Civic Club (New York Estonia House)

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Now home to the New York Estonian House, this building was constructed in 1898 and hoe to the Civic Club. The building and organization was the work of Frederick Norton Goddard, a reformer whose wealth came from his family's business of providing supplies for tailors. Though he inherited a sizable fortune, Goddard abandoned the life of wealth as a young man, choosing instead to live and work with the city's poor. Goddard's organization was dedicated to improving the living conditions of working-class New Yorkers between 23rd and 42nd Streets. During his life, Goddard took on Tammany Hall and organized gambling, among other powerful interests. The building was eventually purchased by the New York Estonian Educational Society, an organization established in 1929 to support Estonian culture and provide a space for New Yorkers who are from Estonia to gather. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Images

The Civic Club (now Estonia House) with its distinctive green mansard roof

Frederick Norton Goddard

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Frederick Norton Goddard and his brother, Warren, were heirs and co-partners in J.W.Goddard & Sons, one of the most prosperous dry goods businesses in the country. When the elder Goddard died, his sons inherited a fortune worth roughly $340 million in today's money. Remarkably, soon after inheriting his fortune, Goddard gave up his mansion and moved into a tenement to "escape a life which had become irksome."

Goddard's move was total; he didn't just observe New York's working class--he lived and worked as they did. His move put him in contact with a group of blue-collar workers who believed that they could improve their own lives by improving the conditions of others. The Civic Club, as it came to be known, was largely shaped by Goddard. The organization provided personal services and monetary aid to working-class residents between 23rd and 42nd Streets.

Goddard also convinced other wealthy New Yorkers to contribute the Civic Club's activities. The organization worked to improve unsanitary conditions in the city, dangerous sidewalks and unsafe tenements, and to eradicate gambling, particularly games that took advantage of the working-class. Goddard had a reputation for being vehemently opposed to gambling. The Civic Club also sponsored recreational and social events for residents of the district, including a ferry boat excursion.

The building was completed in 1898 and was paid for in full by Goddard. The elegant design of the three-story building mimicked the upscale residences that Goddard renounced earlier in his life, but the activities occurring within these walls were quite different as they were focused on helping the poor. The same year, he married Alice Winthrop and moved from his tenement to a more conventional residence. Goddard died in 1905 at the age of 44 and the Civic Club ceased functioning shortly afterward.

The Civic Club building remained the property of Alice Goddard until her death in 1946. Her estate sold the property to the New York Estonian Educational Society, which continues to own the building and use it for the organization's headquarters known as Estonia House. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources

Miller , Tom . Unselfish Wealth--the 1899 Civic Club--243 East 34th Street , Daytonian in Manhattan . September 20th 2010. Accessed July 26th 2020. http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2010/09/unselfish-wealth-1899-civic-club-243.html.

Postings: Estonian House; Beaux Arts Restoration , New York Times . May 17th 1992. Accessed July 26th 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/17/realestate/postings-estonian-house-beaux-arts-restoration.html.

Miller , Tom . The Lost Frederick Goddard House--273 Lexington Avenue , Daytonian . April 8th 2019. Accessed July 26th 2020. http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-lost-frederick-n-goddard-house-273.html.