Bronx Zoo Location: Bronx, New York Original Architect: Heins & LaFarge Year Built: 1899-1910  Originally known as the New York Zoological Society, the Bronx Zoo opened its doors to the public on November 8, 1899, and for more than 120 years, it has been one of New York City's major cultural attractions. BCA has been involved in several projects at the Bronx Zoo. Astor Court Astor Court, the historic center of the Zoo, consists of raised, landscaped terraces, two grand stairs leading up to the Court, and an ensemble of the Zoo’s original Beaux-Arts buildings sited around the central Sea...

Ca’D'Zan Location: Sarasota, FloridaOriginal Architect: Dwight James BaumYear Built: 1926 Located in Sarasota, Florida, Ca’d’Zan is the former winter residence of John and Mabel Ringling. Designed by Dwight James Baum, the mansion and estate were constructed from 1924-1926. Ca’ d’Zan, which means House of John in Venetian, is a contributing element in the Caples’-Ringlings' Estates Historic District listed on the National Register of Historic Places. John Ringling was one of five brothers internationally known for their ownership of "The Greatest Show on Earth", the Ringling Brothers and Barnum...

Federal Hall National Memorial Location: New York, New YorkOriginal Architect: Town & Davis, John FrazeeYear Built: 1834-1842 Modeled on the Parthenon by architects Alexander Jackson Davis and Ithiel Town and completed in 1842, Federal Hall National Memorial was designed as the first purpose-built U.S. Customs House for the Port of New York and constructed on the site of an earlier building where George Washington took the oath of office as our first President. In 1862, the building became the United States Sub-Treasury until 1920 when the Federal Reserve Bank replaced the Sub-Treasury...

Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Location: Chicago, IllinoisOriginal Architect: Shepley Rutan and CoolidgeYear Built: 1897 The Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall (GAR) consists of four rooms on the second floor of Chicago Cultural Center. The building was constructed in 1897 as the Chicago Public Library, replacing the public reading room lost during the Great Fire of 1871. The series of rooms known as GAR serve as a memorial to the veterans of the Union Army. GAR begins with a foyer, leading to the Lobby, which is decorated with ornamental plaster lunettes and bas-reliefs commemorating...

Newark Museum, Ballantine House Location: Newark, New Jersey Original Architect: George Edward HarneyYear Built: 1884 The Ballantine House is a red brick mansion with Wyoming Grey sandstone trim designed by George Edward Harney and constructed in 1885 for Jeannette and John Holme Ballantine of the celebrated Newark beer-brewing family. Located on the campus of The Newark Museum of Art (NMOA) in Newark, New Jersey, it is a major object in the collections of the NMOA and houses its period rooms and Decorative Arts galleries. The Ballantine House is a National Historic Landmark, a contributing...

Nichols House Museum Location: Boston, Massachusetts Original Architect: Charles Bulfinch Year Built: 1804 The Nichols House, located on 55 Mount Vernon Street, is a Federal style row house built by Jonathan Mason in 1805. Its design is attributed to Charles Bulfinch. Arthur Nichols purchased the house in 1885, and his eldest daughter Rose Nichols left the house to be a museum upon her death in 1960. Listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places as a contributing building in the Beacon Hill Historic District. The House is shown with the furnishings of the Nichols family and...

Park Avenue Armory Location: New York, New York Original Architect: Charles Clinton Year Built: 1880 BCA was part of the project team developing a preservation approach for the adaptive reuse of Park Avenue Armory, historically known as the Seventh Regiment Armory. Built as both a military facility and a social club, the reception rooms on the first floor and the company rooms on the second floor were designed by the most prominent designers and artists of the day, including Louis Comfort Tiffany, Stanford White, Herter Brothers, and Pottier & Stymus. As the historic preservation consultant...

Penn Museum Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Original Architect: Wilson Eyre, Jr., Cope & Stewardson, and Frank Miles Day & Brother Year Built: 1896 Constructed over seven distinct building campaigns between 1899 and 2004, the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology is a contributing resource to the University of Pennsylvania Campus Historic District. BCA was involved with the renovation of the 1915 Harrison Wing and the 1924 Coxe Wing Galleries. The Harrison Wing consists of an upper masonry rotunda and a lower masonry auditorium, with the upper and lower...

Pilgrim Hall Museum Location: Plymouth, Massachusetts Original Architect: Alexander Parris Year Built: 1824 The Pilgrim Hall Museum, operated by the Pilgrim Society, is the oldest public museum in the United States. The Museum, designed by Alexander Parris, was opened in 1824 and is made mostly of Quincy Granite. Since its opening, the museum as survived many changes, including the addition of the Steinway Library in 1904. The library addition interior includes a Guastavino tile ceiling, a carved limestone fireplace, and a terrazzo floor with a mosaic tile border. BCA's work included initial...

Second Bank of the U.S. Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Original Architect: William Strickland Year Built: 1818-1824 The Second Bank of the United States was designed in 1818 by William Strickland and constructed between 1819 and 1824. The building represents the federal government’s second attempt to establish a national banking institution and signified Philadelphia’s importance as the financial center of the country. The National Park Service acquired this building in 1939 and it now serves as a gallery museum open to the public within the Independence National Historical Park. BCA...

Smithsonian Castle Location: Washington, D.C. Original Architect: Cluss and Schulze Year Built: 1881 BCA’s materials conservations services at two Smithsonian Institution buildings, The Arts and Industries Building (AIB) and Smithsonian Institution Building (SIB), began in 2021 as part of the Institution’s major Revitalize Historic Core project. The Renaissance Revival style Arts and Industries Building, completed in 1881, was designed by Adolf Cluss and Paul Schulze. The Smithsonian Institution Building, also known as The Castle, is the home to Smithsonian’s administrative offices and information...

Vanderbilt Mansion Location: Hyde Park, New York Original Architect: McKim, Mead & WhiteYear Built: 1896-1899 Vanderbilt Mansion, designed by McKim, Mead, and White and built from 1896 to 1899, was used as a vacation home for Frederick Vanderbilt and is now a National Historic Site operated by the National Park Service (NPS). The grand Beaux-Arts estate has 54 rooms and is constructed of of Indiana Limestone. BCA was retained by the National Park Service to perform an on-site examination of the ceiling of the Dining Room. The ceiling was brought from Italy by Stanford White and installed...

177 Huntington Avenue Location: Boston, Massachusetts Year Built: 1972 Original Architect: I.M. Pei & Partners and Araldo Cossutta Associated Architects  The Christian Science Plaza was designed in the 1970’s by I. M. Pei & Associates. The Church added new concrete structures and landscaping to existing historic church buildings to create a unified complex. One of these buildings, 177 Huntington Avenue, or the Plaza's Administration Building was built in 1972. This Modernist building is constructed of concrete and is a listed Boston Landmark. BCA performed cleaning tests, including...

306 Dartmouth, Ames-Webster Mansion Location: Boston, MassachusettsYear Built: 1872Original Architect: Peabody and Stearns The Ames-Webster Mansion, built for Frederick Ames, a local industrial tycoon, is located on the corner of Dartmouth Street and Commonwealth Avenue in Boston. It was designed by the notable architectural firm of Peabody and Stearns and built in 1872 in the High Victorian style. In 1882, architects John H. Sturgis and Charles Brigham designed and added a majestic tower, porte cochere and conservatory. There are stained glass skylights designed by the famous John LaFarge on...

Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium Location: Washington, D.C.Year Built: 1934Original Architect: Arthur Brown, Jr. The Departmental Auditorium was constructed from 1932 to 1934 as the connecting wing between the new Interstate Commerce Commission and Department of Labor buildings. The complex of three buildings was San Francisco architect Arthur Brown, Jr.’s contribution to the government’s larger Federal Triangle development. In 1987, the Auditorium was renamed for Andrew W. Mellon, Treasury Secretary during the Federal Triangle project. Upon its completion, the Auditorium became the largest government-owned...

Baruch College Baruch College is one of the senior colleges in the City University of New York (CUNY) system. Founded in 1847 as the Free Academy, it was the first institution to offer free higher education to the public in the United States. BCA served as historic preservation consultant on a variety of projects over twenty years. Newman Library The Lexington Avenue Cable Car Company was transformed into the Newman Library by Baruch College in the early 1990s. BCA was responsible for the entire restoration of the brick and terra cotta façade of this Italian Renaissance-style building. Vertical...

Bas Relief Park Location: Provincetown, MassachusettsYear Built: 1920Original Architect: Cyrus E. Dallin The Bas Relief is titled, "Signing the Compact" and is the central feature of Bas Relief Park, located on Bradford Street in the center of Provincetown, MA. designed by Cyris E. Dallin.The park and the Bas Relief were constructed in 1920 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the Pilgrims’ landing. The granite structure is seventy feet long and twenty feet high in the center. It is a tripartite structure with classical detailing. The central portion is rectangular in shape, has...

Boston University Castle (Dahod Family Alumni Center) Location: Boston, MassachusettsYear Built: 1915Original Architect: Chapman and Frazer Built in 1915, The Boston University Castle was designed by architects Chapman and Frazer in the Tudor Revival style as a private residence in the Back Bay West Architectural Historic District. In 1939 it was donated to Boston University and recently became the Dahod Family Alumni Center. The large Tudor Revival style castle-like building is clad in sandstone and includes leaded glass windows and a slate roof. BCA surveyed the building and prepared drawings...

Brooklyn Public Library, Eastern Parkway Branch Location: Brooklyn, New York Year Built: 1914 Original Architect: Raymond Almirall  Designed by Raymond F. Almirall, the Eastern Parkway Library branch of the Brooklyn Public Library is a 1914 Beaux Arts building constructed as part of industrialist Andrew Carnegie’s gift of $5.2 million to New York City for the construction of a comprehensive branch library system in the five boroughs. The Library is located at the corner of Eastern Parkway and Schenectady Avenue in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Because of the library’s location on Eastern Parkway,...

Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building Location: Boston, Massachusetts Year Built: 1895 Original Architect: John Lyman Faxon  The Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building integrates three historic buildings into the new transportation center and city office complex. The Ferdinand Building, built in 1895 and designed by John Lyman Faxon, is a triangular, five story, Baroque Revival building, constructed of limestone, terra cotta, decorative multicolored brick, marble and granite. The Curtis Building, built in 1888, is a brick building with brownstone trim, while the Waterman Building, built in 1890,...