Racquet and Tennis Club

The Racquet and Tennis Club is located at 370 Park Avenue, between East 52nd and 53rd Streets, New York, New York.

Building

Designed by McKim, Mead, and White in an eclectic , Italian Renaissance style, the Racquet and Tennis Club building is representative of the ornate private clubs constructed in New York during the early twentieth century. Today it performs an important architectural role on Park Avenue as a foil to the Seagram Building and the Lever House.

Construction began on December 20, 1916, and was completed on September 7, 1918. The builder was Mark Edlitz, and the estimated cost was $400,000. The building is about 200 feet by 100 feet (30 m x 60 m) and five stories tall. The exterior is stone and brick over a structural steel frame. According to the original plans, the interior contained three dining rooms, a billiard room, library, lounge, gymnasium, four squash courts, two court tennis (real tennis) courts, and two racquets courts. Today, there are four International squash courts, one North American doubles squash court, one racquets court, and the two tennis courts.

On July 13, 1983, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The club sold its air rights on Park Avenue to a developer a number of decades ago, resulting in the unusual sight of a glass skyscraper rising in the middle of the block immediately behind the club.

Club

Unlike many other private clubs that once catered exclusively to men and now admit women, the Racquet and Tennis has held fast to its men-only membership policy. (Women are welcome at club social events, however.) Its ancestor, The Racquet Court Club, opened in 1876 at 55 West 26th Street with only a racquets court. The second club house at 27 West 43rd Street (1891) had one racquets court and one real tennis court. The club moved to the Park Avenue home in 1918. Club professionals have been world champions is both racquets and real tennis. The most famous was Pierre Etchebaster, Real Tennis World Champion (1928-1956). Neil Smith was World Racquets Singles Champion (1999-2001), and World Doubles Champion (1992-2001). Tim Chisholm (partnered by Julian Snow) won the Real Tennis Doubles World Championship in 2001.

ee also

* List of American gentlemen's clubs

References

* Historic American Buildings Survey No. HABS NY-5466