{"nrhp_refnum":"92001449","name":"Leis Block","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"3--5 Bloomingdale Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Saranac Lake","county":"Franklin County","state":"NY","lat":44.328925069000036,"lon":-74.13269887199993,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1992-11-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Health/Medicine","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story, four-bay brick-fronted commercial and residential building at 3-5 Bloomingdale Avenue in Saranac Lake (town of Harrietstown), Franklin County, New York, constructed in 1902 and expanded in 1913-14.","why_significant":"It is argued to be an intact example of a commercial building adapted specifically for tuberculosis curing, with sleeping porches and sitting-out balconies built into upper-floor apartments. Its storefronts, including a piano and music store and a pharmacy, also drew business from the curing industry. It retains a high degree of integrity of design, materials, setting and association.","narrative":"Located a short distance from downtown Saranac Lake, this three-story brick-fronted building on Bloomingdale Avenue was completed in 1902 as a wood frame structure with ground-floor storefronts and rooms above. Between 1910 and 1914, its upper floors were converted into apartments for tuberculosis patients, with central inset sleeping porches, doorways wide enough for a bed or cure chair, and a brick addition that brought the facade flush with the sidewalk. Henry Leis, who came to Saranac Lake in 1896 to cure his own tuberculosis, ran a piano and music store here, and a pharmacy occupied the other storefront. Cast iron pilasters from the George L. Mesker Iron Works frame the street-level openings, and classical touches include brick quoins and a bracketed cornice. The building was recognized as an intact example of a commercial structure adapted for the cure industry, valued for its preserved porches and detailing. Patients in such downtown apartments could watch street life from their beds.","period_of_significance":"1910-c.1941","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late 19th & 20th Century Revivals: Classical Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Contains ten apartments and two commercial storefronts, only one of which is occupied; current uses include multiple dwelling and barbershop.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:45.0673-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/92001449.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001449/0062ed9495-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/92001449/0062ed9495-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Mwanner","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leis_Block,_Saranac_Lake,_NY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Mwanner</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:Leis_Block,_Saranac_Lake,_NY.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"93001451","name":"New York Central Railroad Adirondack Division Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/new-york/new-york-central-railroad-adirondack-division-historic-district-93001451/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75313064","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leis_Block","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6520220"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/franklin-county/leis-block-92001449/"}