Hotel Algonquin

Hotel Algonquin
Name	Hotel Algonquin
Caption	Exterior of the Algonquin Hotel
Location	59 West 44th Street, Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates	40.7550°N 73.9846°W
Opened	1902
Architect	Goldwin Starrett
Style	Beaux-Arts
Floors	12
Owner	Ben Tolchin (as of 2020)

Hotel Algonquin is a historic Manhattan hotel established in 1902 near Times Square and the New York Public Library. Renowned for fostering literary and theatrical circles, it gained prominence through associations with figures from the Gilded Age to the Roaring Twenties and beyond. The hotel’s legacy intersects with institutions, movements, and personalities across American literature, Broadway theatre, and journalism.

History

Opened during the era of Theodore Roosevelt, the hotel was built by hotelier Frank Case and designed by architect Goldwin Starrett, emerging contemporaneously with developments around Herald Square, Madison Square Garden (1890), and the Flatiron Building. Early patrons included actors from Broadway, journalists from the New York Times, and playwrights associated with The Provincetown Players and Playwrights Horizons. In the 1910s and 1920s the hotel became a nexus for members of the Algonquin Round Table, intersecting with personalities linked to The New Yorker, Vanity Fair (magazine), and Punch (magazine). During the Depression the property weathered financial shifts affecting peers like the Waldorf Astoria New York and the St. Regis New York. Mid-century guests included figures from Hollywood and the New York Stock Exchange, while late 20th-century owners negotiated preservation issues alongside entities such as the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Architecture and Design

The building exhibits Beaux-Arts architecture influenced by contemporaries including McKim, Mead & White and the Gilded Age mansions of Fifth Avenue. Exterior stonework and brick masonry reflect practices also seen at Grand Central Terminal and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Interiors feature period elements akin to the work of designers associated with Louis Comfort Tiffany and furniture houses used by Ralph Lauren (businessman). Public rooms evoke salon layouts comparable to those at the Algonquin Round Table’s meeting venues and restaurant salons frequented by members of the Knickerbocker Club and the Players Club (New York). Structural details align with early 20th-century building codes influenced by legislation after events such as the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.

Notable Guests and Cultural Significance

The hotel hosted luminaries from literature like Edna St. Vincent Millay, Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, Harold Ross, and Alexander Woollcott, and from theatre such as George S. Kaufman, Noël Coward, Eugene O'Neill, and Lorenz Hart. Film and music personalities including Marlene Dietrich, Bette Davis, Lillian Gish, Darryl F. Zanuck, Jerome Kern, and Cole Porter were also guests. Political figures and statesmen associated with events like the League of Nations debates and cultural diplomacy—figures tied to Woodrow Wilson and the Roosevelt family—passed through as well. Journalists from The Atlantic (magazine), Harper's, Life (magazine), and broadcasters from CBS and NBC conducted interviews there. The hotel influenced productions on Broadway and was referenced in works published by Viking Press, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Simon & Schuster, and Random House.

The Algonquin Round Table and Literary Legacy

The Algonquin Round Table, comprising critics and writers linked to publications like The New Yorker, Vanity Fair (magazine), and The New York Times Book Review, met regularly at the hotel’s restaurant. Members included Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley, Edna Ferber, Marc Connelly, and editors such as Harold Ross. Their repartee influenced modern American satire alongside contemporaries in Chicago Tribune and The Saturday Evening Post. The group’s legacy impacted playwrights associated with Theatre Guild and novelists connected to The Lost Generation such as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, who shared overlapping cultural circuits. Anthologies published by Little, Brown and Company and critical studies from Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press examine the Round Table’s role in 20th-century letters.

Amenities and Services

Traditionally offering dining and private salons, the hotel provides services comparable to historic establishments like the Pierre (New York) and the Plaza Hotel. On-site amenities include a signature restaurant and cocktail lounges that have hosted premieres linked to Paramount Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, as well as private event spaces used by arts organizations such as the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the Museum of Modern Art, and theatrical producers from Roundabout Theatre Company. Guestrooms feature period furnishings alongside modern hospitality systems from vendors supporting chains like Marriott International and Hilton Worldwide. Concierge and event services support meetings for institutions including Society of American Archivists and literary fundraisers for organizations like the PEN America.

Ownership and Management

Ownership has changed hands among investors, hoteliers, and preservation-minded proprietors including figures associated with firms like Loeb Partners Corporation and private owners linked to media families. Management models have paralleled practices at boutique operators such as Kimpton Hotels and conglomerates including AccorHotels. Legal and financial arrangements have involved banking institutions akin to JPMorgan Chase and legal counsel experienced with matters before the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

Preservation and Renovations

Renovations have balanced historic preservation with modern codes, involving consultants and craftsmen familiar with work at landmarks such as Carnegie Hall and the New York Public Library Main Branch. Preservation efforts have coordinated with the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission and advocacy groups like the Historic Hotels of America and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Restoration projects addressed masonry, plasterwork, and period fixtures, using materials sourced through suppliers that have worked on sites including the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty National Monument. Recent refurbishments integrated contemporary systems overseen by engineers with experience on projects for Con Edison infrastructure and municipal compliance with New York City Department of Buildings codes.

Category:Hotels in Manhattan