From the Archives: The Owls in Herald Square

Today our 34th Street archivist, Anne Kumer, tells us about the owls in Herald Square. This post also appears on NYC Circa.

James Gordon Bennett Jr.'s adoration of owls may have bordered on pathological, but in the best possible way. While serving as a Third Lieutenant for the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service (the pre-Coast Guard Coast Guard) during the Civil War, the son of New York Herald founder James Gordon Bennett Sr. claimed that a serendipitous owl guided him through rough seas to safety.

As a tribute to his spirit animal, he lined the Herald building with several bronze owls in 1894, and years later even had an owl shaped tomb designed to hold his remains. The Herald owls, along with the statue of Minerva and the bell ringers, were created by French sculptor Antonin Jean Carles. The two corner owls with their wings spread had eyes that lit up to the delight of evening passersby.

The Herald building in the early 1900s, looking north from 34th Street. Statuary from the Bennett monument in Herald Square is on the facade of the building along with Bennett's owls.

Today those two owls perch on either side of the Herald monument, and their eyes continue to light the way.

Back of the Herald Square monument, facing south. Photo: 34SP, Jacob Bielecki

Two more of Bennet's owls guard the entrance to Herald Square.

Entrance owl. Photo 34SP, Jacob Bielecki

The Herald building may have been Bennett's most well known tribute to the bird, but it wasn't his first. At some point in the mid 1800s Bennett bought a stone villa in Newport Rhode Island, originally built in 1833 by Rhode Island stonemason Alexander McGregor. The new homeowner enlisted the help of Newport architect Dudley Newton to add several embellishments to the property, including gateposts topped with owl statuary. It's hard to see in this picture, but these look to be a leaner species than the Herald owls, but no less fierce.

Bennett's stone villa and owl sentries in 1957, shortly before the building was demolished to make way for a shopping center. Photo: Preservation Society of Newport County

So solid was his devotion to the bird, he also had Stanford White design a 200-foot high tomb shaped like an owl that would serve as Bennett's mausoleum. Work was halted due to the untimely but not entirely surprising death of Stanford White in 1906. The design never came to be, but the Times reported that in 1918, shortly after Bennett's death, drawings of a model owl tomb were found on the desk of sculptor Andrew O'Conner, who had been commissioned by White to work on the initial designs.

That same year Frank Munsey, then owner of the New York Sun bought out the Herald, combined the two papers, and moved the offices to 42nd Street. The owls were removed from the facade of the Herald building. A few have since resurfaced: aside from the Herald Square owls mentioned above, the Brooklyn Museum has a couple on display, and there are a few above the entrance to NYU's Shimkin Hall.

From the Archives: The New York Herald Building, Then and Now

Today our 34th Street archivist, Anne Kumer, delves a little deeper into the history of the New York Herald building. This post also appears on NYC Circa.

The New York Herald building at West 35^th Street where Broadway meets Sixth Avenue, was a two-story building designed by Stanford White of architecture firm McKim, Mead & White. White was commissioned to build it for friend James Gordon Bennett Jr. to house the new Herald offices when the paper moved uptown from Park Row in 1894. The story of the Herald and its founders are here, here, and here.

Photo: MCNY

The Herald had offices in this building until Bennett Jr.’s death in 1918. Soon after, Frank Munsey bought the paper and merged it with the New York Sun to create the Herald-Sun. The new combo-paper’s offices were moved to West 42^nd Street. 

The north half of the building was demolished in 1921, leaving only the southern part, statues intact on the  building’s façade. 

Photo: MCNY

Eventually, in 1930, a new, 24-story office building was designed and built where the northern half used to be, by the architecture firm Clinton & Russell. The firm was founded in 1894, the same year the Herald building was completed (weird coincidence!) by Charles Clinton and William Hamilton Russell.

Photo: Berenice Abbott via the  NYPL and MCNY

In the 1930s the Sixth Avenue Group (a business improvement group of sorts) sponsored a contest to re-design and “beautify” the area following construction of a new underground subway line and station, and the razing of the Sixth Avenue elevated line. The low rise portion of the Herald building was completed in 1940. I’m pretty sure that "completed" meant that the building was stripped of its Stanford White-designed façade work and given the 1940s-1950s simple (sterile) treatment. The front windows are much larger in the new building, and the ground floor looks lower, but I think the building's original bones are still there. That same year, the James Gordon Bennett memorial was installed in Herald Square in the form of a 40 ft. tall monument, unveiled during a dedication ceremony on November 19, 1940. 

Postcard from the collection of Dan Pisark

Herald Square and the surrounding area went into a decline in the 1970s and 1980s, but were brought back to life with a late 1990s renovation by the 34th Street Partnership (ed. note: Fashion Herald is a blog managed by the Partnership). 

Additional Sources:

Kruger, Richard. The Paper: The Life and Death of the New York Herald Tribune

“Sixth Ave. Group to Beautify Parks,” NYT, March 24, 1939

“Frank A. Munsey Buys the Herald and the Telegram,” NYT, January 15, 1920

From the Archives: The James Gordon Bennetts' New York Herald, Part 1

As you run from store to store on 34th Street, did you ever ask yourself "Why Herald Square?" Today is the first of a 3-part series on the New York Herald, for which Herald Square was named, from our archivist Anne. This post also appears on NYC Circa, a blog about New York City and its history.

One of the fathers of modern journalism, James Gordon Bennett Sr., founded the New York Herald in 1835 in a small office on Wall Street. Bennett vowed that his new penny paper would have none of the political alliances and proselytizing found in other papers.

Cross-eyed, Bennett once wrote that his affliction came from watching the "winding ways of [President] Martin Van Buren." Photo: Library of Congress

Bennett had excellent intuition for what was missing in journalism of his time, and how to appeal to the general population. With an almost prophetic sense of the financial crisis to come in 1837, the Herald was the first general interest paper to pen a financial column. "Money Markets" debuted within a week of the paper's first issue in 1836 and was immensely popular. In it, Bennett exposed stock market fraud and speculated that the rise and fall of the stock market was not accidental.

Bennett also tapped into what have since become public obsessions -- crime, scandal, and celebrities. Lurid descriptions and relentless coverage of these are common today, but in the 1830s, murders and the like were scarcely reported, if at all. The murder of prostitute Ellen Jewett in 1836, and the Herald's subsequent front page coverage of the event and trial changed all of that.

One of many postmortem caricatures of Ms. Jewett. Photo: Library of Congress

The Herald was the first paper to take reporting to that special macabre place by printing detailed descriptions of the courtroom proceedings and crime scene. Bennett was also one of the first editors to publish interviews with key witnesses and others involved in the case, the first being a lengthy interview with Jewett's Madame Rosina Townsend. 

For those who couldn't afford theater or concert tickets, the newspaper turned the news into its own little episodic show -- kind of like one really long Law and Order episode. Each day readers could open the paper to a new spectacle of horrors. Because intimate knowledge of the case was dispelled daily via the paper, devoted readers could consider themselves an active part of the drama.

Bennett spared no expense on technology advances to increase the paper's reporting and production efficiency. During the Mexican-American War, he established a courier service that was faster than the post office in order to get reports from the front lines to the Herald offices in New York City. (It was soon shut down by the postal service.) Bennett secured a steady readership while covering the Civil War by publishing eyewitness accounts of soldiers on the front lines. To evade Secretary of War Edward M. Stanton's censorship ban on the press, Bennett printed war casualty lists. People bought editions of the paper every day in hopes of finding the names of lost loved ones. Like the Jewett trial case, this produced a regularly paying audience addicted to tragedy, though this time it was more personal.

Bennett's coverage of politics was meant to be impartial, and compared with other papers, it mostly was. The April 15, 1865 edition of the Herald shows a strange marriage of the grisly and the political with its Lincoln assassination coverage. Click here to see a large version of the image below. If you enlarge it, the copy theatrically describes Lincoln's murder scene and the ensuing investigation.

Image: Library of Congress

In 1866 Bennett Sr. passed his duties on to his son James Gordon Bennett Jr. who had long been the subject of tabloid-ish reporting in rival papers. More on him in part 2 next week.

Sorry for the lack of links, but most of this was culled from print sources, including these:
-Carlson, Oliver. The Man Who Made News: James Gordon Bennett
-Kluger, Richard. The Paper: The Life and Death of the New York Herald Tribune
-Pray, Isaac Clarke. Memoirs of James Gordon Bennett and His Times (google books)
-Sandburg, Carl. Storm Over the Land: A Profile of the Civil War.
-Seitz, Don C. The James Gordon Bennetts: Father and Son, Proprietors of The New York Herald.

Dancing in the Streets

Today Kati writes about our free summer classes available in 34th Street. 

In addition to working with area retailers, the 34th Street Partnership also works to beautify the area and give you more reasons to linger a little longer in the 34th Street district. We hang holiday decorations, plant seasonal flowers, and also offer free classes and activities in the public spaces.

This summer, we're pleased to welcome Dancesport back to Herald Square! They'll be offering free salsa and zumba classes on Broadway in the plaza adjacent to Herald Square on Tuesdays and Thursdays all summer long. Take this opportunity to learn new moves and get in shape after-work without straying too far from your office.

If two days a week isn't enough for you, DanceSport's studio is located just around the corner on 34th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues. They offer over 70 group dance classes each week, as well as private lessons, and wedding choreography.

Take a peak at highlights from last year's Zumba class in our video reel. These classes are sure to get you dancing in the streets.





DanceSport
22 West 34th Street

Herald Square's Trashgate

Where am I yesterday while H&M Herald Square's "Trashgate" (links to the story below) is gaining steam online? Ogling H&M Herald Square's new spring trends, of course. My timing is impeccable.

Lots of strong shoulders, adorable skirts, and cute pants.
















Get these before the scissors do! (insert bad joke drum roll here)
Ha, no, I'm pretty sure spring trend will be selling out fast at H&M this season. Check out the back of these high-waisted pants in the mirror.


















Did the fabulous visual people know, as they kindly helped me dig through piles to get my size, that the retail garbage was hitting the fan? I don't have any other facts about this specific case beyond what has been reported in The New York Times, but here's what I know and have just learned about this practice of disposing remainder, or left-over, clothing:

• Ages ago, while working at a Chanel boutique and begging staff to give up sample sale information, I learned that Chanel, at that time and in order to protect their image, did not have sample sales and did not distribute their clothes to any discount outlets. Instead, remainders were trucked to a very private New Jersey location and burned. I liked to fantasize that somewhere in Jersey a truck driver's wife was working some serious couture.
• A friend/ex-retail worker told me his company sent all their leftovers to corporate where they were destroyed. Why? The Times story today sheds some light on this practice when describing the New York Clothing Bank as a charitable organization that accepts retail leftovers and protects companies from "...people who might use the donations to get store credit or undercut sales."
• A fashion insider explained that some retailers damage and dump excess goods so they cannot be illegally resold by competitors or discounters without the manufacturer getting a cut. However, she said it seemed strange for H&M to practice this, as why not mark it down and get a profit, or donate the items and get a tax break?
• The same source said samples made overseas are slashed and damaged before being sent to the US, per our custom and trade laws. Samples are not made for sale, so in order for them to be taxed correctly they must have no resale value. In addition to slashing, some countries also have to write on the clothing in permanent ink. Local companies often give these samples to employees and most donate them to charity. Legally, companies cannot sell these samples, but if the damage can be repaired, some do. And sometimes the samples get tossed out with the garbage.
  

Certainly it's a company's prerogative to protect their image and sales. But I hope Trashgate inspires all retailers to rethink and revise their disposal policies in this time of great need and higher social and environmental consciousness. And hopefully, this little scandal, like all good scandals, will benefit non-profit groups like the New York Clothing Bank.

Finally, because it's what I do (and because in the Herald Square store I kept going back to the dressing room with armfuls of new spring items because it all looked so damn good on the floor), I'll be back next week to show you more spring trends from H&M Herald Square and H&M on 34th & 7th Avenue.



*Original story, follow-up coverage, Racked coverage (and I believe Racked must be credited with dubbing this story "Trashgate")

Gone Shooting

Video shooting, that is, down in Herald & Greeley Squares. In the meantime, gaze upon two favorite 34th & Herald photos from last year (early fall).

Full length fashion: unusual and pretty color combination; I love the pink anklets and the bow on her bag.

Three legs, left to right: no, no, yes. Revisiting this photo has reminded me of something scary I saw in my building lobby the other day: People, crocs must not be worn as commuter shoes with skirts! Crocs in public are bad enough, but crocs + skirts = so ugly it almost makes one miss running shoes with skirts.

Angels of Herald Square

It's no Costume Institute exhibit at the Met, but Angels have archives, too. On display at Victoria's Secret Herald Square flagship store:











Angel wings, runway costumes, and the Angel's star from the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Oh, my. Worth the trip alone is the get-up Tyra wore in her last appearance as a Victoria's Secret Angel (left). I have new-found appreciation for Ms. Banks' fierceness after seeing it up close. That's a lot of wing to work.

And is that an Angel airplane behind Heidi Klum? Don't you wish they'd done a reality show, like "Angels en Route: See Them Fly." Do they carry-on their wings? Drink from little airline bottles? Get the kosher meal? And do they fight for position as soon as the plane lands so they're the first one out? You know, important things I really want to know...

Victoria's Secret Herald Square, 1328 Broadway @ 34th

Blooming Herald Square

The bulbs are blooming and birds are singing, so take a shopping break, enjoy lunch and bask in the fragrant air. Can you believe this is midtown, at the Broadway bowtie? Spring has arrived in Herald Square.

St. Patrick's Day is Good For You

Drop by Herald Square today, from 11:30am-1:30pm, and sign the petitions supporting Proposition 3-17. What worthy cause is this Proposition 3-17? To convince the powers that be to make St. Patrick's Day an official holiday. But really it's just to get another work day off. If Congress approves, do you think this means people will be drinking on St. Paddy's Eve, or on the day itself? Hmm, my money's on both. Either way, if you're celebrating the glory of the Irish, I'm pretty sure you'll be drinking a Guinness (the sponsor of this petition push). Now don't get excited, there's no free stout at Herald Square today, but there will be a DJ and Carson Daly playing host.

How can this proposed holiday positively impact the world of fashion? Are you kidding? No longer will we have to go to work and be subjected to scary green clothing, shamrocks on sweatshirts and leprechaun pins. Instead we can go shopping. Peace, fellow Guinness drinkers, and see you at the Square.

Hydrate in Herald Square

Don't think because it's wintertime you don't need to replenish your body with essential fluids while running around looking for the perfect boot on sale in your size (see post tomorrow). After you find that $400 boot for $100, the last pair in your size you eagerly snatched from the horrified salesman (60 cal.), the one you tried on, pulled, zipped, and gazed lovingly at in the mirror (110 cal.), and the pair that gave you that final rush of adrenaline as you carried them to the counter, dug for your credit card, then walked joyously down the street with your victim in tow (50-150 cal.), please drop by Herald Square to rehydrate. Gatorade is promoting its new "G2," a low caloric electrolyte drink. Thus the free samples today and tomorrow in Herald Square. Here's Derek Jeter helping out Gatorade last night on 34th Street:

It's tragic that men who work out for a living continue to wear baggy jeans. But I still like this rear shot (left) as he completely physically dominates everyone. Click on the right for the classic Jeter burning gaze. Whoa, welcome to sports, fashion fans. And that G2? Thanks god we can now guzzle a low-cal Gatorade. It'll help fuel spring shopping frenzies and keep us confident in those little skirts and dresses.

*completely unscientific calculation of calories burned

Xmastime Beginnith

Last week I went jeans shopping with our manny blogger Xmastime and his protege Lil Xmas. Recap? Xmastime is our New Year's resolution story. We'll be stalking him till he loses 10 inches off his waist. For incentive we bought him a pair of jeans, a la traditional girl dieting tactics, for him to diet down into. Here are the boys in Herald Square, pre and post-shopping:

Sweet, yes? I wish I had a photo of Xmastime's face when a Cambridge Members salesclerk said his jeans are custom made in Europe. Cambridge Members is also where Xmastime discovered Lil Xmas's penchant for bespoke suiting. Yes, Cambridge Members not only has custom suits for gentlemen, but also for the little guys. Thus, the price of their Italian jeans ($169) was not surprising (well, not to me). But we were all a little dubious about the name of the jeans splayed on the rear pocket: SuperRifle. Next stop, Macy's Herald Square.

Here we found INC jeans (right, $59) on the second floor of the men's department. The cut is stylish but not too slim, and the size is a good compromise: 33 waist. That gives Xmastime a little breathing room while maintaining his noble goal (32). These INC jeans have a good medium blue wash with a slight fade in the front. And the back pockets? Nice and plain for our American guys. But something tells me we'll be back at Cambridge Members one of these days for Lil Xmas.

Cambridge Members, 1270 Broadway @ 33rd
Macy's Herald Square, 151 W. 34th between Broadway & 7th

Shorty

Macy's has a lot on sale in the store today, drop by Herald Square after work. I only made it through second floor coats and could have easily bought 4 or 5; I'll post those on Wednesday. None of my favorites were on sale. But while trying coats on I noticed this:

Sick of Bitten yet? Not me. I bought these (right) when I dragged Mazza to Steve and Barry's. I've had my eye on these for weeks, but wondered what the hell I was going to do with cropped jeans for winter. Naturally, I bought them anyway. And despite the chill in the air this morning, I had to wear them because they're new. Pulled on a tall boot and poof! a winter jean emerges. The perfect cut to wear with tall boots this winter. No bunched up baggy pant hanging on top, no stuffing pant into boot. And look how perfectly tight they are just below the knee. Love this. For $14.98 you'll be besotted.

Steve and Barry's, Manhattan Mall, Level 2, 6th Ave & 33rd St, 212-564-1959

Macy's Herald Square, 151 W. 34th between Broadway & 7th, 212-695-4400

Boys in Boots

Sometimes, to get good shoe karma, one must give good shoes. So let's think about all the boys in our lives: those who love shoes and those who could care less what's on their feet. The former will return your generosity with joy, and the latter? Well, you'll no longer have to make him leave his shoes in the hallway/outside/on the street. Either way you win.

Keep it simple and cheap and get thee to Daffy's. The men's department has some nice shoes. But walk in with attitude because you'll be elbow to elbow with some savvy male shoppers. And you thought the women were bad.

Because every guy has a little British hip nerd in him, visit soon (today) to get these Ben Sherman's (black boot $69.99, desert boot $39.99, loafer on left, $13.33):

Also spotted were Hushpuppies, Geox, Donald J Pliner, lots of Italians, and a sales rack with crazy discounts (see $13.33 loafer above). Ahh, just wait until all that good, affordable boot karma comes right back at you...

Daffy's Herald Square, 1311 Broadway & 34th Street, 212-736-4477

Harbingers of Boots

New York autumn is a big tease. Gorgeous winter coats, endless bulky knits and sleek cashmeres are everywhere and it’s enough to drive a girl crazy. Why? Because it’s 84 degrees and sunny. But those lovelies tempting you from the windows of your favorite shops as you bake in the sunshine are all harbingers of my favorite time of year: boot replenishing season. And after seeing the Abaete for Payless ad in W, I immediately headed for 34th Street to stock up on the “Linda,” a black patent charmer with Lucite heels. These boots are irresistible; trust me, I’m the girl who swore off Lucite in the 90’s.

Get there soon as everyone deserves a fair shot at the “Linda.” She’s a sure thing with the young beautifuls as this low-heeled, mid-calf boot is modern with a dash of “mod squad.” I've already worn her twice and received one compliment plus several admiring glances. And check out cool Linda's saucy riding boot companion, “Cabri,” the bold owner of an ingenious zipper feature described on the Payless website as the “distinctive zip-off upper shaft” (!). Go, copywriter, go.

But don't leave without trying on the Lela Rose collaboration with Payless for fall. If Abaete skews hip, the Lela Roses are all girl. Perfect footwear for your cinched-in waists and wide-leg pants of fall are her charming flats and wool-twill heels. What did I buy? Well, after brief hesitation (I've learned a lot since the Abaete fall 2006 "black bootie incident", during which foolish me passed up a cool little boot that haunts me to this day) I became the proud owner of an Edwardian ankle boot with decorative side buttons.

And quality control? No worries. If the Lela Rose’s are as well-made as the Abaete's, I'll get a lot of wear from them with low break-in time. I've bought from the past two Abaete collections and have logged many city miles with little to no discomfort. Brilliant for the price range ($25 - $70 this year).

Payless, 110 West 34th Street, between 6th and 7th, 212-947-0306
Turnmill boot by Lela Rose: $40
Addle Hill flat by Lela Rose: $25 (I'd buy it for the name alone)
Linda by Abaete: was $48, now $43.99
Cabri by Abaete: was $70, now $57.99