Boathouse on the Lullwater of the Lake in Prospect Park

Boathouse on the Lullwater of the Lake in Prospect Park
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Western side
Location	New York, New York
Coordinates	40°39′39″N 73°57′55″W / 40.66083°N 73.96528°WCoordinates: 40°39′39″N 73°57′55″W / 40.66083°N 73.96528°W
Built	1904
Architect	Helmle & Huberty
Architectural style	No Style Listed
NRHP Reference #	72000850
Added to NRHP	January 7, 1972[1]

Boathouse on the Lullwater of the Lake in Prospect Park is located in the eastern part of Prospect Park on the northeast shore of The Lake, southeast of the Ravine District in Brooklyn, New York. It was built in 1905-07 to a classical design of Helmle, Hudswell and Huberty, protégés of McKim, Mead and White. ^[2]

In September 1964 the Parks Department was within forty-eight hours of demolishing the Boathouse.^[3][4] At the time the structure was underutilized; the boat concession only operated on weekends and the Boathouse was visited by fewer than ten people an hour, even on the busiest summer weekends.^[3][5]

The Boathouse shared many features with the McKim, Mead and White masterpiece Penn Station, whose recent demolition had been controversial. The resulting historic preservation movement generated public pressure to save the Boathouse. Though saved, nearly ten years would elapse before restorations would begin on the structure under Commissioner August Heckscher.^[6] Further restorations were required in the 1980s under Commissioner Gordon Davis to repair damage from a leaking roof. After twenty years as a visitors center and park ranger headquarters, the Boathouse was restored for a third time in 2000. It now houses the Audubon Center, the Audubon Society's only urban interpretive center in the United States.

The Boathouse's fortunes over the last third of the 20th century parallel the larger, and still ongoing, recovery of the park. In the 1980s, the Parks Department began forming partnerships with privately funded, non-profit organizations to help relieve shortfalls in park management.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.^[1][7]

The Boathouse was seen in Scorsese's movie: The Age Of Innocence (1993) as the Boston park where Archer Newland(Day-Lewis) meets Ellen Olenska(Pfeiffer)

Prospect Park's Camperdown Elm, nearby

References

1. National Park Service (2008-04-15). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
2. City of New York, Department of Parks (1906). The City of New York, Department of Parks Report for the year 1905. New York: City of New York. pp. 122–123.
3. Lancaster, Clay (1972). Prospect Park Handbook (2nd ed.). New York: Long Island University Press. pp. 51–52, 66. ISBN 0-913252-06-9.
4. "Audubon Center — History". Prospect Park Alliance. 2008. Archived from the original on 21 March 2009. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
5. Tolchin, Martin (September 14, 1964). "A GASLIGHT RELIC AWAITS VERDICT; Prospect Park Boathouse May Face Demolition". The New York Times. New York Times Company. pp. food fashions family furnishings, Page 29. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
6. "On Again, Off Again, Plans to Restore Prospect Park On Again". The New York Times. New York Times Company. September 8, 1967. pp. Page 41. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
7. Stephen S. Lash (April 5, 1971). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Boathouse on the Lullwater of the Lake in Prospect Park". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2008-08-16. (includes one map) See also: "Accompanying one photo, undated".

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