Eberhard Faber Pencil Company building

37 Greenpoint Avenue | Greenpoint | built 1931

Open on the map3 entries

Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.

1. 1881

   The Valentine family builds a four-story brick building at Greenpoint Avenue and West Street

   Around 1881 the Valentine family, owners and developers of many nearby parcels, built this four-story neo-Grec brick building at the corner of Greenpoint Avenue and West Street. Building plans filed with the city called it a store and tenement, but it seems to have been finished, or soon converted, as a factory with offices. Its first known occupant was the Faience Manufacturing Company, a pottery maker that expanded here from the neighboring 98 West Street.

   “…built c.1881 by members of the Valentine family, who owned and developed many parcels of land in the area…”

   Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

2. 1889

   By the end of the 1880s Eberhard Faber has taken over the building for its offices

   By the end of the 1880s the Eberhard Faber pencil company had moved into the building, using it for offices and as its mailing address until it left Brooklyn in the 1950s. It appears Faber soon replaced the window lintels with incised brownstone ones showing the company's star trademark. Apart from 1920s fire escapes and changes to the ground story, the building was largely unchanged from the late 19th century.

   “…by the end of the decade, the building has been taken over by Faber for use as its offices and mailing address…”

   Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

3. 2007

   October 30

   The Landmarks Commission votes to protect the Eberhard Faber Pencil Company Historic District

   On October 30, 2007, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted unanimously to designate the Eberhard Faber Pencil Company Historic District, which includes the pencil factory at 37 Greenpoint Avenue. Brownstoner counted five buildings in the group. One commissioner remarked that the neighborhood was in the grip of development fever, and of fires, so protection should come quickly. Two buildings that developer Isaac Katan had leveled earlier that year were left out.

   Source: brownstoner.com

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All 63 buildings with stories in Greenpoint