Building of the Week: 998 Fifth Avenue

1948 photograph of 998 Fifth Avenue, from the collection of the Office for Metropolitan History

998 Fifth Avenue, designed by McKim, Mead & White in 1909, is one of the most majestic ever built in New York, or even in the United States. The developer was James T. Lee, grandfather of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who went on to develop a connoisseur’s series of real estate projects, including the Hotel Shelton at 49th Street and Lexington Avenue in 1923 and the austere 740 Park Avenue in 1929.

At the beginning of his career, Lee grappled with the problem of sheltering the townhouse classes. In 1909, working with another developer, he bought the northeast corner of 81st Street and Fifth Avenue from August Belmont, who had contemplated building his own mansion there. Some tall “luxury” apartment houses had already gone up in New York, but they were generally gaudy affairs smacking of tenement design, erected by speculators. Lee’s architects, McKim, Mead & White, developed an Italian Renaissance, all-limestone exterior which, for its time, looked more like a bank or a private club.

At 998 Fifth Avenue, Lee had the vision to intelligently combine the sensible efficiencies of a multiple dwelling with the scale of a country house. These apartments included wine rooms, safes for jewelry and silver, elevators paneled in French walnut, non-tarnishing gold-plated hardware, nine coats of paint, refrigerators six feet wide and eight feet high, and seven bedrooms. In the typical apartment, the dining room was 21 by 25 feet, a central oval salon was 16 by 20, and the living room was 21 by 24; all were flanked by a gallery that was 14 by 36. There were six to nine servants’ rooms per apartment.

Finally, there was a building lavish enough for a move from a corner mansion to an apartment to be considered a lateral, rather than downward, transfer. The sentiment that something momentous had occurred was echoed by architectural magazines: “A building which promises to have a wide and beneficent effect on American urban domestic architecture” said The Architect in 1912, and “the most remarkable thing of its kind in America” said Architecture in the same year.

The building was converted to a cooperative in 1953 and designated a landmark in 1974. Its façade counts among its most interesting attributes a broad iron and glass marquee over the 81st Street entrance, originally built by the Harris H. Uris ironworks and restored in 2003 by Walter B. Melvin Architects. Late last year, Estée Lauder’s executive chairman, William Lauder, sold a co-op unit in 998 Fifth for $37.5 million, netting a $14 million profit from his 2017 purchase. 998 Fifth remains as an enduring symbol of discreet and intelligent luxury.

More About Us: The Office for Metropolitan History (MetroHistory) is pleased to offer its services to Brown Harris Stevens brokers working with pre-war buildings. Founded in 1975 by the late architectural historian and New York Times columnist Christopher Gray, MetroHistory has long been recognized as New York City’s premier specialist in building research and document recovery. For research inquiries, please reach out directly to Sam Hightower, Director, [email protected], (212) 799-0520.

Services Available

• Drawing Recovery: Locating original architectural, structural, and mechanical drawings.





• Historic Photographs: Access to a collection of 40,000 negatives and 18,000 photographs.





• Literature Review: Comprehensive review of architectural periodicals, historic newspapers, brochures, deeds, and other archival material.





• Building Reports: Synthesis of the literature review into a compelling story. Can be targeted for more specialized technical and legal needs.

When To Call Us

• Renovation Needs: When clients want to blow out the wall between the living and dining rooms, we will find the blueprints that actually tell them what they need to know: where the beams, columns, and risers are.





• Marketing Premier Listings: Add credibility and historic gravitas to your promotional material with original drawings, old photographs, and property history.





• Client Gifts: There is no more perfect gift for the proud new owner of a pre-war apartment than a historic photograph or drawing elegantly framed.





• Centennial Celebrations: For their upcoming centennials, boards of pre-war apartment buildings can engage our services to learn more about the history of their buildings and prepare for their next hundred years.

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