New York Custom House

The original New York Custom House

The Custom House moved to the former Merchants' Exchange building in 1863.

The New York Custom House was the place where federal customs duties were collected in New York City.

Until the civil service reforms of the late nineteenth century, all Custom House employees were political appointees. The President appointed the four principal officers: Collector of Customs, Naval Officer, Surveyor of Customs, and Appraiser of Customs. The Customs House patronage was the subject of great debate during the Rutherford B. Hayes administration, as Hayes attempted to establish a merit-based system of appointments, while Senator Roscoe Conkling wished to retain the spoils system, under which he controlled the patronage there. One Collector of Customs, Chester A. Arthur, later became President of the United States.

The custom house existed at several locations over the years. From 1842 it was at 26 Wall Street; that building is now Federal Hall National Memorial. From 1862 it was in the Merchant's Exchange building at 55 Wall Street. In 1907 it moved into a new building, now called the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House, on Bowling Green. In the mid 1970s it was moved to 6 World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the September 11, 2001 attacks.