Jamaica Savings Bank
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Jamaica Savings Bank
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The old Jamaica Savings Bank Building as seen from the northeast corner of Jamaica Avenue and 161st Street.
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| Location | 161-02 Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica, New York |
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| Coordinates | 40°42′14″N 73°47′53″W / 40.70389°N 73.79806°WCoordinates: 40°42′14″N 73°47′53″W / 40.70389°N 73.79806°W |
| Built | 1897 |
| Architect | William C. Hough; Edgar Devell ,Jr. |
| Architectural style | Beaux Arts |
| NRHP reference # | 83001774 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | May 19, 1983 |
| Designated NYCL | February 12, 2008 |
The Jamaica Savings Bank building, located in the Jamaica section of the borough of Queens in New York City, was built between 1897 and 1898 in the Beaux-Arts style. It is a slender four story brick building with a limestone facade. It features a deeply rusticated ground floor with windows protected by elegant metal grilles. The facade is framed by double-story pilasters and covered with elaborate carved brackets, swags and other elements.
The original Jamaica Savings Bank was incorporated on April 20, 1866 by 19 local business leaders, including John Alsop King, governor of New York (1857-1858); Morris Fosdick, and Colonel Aaron A. Degrauw, who met in the Jamaica Town Hall in an effort to "pool their local resources for the purpose of protecting their savings and financing future development" of the Jamaica area. The bank officially opened to the public on July 14, 1866 at 161-02 Jamaica Avenue - a year after the civil war - and operated out of the Queens County Clerk's office with 15 customers depositing a total of $2,675.00. To supplement the ever-expanding community of Jamaica, the bank trustees hired the architectural firm of Hough and Deuell to build the new Beaux-Arts style bank headquarters that became flagship building of the Jamaica Savings Bank in 1898. "This building conveyed the kind of monumentality that is often associated with private social clubs and civic institutions."
With the advent of the railroad and other transportation systems, Jamaica quickly developed into the economical and commercial hub of Queens County throughout the early-twentieth century. To fulfill the economic needs of Jamaica's rapidly expanding population, the President of the Jamaica Savings Bank, George S. Downing, felt that the creation of more bank branches was necessary. In December 1934, the Queensboro Savings Bank (located at 90-55 Sutphin Boulevard) was merged with the Jamaica Savings Bank. As a result, the Queensboro Savings Bank was henceforth known as the Jamaica Savings Bank; the bank with the Jamaica Avenue address became the Main Office of the company and the Sutphin Boulevard address served as the Branch Office. The employees of the Queensboro Savings Bank all retained their positions but were then considered employees of the Jamaica Savings Bank.
In 1934, Jamaica Savings Bank had a total of 50,614 accountants and was listed as fifty-seventh among the 100 largest savings banks in the United States. The officers of the Jamaica Savings Bank at that time were George S. Downing, president; Supreme Court Justice Leander B. Faber, Robert W. Higbie and George K. Meynen, vice-presidents; Charles R. Doughty, treasurer; G. Warren Smith, secretary, and Richard W. Reeves, assistant secretary.
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