Down Town Association

The first general meeting of the Association was held on February 14, 1860, and a charter was granted by an act of the legislature of the State of New York on April 17, 1860.

The clubhouse entry on Pine Street gives onto a marble accented lobby with a mosaic tiled floor and fireplace.

A cast iron staircase, unique among New York clubs, rises four floors from the rear of the lobby.

A large bar and lounging room, paneled in white oak, is reached a few steps down past the staircase.

Meals in these rooms were delivered from service pantries and through an extensive system of dumbwaiters from the kitchens which occupied fully half the fifth floor.

As the demand for lunch service only transformed into today's full-service, full-day schedule, the kitchen was moved and several of the dining rooms were converted to other uses, principally meetings and banquets and also a gym.