Hotel St. George collection
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Abstract
A collection of documents and photographs related to the Hotel St. George and dated 1930 to 1990, with the bulk of materials falling within the years 1982 to 1986.
Historical note
The block of buildings in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn that are collectively known as the Hotel St. George once comprised the largest hotel in New York City. Its constituent buildings were built between 1885 and 1929 on the block bounded by Clark, Pineapple, Hicks, and Henry Streets. Its primary building, the St. George Tower, once attracted celebrities, professional athletes, and presidential candidates, and boasted the Colorama Ballroom (at one time known as the largest banquet room in the world), as well as the largest salt water swimming pool in the United States.
The last remaining portion of the Hotel St. George that operated as a hotel was burnt down in 1995. As of 2010, the St. George Tower operates as a residential cooperative building, while the 100 Henry Street entrance (also known as the Weller Wing) and the 55 Clark Street entrance are now both part of Educational Housing Services (EHS), which offers dormitory services to students of many New York City colleges and universities. The buildings that comprise the Hotel St. George are protected under the New York City Landmarks Preservation Law.
Arrangement
The collection is not arranged in any particular order.
Scope and Contents
The Hotel St. George collection spans the dates 1930 to 1990, with the bulk of materials falling within the years 1982 to 1986. Included in the collection are floorplans of the Hotel St. George, circa 1930-1950; a schematic rendering of the hotel building complex, circa 1930-1950; a photocopy of a Hotel St. George promotional brochure, 1932; an advertisement for Vinold Reiss Studios, the designers of the interior of the hotel, 1930; a copy of the hotel manager's stationery, circa 1930-1950; postcards (V1989.30.1 - .19) depicting the hotel's exterior, interiors, and pool, circa 1930s; and several black and white photographic slides (V1989.30.20 - .23) that depict banquets held in the hotel's ballrooms in 1932; and a 1939 album of interiors of the hotel, including the Grand Ballroom, the swimming pool, resturants and individual hotel rooms.
The materials that comprise the bulk date span of the collection consist primarily of copies of the St. George News and Views, a newsletter written and published by the St. George Tower Tenants' Association. These materials mostly document the process of converting the St. George Tower into a cooperative residential building during the 1980s, as well as providing insight into the daily lives of the building's residents. Also included are clippings from various New York City newspapers that document the St. George Tower's co-op conversion process, as well as life in the surrounding neighborhood during this period.
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Conditions Governing Access
Open to users without restriction.
Conditions Governing Use
While many items at the Center for Brooklyn History are unrestricted, we do not own reproduction rights to all materials. Be aware of the several kinds of rights that might apply: copyright, licensing and trademarks. The researcher assumes all responsibility for copyright questions.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Hotel St. George collection, ARC.100, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Jeff Ghitelman, May 22, 1990.
Photo album (1939) donated by John Prizeman in 2018.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
If digital surrogates exist, they should be used in place of the originals whenever possible.
About this Guide
Processing Information
An advertisement for Winold Reiss Studios (1930), the designers of the interior of the hotel, was added to the collection by John Zarrillo in March 2017.
A photo album of interiors of the Hotel St. George (1939) was added to the collection by Maggie Schreiner in April 2018.
The slides and postcards in this collection were originally stored separately in slides by accession and postcards by accession boxes. Alice Griffin consolidated the materials in May 2024.
