17 & 21 Elk St (1845)

Our next stop brings us to two gothic buildings nestled next to each other, close by to Academy Park; 17 and 21 Elk Street. These buildings were constructed circa 1845, and are the work of builders, Irish-born David Orr and Andrew Cunningham. As you can see, both exteriors are in excellent condition. The buildings are part of the Lafayette Park Historic District, which covers 36 acres of downtown Albany and encompasses several iconic buildings including New York State Capitol, Albany City Hall, New York State Education Department Building, and the Court of Appeals (as well as All Saints Cathedral which is the next stop on our tour!) They are part of a pleasant streetscape of 19th Century rowhouses.

17 and 21 Elk Street, constructed circa 1845 are the work of builders David Orr and Andrew Cunningham. Orr began working in the Gothic style after taking inspiration from the work of architect Alexander Jackson Davis. Orr then constructed Kenwood, the country estate of stovemaker Joel Rathbone, south of Albany near the Normanskill. Davis drew the illustrations for A.J. Downing's influential book County Residences, which sparked the picturesque architecture movement and popularized the Gothic Revival and Italianate styles, and would influence Orr’s work here in Albany. Orr and Cunningham also worked on 6-10 Madison Place - another stop on our tour. While 21 is the better preserved of the two, they are both high style structures and are terrific examples of the Gothic Revival style applied to urban residences.

The homes have undergone significant alterations. Both buildings would have originally been faced with scored stucco that mimicked cut stone, and No. 17 has lost its original Gothic doorway. 21 was constructed for state senator John A. Dix, who was elected to the U.S senate in 1845 and likely never resided in the home. Dix later rented the home to Hamilton Fish, who resided in the home during his tenure as Governor from 1849 to 1851. Sometime during Dix’s term as governor, he sold the house to Gen. John Rathbone, who would later sell 21 to Stephen van Rensselaer in the 1870s. In 1973, the house was owned by Ted Yund, who turned the lower portion into a restaurant which later became the 21 Elk Street Cafe.

17 was constructed as speculative housing and would later come under the ownership of the well-known Pruyn family of Albany from 1851 to 1910. At the time this house was completed in 1846, it was sold for $17,000. John van Shaick Lansing Pruyn, the first Pruyn family member to own the house, was an early advocate of rail transportation. During the second half of the nineteenth century, the Pruyn family became increasingly involved in politics. John served in the US Congress from 1863 to 1865 and from 1867 to 1869 as a pro-Union Democrat. He believed that states did not have the right to secede. Additionally, Anna Pruyn was the president of Albany’s Anti-Suffrage Association, a fairly sizable organization numbering around eight thousand people. She would live in the house until her death in 1910. 

The handsome Gothic detailed doorway has been preserved on 21, and would have been the same for 17. The interior of 21 has remained mostly intact and retains its Gothic Revival elements such as elaborate woodworking, quatrefoil (symmetrical shapes of four) designs, and drip mold window crowns -  created to protect water running down the face of the building. The lot at 15 Elk Street originally served as the garden for 17 after an 1858 enlargement of the house. The Pruyn family initially had intentions of constructing an entirely new house but instead decided to expand upon 17, adding a library, kitchen, and dining room. Sometime between 1910 and 1932, No. 17 became an I.O.O.F Lodge and the building was significantly altered, along with the addition of 15 Elk Street as a banquet hall and lodge room. By 1973, the building had been made into law offices and the first floor had been completely remodeled.  

Albany Architecture, Waite 

17 Inventory Sheet (CRIS)

21 Inventory Sheet (CRIS)

A Field Guide to American Houses, McAlester

A Short Bibliographical Sketch of John V. L. Pruyn, by John V. L. Pruyn, Jr. (his son)