Astral Apartments

The Astral Apartments is an apartment building located at 184 Franklin Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York City. The Astral was built in 1885–1886 as affordable housing for employees of Charles Pratt's Astral Oil Works. It is a block-long brick and terra cotta building in the Queen Anne style.[2] It features a central projecting section with a deep, three-story-high round arch recess.[3] The roof features inward-looking decorative gargoyles. Original amenities of the building included a settlement house, library, and kindergarten.[4]

The Astral Apartments
Astral Apartments, August 2008
Location184 Franklin St., New York, New York
Coordinates40°43′54″N 73°57′28″W
Arealess than one acre
Built1885
ArchitectLamb & Rich
NRHP reference No.82001178 [1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPOctober 29, 1982
Designated NYCLJune 28, 1983

Originally, a branch of the Pratt Institute Free Library operated from the ground floor of the Astral.[5]

The building was designed to echo red-brick apartments built for workers by George Peabody in London.[2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982[1] and designated a New York City landmark in 1983.

The building is the fictional setting for Kate Christensen's 2011 novel The Astral: A Novel.

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. "New York Architecture: The Astral Apartments". nyc-architecture.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-07-01.
  3. James T. Dillon and Anne B. Covell (July 1981). "National Register of Historic Places Registration:Astral Apartments". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Archived from the original on 2012-10-19. Retrieved 2011-02-20. See also: "Accompanying four photos".
  4. Jackson, Kenneth (2010). The Encyclopedia of New York City. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 73–74. ISBN 978-0-300-11465-2.
  5. Ostrander, Stephen M. (1894). A History of the City of Brooklyn and Kings County, Volume II. Brooklyn, NY: Subscription.
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