City Designates 2 Upper East Side Buildings As Landmarks

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Two historic Upper East Side buildings were awarded individual landmark status Tuesday after a vote from the city Landmarks Preservation Commission.

The First Hungarian Reformed Church and the National Society of Dames headquarters building are the neighborhoods two newest landmarks, the LPC announced Tuesday. Both buildings are located in the Yorkville section of the Upper East Side, which most consider to be the area east of Third Avenue and above East 80th Street.

"I am delighted that the Commission voted to designate these two architecturally significant buildings in Yorkville that represent institutions that served this community," Landmarks Preservation Commission Chair Sarah Carroll said in a statement.

Carroll added that the First Hungarian Reformed Church "is a tangible reminder of the Hungarian-American community in Yorkville" and that the National Society of Dames building is a "Colonial Revival style masterpiece."

The First Hungarian Reformed Church, located on East 69th Street between First and Second avenues, is notable on both architectural and cultural levels, according to the commission. The building is one of the few religious institutions designed by architect Emory Roth. Roth, who was born in Austria-Hungary, was one of New York City's distinguished architects in the 20s and 30s and designed acclaimed buildings such as the San Remo and Beresford apartment buildings.

Roth designed the First Hungarian Reformed Church for a congregation moving from lower Manhattan to the Upper East Side in the early 20th century. The building was completed in 1916 and still holds services in Hungarian.

The National Society of Dames bilding, located on East 71st Street between Second and Third avenues, was designed in 1929 by architect Richard Henry Dana, Jr., according to the LPC. The headquarters was commissioned to accommodate a growing New York City membership in the National Society of Colonial Dames.

The organization was founded in 1891 and all of its members trace their lineage back to significant figures of colonial America, according to the LPC. One of the organization's primary goals was historic preservation, according to the LPC.

"Both sites played a role in the neighborhood’s immigrant past – the Church as a reminder of a faraway home, and the Dames with its mission to foster pride in a new nation. These are just two such evocative sites in Yorkville that speak to rich and varied immigrant histories, and we look forward to working with the Commission see more progress in recognizing these buildings and sites in the neighborhood," Rachel Levy, Executive Director of FRIENDS of the Upper East Side Historic Districts, said in a statement.