliographer Joseph Cogswell and designed by Alex ...

Steinway Hall Steinway Hall (German: ) is the name of buildings housing concert halls, showrooms and sales departments for Steinway & Sons pianos. The first Steinway Hall was opened in 1866 in New York City. Today, Steinway Halls and are located in cities suc ...

*Gallatin Bank * Metropolitan Opera House ( J. Cleaveland Cady, architect, 1883) *

Seamen's Savings Bank Seamen's Savings Bank was a bank in the United States that served people in the maritime industry, especially seamen. It was founded in 1829 and operated until 1990, when it was seized by the U.S. Government for being insolvent and its assets wer ...

*Eagle Fire Insurance Company *

Schermerhorn Building The Schermerhorn Building is a historic structure at 376–380 Lafayette Street, on the northwest corner with Great Jones Street, in the NoHo neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was built in 1888–1889 by William C. Schermerhorn on t ...

, 376

Lafayette Street Lafayette Street ( ) is a major north–south street in Lower Manhattan, New York City. It originates at the intersection of Reade Street and Centre Street, one block north of Chambers Street. The one-way street then successively runs throu ...

(

Henry J. Hardenbergh Henry Janeway Hardenbergh (February 6, 1847 – March 13, 1918) was an American architect, best known for his hotels and apartment buildings, and as a "master of a new building form — the skyscraper." He worked three times with Edward Clark, ...

, architect, 1889) *Astor Building *Eden Musée *Western Electric Building *Lancashire Fire Insurance Company * Empire Building, Broadway and Rector Street * Germania Bank Building, 190 Bowery (

Robert Maynicke Robert Maynicke (1849–1913) was an American architect. At his death, the ''New York Times'' called him "a pioneer in the building of modern loft buildings."J. Pierpont Morgan John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. As the head of the banking firm that ...

House *

Ogden Goelet Ogden Goelet (June 11, 1851 New York City – August 27, 1897 Cowes, Isle of Wight) was an American heir, businessman and yachtsman from New York City during the Gilded Age. With his wife, he built Ochre Court in Newport, Rhode Island, his so ...

House *Rober L. Stuart House

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eidlitz, Marc 19th-century Czech people Jews from Austria-Hungary Emigrants from the Austrian Empire to the United States Businesspeople from Prague 1826 births 1892 deaths 19th-century Roman Catholics American businesspeople in real estate Converts to Roman Catholicism from Judaism American Roman Catholics 19th-century American businesspeople

Biography

Selected commercial commissions

Further reading

References