20 Exchange Place

Manhattan, United States

Exterior only

Visible from the street; the inside is private.

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Completed in 1931, 20 Exchange Place stands in Lower Manhattan's Financial District as a 226-meter Art Deco skyscraper designed by Cross & Cross for the newly merged City Bank–Farmers Trust Company, a predecessor of Citigroup. Originally planned as the world's tallest building, the project was scaled back during the Great Depression; upon completion, it instead became the world's tallest stone-clad building, rising fifty-seven stories. The structure combines a steel superstructure with a granite and limestone facade, its lower section filling an irregular city block with piers featuring figural sculptures by British sculptor David Evans depicting the "giants of finance," while a round-arched entrance on Exchange Place displays granite medallions representing the company's international offices. The upper stories form a square tower with chamfered corners, offset from the broader base. Following the company's departure in 1956, the building was converted from offices to residential lofts during the 1990s. It was designated a New York City Landmark in 1996 and is a contributing property to the Wall Street Historic District.

Architect

Cross & Cross

Movement

Art Deco architecture

Built: 1931
Type: skyscraper
Heritage: New York City Landmark, National Register of Historic Places contributing property
Height: 226 m
Place: Manhattan, United States

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Location

40.70556, -74.00972