300 East 57th Street

40°45′32″N 73°57′54″W / 40.758923°N 73.965116°W / 40.758923; -73.965116

300 East 57th Street is a 19‑story apartment building on the southeast corner of East 57th Street and Second Avenue in the Midtown East neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Designed by architect Emery Roth for the Rudin family in 1944,[1] the building was completed in November 1947.[2] It was among the first luxury high‑rise residences constructed in Manhattan during the post‑World War II housing boom.[3]

Architecture and design

The building was one of the last projects personally designed by Roth before his death in 1948.[3] It reflects the transition from the ornate prewar apartment houses for which Roth was best known to the more restrained postwar style. The 19‑story tower is clad in buff brick with minimal ornamentation, emphasizing vertical lines and setbacks that comply with the 1916 Zoning Resolution. Interiors originally featured hardwood floors, marble bathrooms, and modern kitchens, marketed as combining prewar luxury with postwar efficiency.[3]

Development

300 East 57th Street was developed by the Rudin family, who would become one of New York’s most prominent real estate dynasties.[2] Its location at the eastern end of 57th Street placed it within the emerging Sutton Place district, which was gaining popularity among affluent tenants in the 1940s. The building opened with 163 rental units and a full‑service staff, including a doorman and live‑in superintendent.[3]

History

Only months after the building opened, a gas explosion in January 1948 killed theater producer Max Jelin in his apartment.[4]

The building is also notable as the last known New York residence of author J. D. Salinger before he withdrew from public life and moved to Cornish, New Hampshire.[5][6]

Notable residents

Over the decades, 300 East 57th Street has attracted numerous prominent tenants, including:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Permit Search". Office for Metropolitan History. Retrieved 12 October 2025.
  2. ^ a b "300 East 57th Street". StreetEasy. Retrieved October 12, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d "300 East 57th Street". Luxury Rentals Manhattan. Retrieved October 12, 2025.
  4. ^ "Suicide Causes Terrific Blast in New York". The Day. New London, CT. January 20, 1948. p. 2.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Cowan, Alison Leigh (January 29, 2010). "Salinger's Last Known Manhattan Home". The New York Times. p. A17.
  6. ^ Alexander, Paul (1999). Salinger: a biography. Macmillan. p. 156. ISBN 9781580630801.
  7. ^ "Howard St. John, Stage, Film Actor". The New York Times. March 17, 1974. p. 53.
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