Academy’s Past – Right Up There on Broadway

The New York Academy of Sciences found its current home with a move to 115 Broadway in May 2023. The building has its own unique history dating back more than a century.

Published March 23, 2026

By Nick Fetty

The United States Realty Building | 115 Broadway | 2023-Present

The site of The New York Academy of Sciences’ current home at 115 Broadway has an intriguing history dating to the American Revolution.

Construction on the U.S. Realty Building (115 Broadway) was finished in 1907, two years after completion of the nearly identical Trinity Building (111 Broadway) directly to the south. The 21-story, steel-framed, Indiana limestone, Gothic-revival buildings were considered early examples of New York City skyscrapers. The two buildings were designed to complement the aesthetic of Trinity Church, immediately to the south.

Some accounts, such as from The New York Times’ Christopher Gray, dubbed the two buildings as the original “twin towers.” These buildings, which graced the city skyline during an era when the tallest structures were concentrated in Lower Manhattan, were designated New York City landmarks in 1988.

The two structures are nearly identical in design, with the exception of a five-story cupola atop the Trinity Building. Combined, the two buildings encompassed more than half a million square feet “with [in 1907] an average annual rental of $3 a per [sic] square foot for Trinity and $2.75 a square foot for the U. S. Realty Building”. The lack of the view of the Trinity Church cemetery (three blocks south) was cited as the reason for the lower rental costs, contrary to the notion that cemetery views lower real estate prices.

“The Father of the Skyscraper”

Both buildings were designed by Francis Kimball, the famous New York architect with projects such as the still standing Empire Building, 71 Broadway, (not to be confused with the Empire State Building), and the now-defunct Casino Theatre, 1404 Broadway and West 39^th Street, to his name. An American by birth, Kimball was inspired by Gothic revival architecture while visiting London in the 1870s. He was dubbed “The Father of the Skyscraper” by The New York Times in 1917, two years prior to his death. Many of Kimball’s skyscrapers utilized a then-new engineering development known as “caissons,” which are retaining structures used when building bridges and the base of large buildings.

The two buildings include several impressive architectural features such as limestone gargoyles and brass dragons perched around the exteriors as well as double height basket-arched windows at the base of each. Each building has an entryway adorned with Sienna Marble and white statuary marble imported from Italy. The entryway’s high, arched ceilings and stained glass interior windows give the feel of a “European house of worship” while gilded grotesques – some smiling, some frowning – peer down on building tenants and guests as they wait for the elevator.

The History of the Site

The U.S. Realty Building is located approximately six blocks south of the Academy’s first home near Barclay and Broadway during the 19^th century. At this time (1817), the City Hotel stood approximately where the U.S. Realty Building stands today. It was among the grandest hotels in the city during this era with more than “one hundred large and small parlours and lodging-rooms” as well as a concert/banquet hall.

Prior to City Hotel, the site was home to a tavern that served as a meeting spot for the Sons of Liberty in 1765 as they planned a resistance to the British Stamp Act. It was also the location for George Washington’s 1789 inaugural ball. Fast-forward two centuries, and the building makes an appearance in the music video for Jay-Z and Alicia Keys’s 2009 anthem “Empire State of Mind.”

The Academy moved into its new facility in May 2023. An Open House reception was hosted on Sept. 14, at which 200 scientists and science enthusiasts had the opportunity to tour the space. The Academy’s new home hosts dozens of Academy events (hybrid and in-person) throughout the year and is available for rent by the public.

“My hope is that we become not only the virtual go-to space but we actually become the physical go-to space where people think ‘this is the place where I can hang out, I can interact with really interesting, smart people, I can engage in conversations that reflect the Academy’s fundamental purpose,’” Academy President and CEO Nick Dirks said during the 2023 open house.

This is the final piece in an eleven-part series exploring the Academy’s past homes. Read:

• Where It All Began (Part 1)
• A Budding Institution (Part 2)
• The Need for More Space (Part 3)
• A Home to Ourselves (Part 4)
• A Generous Gift and a New Home (Part 5)
• Fire Leads to Academy Setback (Part 6)
• A New Name for a New Era (Part 7)
• An Era of “Unprecedented Prosperity” (Part 8)
• Moving on Up(town) (Part 9)
• A Return Downtown (Part 10)