{"nrhp_refnum":"09000258","name":"Park and Tilford Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"310 Lenox Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"New York","county":"Manhattan","state":"NY","lat":40.810103182000034,"lon":-73.94435134099996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2009-05-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story Classical Revival commercial building at 310 Lenox Avenue, at the southeast corner of West 126th Street in Central Harlem, Manhattan. It was built in 1908 as a Park & Tilford grocery store with offices above, designed by architect B. Hustace Simonson.","why_significant":"The building is significant under Criterion A in the area of Commerce. It was the first and only building owned and constructed by the Park & Tilford grocery chain, and it illustrates the shift from small independent grocers toward chain operations. The Harlem branch closed in 1919, reflecting Prohibition and neighborhood change.","narrative":"Rising three stories at the corner of Lenox Avenue and West 126th Street in Central Harlem, this Classical Revival building was completed in 1908 for the Park & Tilford grocery chain. Architect B. Hustace Simonson clad it in beige brick with marble, limestone and terra cotta ornament, including ionic pilasters, a dentiled cornice and elaborate window surrounds. Park & Tilford, a New York grocery business operating from 1840 to 1923, usually leased its stores. This was the only building it ever built and owned, a move meant to earn rent from the upper floors. The Harlem branch served Harlem and the Bronx but closed in 1919, a result of Prohibition and a changing neighborhood. Later occupants included Masonic lodges, a bakery and the United Mutual Life Insurance Company, a Black-led firm founded in 1942. The building recently underwent a tax-credit rehabilitation and remains in office and retail use. It is recognized for its role in the history of commerce and the grocery trade.","period_of_significance":"1908-1919","architect_builder":"Simonson, B. Hustan","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals/Classical Revival","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"In good condition and retains integrity; recently rehabilitated using federal historic tax credits. Ground floor has retail spaces and upper floors hold offices.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.351207-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/09000258.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000258/7e3ad4ee0b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/09000258/7e3ad4ee0b-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Park_n_Tilford_310_Lennox_NYC.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Park_n_Tilford_310_Lennox_NYC.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75319813","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_and_Tilford_Building_(Lenox_Avenue)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7138155"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/manhattan/park-and-tilford-building-09000258/"}