New York State Department of Education Building
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New York State Department of Education Building
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West profile and south (front) elevation, 2012
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| Location | 89 Washington Avenue (between Hawk and Swan Streets) Albany, New York 12234 |
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| Coordinates | 42°39′14″N 73°45′29″W / 42.65389°N 73.75806°WCoordinates: 42°39′14″N 73°45′29″W / 42.65389°N 73.75806°W |
| Built | 1908-11 |
| Architect | Henry Hornbostel |
| Architectural style | Beaux-Arts |
| Part of | Lafayette Park Historic District |
| NRHP Reference # | 71000521 |
| Added to NRHP | March 18, 1971 |
The New York State Education Department Building (commonly known as the State Education Building) is a state office building in Albany, New York. It houses offices of the New York State Education Department (NYSED) and was formerly home to the New York State Museum and New York State Library. Designed by Henry Hornbostel and opened in 1912, the building is known for its expansive colonnade.
The State Education Building was designed by Henry Hornbostel and built between 1908 and 1911. It was the "first major building constructed in the United States solely as a headquarters for the administration of education."
Dr. Andrew Sloan Draper was the first Commissioner of Education of the State of New York and wanted a separate Education Building to provide more space for the growing agency. In 1906, after two years of negotiations with the New York Legislature, Draper secured a site near the New York State Capitol building. However, William Croswell Doane, the first Episcopal Bishop in Albany, was building the Cathedral of All Saints on South Swan Street, on the very block that Commissioner Draper viewed as his.
When Doane was out of Albany, Draper used his political influence to snatch up surrounding property and forever obscured the view of Doane’s new building from Washington Avenue and from the skyline as seen from the Hudson River. The Education Building cost approximately $4 million. It was finished on January 1, 1911 but was not dedicated until November 1912 with the state museum and library moving into fireproof wings in the building. In March 1911 a fire in the Capitol destroyed some of the state library collection before it was moved, over 450,000 books and 270,000 manuscripts and journals were lost in this disaster.
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