{"nrhp_refnum":"03001515","name":"General Electric Building","other_names":["Radio Corporation of America (RCA-Victor) Building","Tower 570"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"570 Lexington Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"New York","county":"Manhattan","state":"NY","lat":40.757280957000035,"lon":-73.97667601499995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2004-01-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A fifty-story Art Deco office tower at 570 Lexington Avenue in midtown Manhattan, designed by Cross & Cross and built between 1929 and 1931. It was commissioned by the Radio Corporation of America and later acquired by General Electric.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is significant under Criterion C for its architectural merit as a major example of Art Deco design applied to the tall building. Its massing, brick and terra cotta detailing, and client-specific electrical ornament are described as the culmination of Cross & Cross's work on tall office buildings. It also shows early contextual design in its harmony with the adjacent St. Bartholomew's Church.","narrative":"Rising fifty stories at 570 Lexington Avenue in midtown Manhattan, this office tower was built between 1929 and 1931 to a design by the firm Cross & Cross. The Radio Corporation of America was the original client, and General Electric acquired the building shortly before completion. Its ornament of electric bolts, radiating waves and stylized \"electric spirits\" was meant to give visible form to wireless communication, and it suited General Electric equally well. The facades combine multicolored brick, glazed terra cotta with aluminized highlights, and red marble at street level. Setbacks step up to a slender tower and a crown of tracery, finials and four monumental figures. The brick was chosen to harmonize with neighboring St. Bartholomew's Church, an early example of contextual urban design. The building is judged significant for its architecture, as a leading Art Deco skyscraper and the high point of the firm's tall-building work. Much original character survives, including a restored lobby.","period_of_significance":"1929-1931","architect_builder":"Cross, John Walter; Cross, Eliot (Cross & Cross)","architectural_style":"Modern Movement/Art Deco","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Described as in excellent condition with a high degree of historic integrity; the lobby was restored in 1995, while storefronts and windows were replaced and the upper office floors have been much altered.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:54.003026-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/03001515.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03001515/b07dcf79c6-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/03001515/b07dcf79c6-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Fletcher6","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:General_Electric_Building_570_Lexington.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Fletcher6</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:General_Electric_Building_570_Lexington.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75319538","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric_Building","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q244391"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/manhattan/general-electric-building-03001515/"}