Katie Leggett
Elon in New York City
Fifth Avenue
Paper #1
6/20/10
Many times, whenever someone thinks of New York City, Fifth Avenue is one of the first locations that comes to mind. Shoppers of all ethnicities and backgrounds travel to New York City to “shop till they drop” on fabulous Fifth Avenue. This area in New York City serves as somewhat of a shopping Mecca for series buyers around the world. The section of Fifth Avenue between 34th and 59th is considered to be one of the premier shopping areas in the world. Fifth Avenue continues to serve as a symbol of wealthy New York and is always ranked as one of the most expensive streets in the world. The shopping district between 49th and 59th streets, which is what I am going to focus on, was ranked by Forbes magazine in 2008 as having the world’s most expensive retail spaces on a cost per square foot basis.
The reason I chose Fifth Avenue as my street is because that is where I am interning. I absolutely love this area and was unbelievably excited to be able to work in such a fashionable district. For my project I will be focusing on the area of Fifth Avenue between 34th and 59th street. I work at Fifth and 53rd street and was so excited when I realized that I would have a chance to delve into the history of the street that I am working on. However, I am going to give you an overview of the entire span of Fifth Avenue for this paper so that you will have a better idea of how this street became what it is today.
Fifth Avenue starts all the way down in Washington Square Park at Greenwich Village and runs North past the Midtown area of Manhattan to the Upper East Side until it reaches Harlem and is terminated at 142nd Street. The high status that Fifth Avenue is known for today started in 1862 when Caroline Schermerhorn Astor, an extremely prominent American socialite in New York City, bought a house on the corner of 34th Street and Fifth Avenue. An interesting fact about “Mrs. Astor,” as she later became known as, is that her son was the richest man on the Titanic when it set sail in 1912, unfortunately he perished in the disaster of the ship. You may find it strange that someone actually had a house on Fifth Avenue because in this day and age you will find no such thing. It’s hard to find an apartment on Fifth Avenue and it’s even harder to find a house anywhere in New York City. Well, in 1893, Astor’s house was torn down and the famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, which now serves as the site of the Empire State building, was erected in its place. This officially marked the end of the avenue as a residential area. Another important event that marked the transition of the area from residential to business was when the famous Renaissance Hotel was converted into an office building in 1918. Also, Buckingham hotel was converted into the famous Saks Fifth Avenue.
During the time that Fifth Avenue served as a residential area there were wide sidewalks with lots of trees and greenery. The trees and wide sidewalks were sacrificed and the streets were widened in 1908 when Fifth Avenue was experiencing a time of increased traffic and thoroughfare thanks to all of the businesses that had taken the place of the residential areas. The first commercial building to be constructed by Benjamin Altman who bought the corner lot on 34th Street in 1896. In 1906 his department store, B. Altman and Company occupied the entire span of 34th Street. The opening of this store marked the beginning of Fifth Avenue being known as a “shopping district.” After B. Altman and Company was opened, more and more high end stores followed its lead. This area attracted fabulous women from all over so they could be able to say that they shopped in such an upscale area. One of these high end stores was Lord and Taylor. As a matter of fact, Lord and Taylor is still a prominent store today and the flagship store is still located where it began on Fifth Avenue right near the Empire State Building so many years ago.
Another important thing to note is that Fifth Avenue is the basis for Edith Wharton’s 1920 Pulitzer Prize winning novel, “The Age of Innocence.” The novel describes New York’s elite in the 1870s and provides a lot of historical context into the lives of the rich families living in this area of New York City at that time.
Transitioning back to the area of Fifth Avenue that I chose, the Upper area of Fifth Avenue was crawling with New York’s elite by the turn of the twentieth century. Many mansions were being demolished in this area to make way for huge apartment buildings. 1916 marked a huge milestone for 5th Avenue when the grand corner mansion at 72nd street was torn down to make way for an apartment building. This was the first replacement of this kind. Before then if mansions were torn down, the space was used for commercial buildings. In January of 1922, the city reacted to many complaints about the ongoing replacement of Fifth Avenue mansions by apartment buildings. The new apartments they were building were 10 times the height of the mansions and the surrounding residents were not happy. Because of this, in 1923, famous architect J.E.R. Carpenter had the height restriction passed and the tall buildings that we see today started being built. Carpenter said, “The avenue would be greatly improved in appearance when deluxe apartments would replace the old style mansions.”
Today, there are enough stores in this area to satisfy anyone’s taste. Women (and men) love shopping at stores like Henri Bendel, Bergdorf Goodman, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, Van Cleef, Harry Winston, Bulgari, Tiffany, Cartier… and the list goes on and on. My personal favorite would have to be Blanc de Chine, of course. The famous fashion house began in 1986 as a concept in Hong Kong China. Today, it remains one of the most luxurious and expensive retailers on Fifth Avenue. I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to work in the public relations department at this fabulous store… the only one in the United States, I might add. Celebrities from Hayden Christensen to Shannon Tweed to the Real Housewives of New York City frequent this establishment. Kids will love making their way through FAO Schwartz to find the perfect toy to add to their collection. If you’re in to American Girl you will find the second American Girl store (the first is located in Chicago) on this avenue.
While Fifth Avenue today is centered around shopping, it is famous for a few other things as well. “Museum Mile” is located on this avenue. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, many rich businessmen settled along Fifth Avenue. The build huge mansions with breathtaking views of Central Park. Many of these residential buildings are now home to several museums. Here you’ll find the National Academy Museum which was once home to the famous philanthropist Archer Huntington. The Frick Collections, which is also a museum, is the mansion that belonged to former owner and steel businessman Henry Clay Frick, and last but not least, the Museum of the City of New York is found in a huge 1932 mansion. There are many more museums housed here including the Jewish Museum and the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum housed in the mansion that was once owned by famous steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie. However, the most famous of all the museums are the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Guggenheim Museum.
The Metropolitan Museum, also known as “The Met,” is one of the worlds largest museums and, the Guggenheim is just as impressive on the outside as it is on the inside. The modern 20th century building that houses it is much different than the old mansions that house other museums of its kind.
There are many other interesting things that you may find along Fifth Avenue. St. Patrick’s Cathedral can be found on this avenue located between 50th and 51st streets. St. Patrick’s holds the seat of the Archbishop of New York City. It’s refreshing to see such a site in the midst of all the giant skyscrapers that consume this city. One of New York’s most famous hotels is also located on 5th Avenue at 59th Street. The Plaza has been home to The Beatles as well as many Presidents during their stays in the big city. Some of you may even me familiar with the popular children’s book and movie, Eloise at the Plaza. In 1922, this hotel was ranked as New York’s “Smartest Hotel.” Other famous sites along Fifth are Rockefeller Center, the Trump Tower, the Empire State Building, the Flatiron Building and the New York Public Library, where much of the research for this paper was done!
Another important fact to note about Fifth Avenue today is that it’s home to many parade routes including the longest running St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Easter Sunday Parade and The Puerto Rican Day Parade which several students in our program had the opportunity to enjoy this past weekend.
Fifth Avenue has virtually remained the same over the years. It has transitioned from a residential to a commercial shopping area however, one things for sure, it has always been fashionable.
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The American College, the nation's leading educator of financial service professionals, recently selected William H. Beckley, CLU®, ChFC®, MSFS, Executive Vice President, Agencies with Northwestern Mutual to receive its highest honor, the Huebner Gold Medal. The award ceremony honoring this year's recipients will take place during the President's Circle dinner at the Kennedy Space Center at The College's 2007 Knowledge Summit in Orlando, FL on November 15, 2007.
William H. Beckley, CLU, ChFC, MSFS
"Bill is an inspirational leader within the Northwestern Mutual organization and the financial services industry. His volunteer efforts on behalf of our College combined with Bill's unparalleled contributions to our profession over the course of his career make him more than deserving of this distinctive honor. We look forward to recognizing him in Orlando and adding Bill to the pantheon of financial services greats that have received the Huebner Gold Medal over the course of the past three decades," said Larry Barton, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of The American College.
