American Furniture, Folk & Decorative Arts

The New York Architectural Terra-Cotta Works was established in 1886 as a source for decorative elements on building facades. Carnegie Hall is just one New York landmark that sports the company's products. The factory, located on Vernon Boulevard just below the Queensboro Bridge in Long Island City, Queens, thrived until its closure in 1928-1929. The only structure from the Terra-Cotta Works complex which survives is the office, designed by Francis H. Kimball and built in 1892. The building, a mixture of architectural styles, is bedecked in terracotta plaques, moldings, chimneypieces, and other fixtures, meant as a overt advertisement in itself. Changing ownership over the years, the building was designated a historic landmark in 1982. Still standing, it remains vacant today. (see Gray, Christopher, "Cityscape: The New York Architectural Terra-Cotta Works; A Jewel in the Shadow of the Queensboro Bridge", The New York Times , March 29, 1987).