Starrett Brothers and Eken

Starrett Brothers and Eken
Name	Starrett Brothers and Eken
Type	Private construction firm
Founded	1898
Defunct	1950s
Headquarters	New York City
Industry	Construction, Engineering
Key people	Goldwin Starrett, Theodore Starrett, Paul Eken
Notable projects	Woolworth Building, Lincoln Building, Times Square theaters

Starrett Brothers and Eken

Starrett Brothers and Eken was an American construction and engineering firm active in the early 20th century, noted for erecting major commercial skyscrapers, theaters, and institutional buildings in New York City and other urban centers. The firm participated in projects associated with leading architects, financiers, and cultural institutions of the Progressive Era and the Roaring Twenties, collaborating with figures from the Skyscraper Race and the expansion of Penn Station-era infrastructure. Its work intersected with prominent developers, preservation debates, and the rise of modern construction methods.

History

Founded in 1898 by members of the Starrett family alongside Paul Eken, the firm emerged during the skyscraper boom that involved contractors, structural engineers, and investors tied to projects commissioned by entities such as the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, New York Life Insurance Company, and the Equitable Life Assurance Society. Early commissions coincided with technological shifts exemplified by the Chicago School and the influence of architects from firms like McKim, Mead & White, Cass Gilbert, and Carrère and Hastings. The company expanded through the 1900s and 1910s, taking contracts for commercial blocks and theatrical venues that connected it to proprietors in the Broadway theater circuit and to banking houses on Wall Street. During World War I and the interwar period, the firm navigated labor issues tied to unions such as the Building Trades Council and regulatory contexts shaped by the 1901 Tenement House Act and municipal building codes. By mid-century, shifts in postwar economics and consolidation among contractors led to the firm’s decline and eventual cessation of independent operations in the 1950s.

Notable Projects

The firm’s portfolio included high-profile commissions for clients linked to institutions like the Woolworth Building, for which they performed structural work in coordination with architect Cass Gilbert and financiers connected to Frank W. Woolworth. They were contractors on commercial office buildings near Broadway (Manhattan), involving projects adjacent to Times Square theaters and supporting developments for newspapers such as The New York Times. Their work encompassed bank buildings affiliated with Chase National Bank and retail anchors tied to department store chains like Macy’s and Gimbels. Regional projects connected them to civic commissions in cities influenced by architects like Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue and engineers from G. W. & C. H. McKenzie. The firm’s contributions also reached transportation-related projects associated with railroad companies such as the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad and the planning milieu around Pennsylvania Station.

Architectural Style and Materials

Buildings erected under the firm’s supervision reflected prevailing styles executed by architects from movements such as the Beaux-Arts, Gothic Revival, and early Art Deco currents seen in urban centers. Facades frequently incorporated materials sourced through suppliers connected to the Port of New York and New Jersey trade networks: limestone from quarries used by firms influenced by the City Beautiful movement, glazed terracotta employed in projects reminiscent of work by SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill) antecedents, and ornamental metalwork often specified by designers with ties to the AIA membership. Structural systems relied on steel sections produced by mills serving tycoons associated with U.S. Steel Corporation-era supply chains and riveted and later bolted connections adopted before the widespread use of welding exemplified by later firms like Bethlehem Steel contractors.

Engineering and Construction Techniques

The firm adopted techniques current to early 20th-century high-rise construction: steel skeleton framing, caisson foundations when building near waterways and subways such as lines operated by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, and curtain wall integrations negotiated with architects of firms like Ralph Walker. They coordinated with elevator manufacturers whose trade relationships included companies that supplied to projects by Otis Elevator Company and implemented scaffold and hoisting strategies influenced by practices developed in tandem with municipal inspectors from the New York Department of Buildings. Their methods addressed challenges of fireproofing using materials and systems promoted by organizations like the National Fire Protection Association, and they participated in early testing regimes for load-bearing and lateral resistance that paralleled research in university engineering departments at institutions such as Columbia University and Cornell University.

Company Organization and Key Personnel

Leadership centered on members of the Starrett family—figures who engaged with professional networks linked to construction financiers, architects, and civic institutions—and Paul Eken, whose management connected the firm to contractor associations and bonding companies. The enterprise maintained project managers, site superintendents, and chief engineers who liaised with architects from firms including McKim, Mead & White and with consulting engineers whose affiliations included professional societies like the American Society of Civil Engineers. Business operations interacted with bankers on Wall Street and insurers underwriting large urban projects, while labor relations required engagement with union leaders and municipal arbitration bodies that shaped labor agreements and safety protocols.

Legacy and Preservation Efforts

The built legacy of the firm survives in multiple urban edifices that entered preservation debates involving stakeholders such as the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, nonprofit organizations like the Historic Districts Council, and university-led documentation projects supported by archives at institutions such as The New-York Historical Society and the Library of Congress. Preservation advocates have cited the firm’s work in campaigns for retaining façades and interiors associated with the era’s theaters and commercial towers, intersecting with high-profile preservation battles comparable to those over Penn Station and influencing policies promulgated by municipal and state preservation statutes. While corporate records are scattered across institutional repositories, the physical fabric of buildings erected by the firm continues to inform scholarship on early skyscraper construction and urban architectural history.

Category:Construction companies of the United States Category:Historic preservation in New York City