{"nrhp_refnum":"07000629","name":"Austin, Nichols and Company Warehouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"184 Kent Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Brooklyn","county":"Brooklyn","state":"NY","lat":40.71870742900006,"lon":-73.96459804499995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2007-06-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Industry","Engineering"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A six-story reinforced concrete warehouse, factory and office building at 184 Kent Avenue on the Brooklyn waterfront along the East River, built in 1914-1915 for Austin, Nichols & Company and designed by Cass Gilbert.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is nationally significant in architecture and engineering for its pioneering use of reinforced concrete on an unprecedented industrial scale. Cass Gilbert's simple, expressive design contrasts with his usual decorated work. It was also one of the largest and most progressively planned food distribution operations in the Port of New York during the World War I era.","narrative":"Occupying an entire waterfront block at 184 Kent Avenue in Brooklyn, this six-story warehouse was built in 1914-1915 for Austin, Nichols & Company, a wholesale grocery firm that wanted to consolidate operations scattered across nine Manhattan buildings. Architect Cass Gilbert, engineer Gunvald Aus and Turner Construction Company built it of steel-reinforced, poured-in-place concrete, chosen for its strength and fireproof qualities. The facade relies on plain lines and rhythmic groupings of windows rather than applied ornament, which set it apart from Gilbert's more decorative commissions. Inside were conveyors, chutes and pneumatic tubes, and a rail system able to hold 60 railcars delivered directly to the ground floor. Food was processed and packaged there, along with sundries such as soap and cigars. It is regarded as a landmark of early large-scale concrete construction and a major distribution center in the Port of New York. Later alterations converted some floors to apartments, though the original concrete structure remains intact.","period_of_significance":"1914-1939","architect_builder":"Gilbert, Cass (architect); Aus, Gunvald (structural engineer); Turner Construction Co. (contractor)","architectural_style":"Late 19th & Early 20th Century American Movements / No style","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Current function listed as vacant/not in use; upper floors partly converted to apartments, with a fourth-floor conversion never completed and some office use on the fifth floor.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:54.011581-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/07000629.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07000629/186fbb807a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07000629/186fbb807a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"Jim.henderson","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Austin,_Nichols_and_Co_Warehouse_from_Corlears_Hook_jeh.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jim.henderson</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Austin,_Nichols_and_Co_Warehouse_from_Corlears_Hook_jeh.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75318313","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin,_Nichols_and_Company_Warehouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4822930"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/brooklyn/austin-nichols-and-company-warehouse-07000629/"}