Villard Houses

Villard Houses
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
New York State Register of Historic Places
New York City Landmark No. 0268–0270
Seen from the corner of Madison Avenue and 51st Street
Location	29+1⁄2 50th Street, 24–26 East 51st Street, and 451–457 Madison Avenue, Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates	40°45′29″N 73°58′31″W / 40.75806°N 73.97528°W / 40.75806; -73.97528
Built	1882–84
Architect	Joseph Morrill Wells of McKim, Mead & White
Architectural style	Renaissance
NRHP reference No.	75001210[1]
NYSRHP No.	06101.004572
NYCL No.	0268–0270
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	September 2, 1975
Designated NYSRHP	June 23, 1980[2]
Designated NYCL	September 30, 1968

The Villard Houses are a set of former residences at 451–457 Madison Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Designed by the architect Joseph Morrill Wells of McKim, Mead & White in the Renaissance Revival style, the residences were erected in 1884 for railroad magnate Henry Villard. Preserved as a historic landmark, the houses comprise a portion of the Lotte New York Palace Hotel, whose main tower is to the east. The residences are New York City designated landmarks and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The building comprises six residences in a U-shaped plan, with wings to the north, east, and south surrounding a courtyard on Madison Avenue. The facade is made of Belleville sandstone, and each house consists of a raised basement, three stories, and an attic. Among the artists who worked on the interiors were artist John La Farge, sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, and painter Maitland Armstrong. Some of the more elaborate spaces, such as the Gold Room, dining room, and reception area in the south wing of the complex, still exist.

The houses were commissioned by Henry Villard, president of the Northern Pacific Railway, shortly before he fell into bankruptcy. Ownership of the residences changed many times through the mid-20th century. By the late 1940s, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York had acquired all of the houses, except the northernmost residence at 457 Madison Avenue, which it acquired from Random House in 1971. The houses were restored as part of the New York Palace Hotel's development, completed in 1980. The north wing was turned into office space for the preservation group Municipal Art Society, which occupied the space until 2010.