Kings County Savings Bank
135 Broadway | also 137 Broadway | Williamsburg | built 1868
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The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.
Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.
- 1868
King & Wilcox complete a French Second Empire bank with a mansard roof at 135 Broadway
The Landmarks Commission describes the Kings County Savings Bank as a four-story building of 1868 by the architects King & Wilcox, with a mansard roof. Its entrance is dominated by a porch with an elaborately carved pediment, and a cast-iron balustrade runs along the property line. Corner quoins add to the building's feeling of solidity and dignity.
- 1868
The bank keeps its banking floor on the first story, ceremonial rooms above and a society ballroom on top
Originally, the bank's business was confined to the first floor. The second floor held ceremonial rooms, and the third was a large ballroom for society functions. Brownstoner's Suzanne Spellen noted that much of the interior still looked as it did originally, and that the building stood out among newer financial buildings as a rare survivor of Williamsburg's earlier merchant days.
Source: brownstoner.com
- 1966
The Landmarks Commission designates the bank as one of the city's first landmarks
On March 15, 1966, the Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Kings County Savings Bank, after hearings at which two witnesses spoke in favor and the bank's attorneys said it had no objection. The commission called it an outstanding example of French Second Empire architecture and a business building of imposing grandeur that had served Williamsburg's banking needs for almost one hundred years. It was number 7 on the commission's list.
- 1996
Artist Yuko Nii founds the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center in the former bank
Since 1996 the building has been run by the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center, a not-for-profit organization that artist Yuko Nii founded that October. It stages art exhibitions, performances, lectures and educational programs, and keeps historical art and artifacts on display. The building had been occupied by banks without a break until the 1990s.
Source: Wikipedia
- 1996
The art center's first restoration projects are the storm-damaged clock tower and the roof
When the Williamsburg Art and Historical Society took over the building in 1996, one of its first repair jobs was the roof and clock tower. A storm had damaged the tower and it had been painted over. The group had the tower repaired, and later the rest of the roof too, and stripped off years of paint and grime to uncover colored slate tiles. A round window on the front once held a clock, which the owners in 2011 hoped to restore.
Source: brownstoner.com
- 2008
The art center celebrates a $500,000 city grant, and a borough historian credits Yuko Nii
On July 31, 2008, the Brooklyn Eagle published an article by John B. Manbeck, the borough historian from 1993 to 2002, on the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center. He credited its director, Yuko Nii, with much of the neighborhood's progress through its attraction to artists. The center, he wrote, had celebrated a $500,000 capital funding grant from the city.
“…celebrated an infusion of a $500,000 capital funding grant from the city…”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2009
Ownership of the building passes to the Yuko Nii Foundation
In 2009 the Yuko Nii Foundation took ownership of the 1860s bank building at Broadway and Bedford Avenue. The art center had run the building since 1996. Its founder was the artist Yuko Nii.
“In 2009 ownership of the building was transferred to the Yuko Nii Foundation.”
Source: Wikipedia
Further reading
- Kings County Savings BankWikipedia
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