185 Montague Street

185 Montague Street
Front of the building (2023)
Former names	National Title Guaranty Company Building
General information
Architectural style	Art Deco
Address	185–187 Montague Street
Town or city	Brooklyn, New York
Country	United States
Coordinates	40°41′40″N 73°59′31″W / 40.69433°N 73.99181°W / 40.69433; -73.99181
Construction started	1929
Completed	April 3, 1930
Technical details
Floor count	16
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Harvey Wiley Corbett and Wallace Harrison
Main contractor	William Kennedy Construction Company
New York City Landmark
Designated	January 24, 2017[1]
Reference no.	2587[1]
Designated entity	Exterior

185 Montague Street, also known as the National Title Guaranty Company Building, is a commercial building in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York City, United States. Constructed for the National Title Guaranty Company between 1929 and 1930, the 16-story building was designed by Harvey Wiley Corbett and Wallace Harrison in the Art Deco style. 185 Montague Street was built by the William Kennedy Construction Company as part of "Bank Row", a series of bank buildings on Montague Street within Brooklyn Heights.

The building's facade is made of brick and limestone. The first two stories are decorated with a limestone screen with panels designed by Rene Paul Chambellan, as well as a pair of asymmetrical openings. The upper stories contain brick piers, which divide the facade vertically, and ornamental brick spandrel panels, which separate the windows on different stories. with setbacks above the 12th story to comply with the 1916 Zoning Resolution. The ground story and basement originally contained a modern-style bank branch with decorations such as terrazzo floors and a colorful ceiling. The National Title Guaranty Company and its subsidiaries occupied the lowest five stories and the basement, while the upper stories were rented out.

The National Title Guaranty Company was established at 172–174 Montague Street in 1924 and expanded significantly over the next three years, with offices across Long Island. To accommodate its growing size, National Title Guaranty bought the sites at 185 and 187 Montague Street in early 1929. National Title Guaranty had moved its offices to the building by November 1929, and 185 Montague Street officially opened on April 3, 1930. Although the building was fully occupied from its opening, the National Title Guaranty Company was liquidated in 1935. The bank branch on the lower stories was subsequently occupied by several other banks, and the building's owners unsuccessfully proposed demolishing the upper stories in the 1940s. The banking space had become a Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant by the 21st century, and the building became a New York City designated landmark in 2017.