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Architectural and Altered Antiques

Finding Your Style in a Wood Paneled Room

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When you think of a wood paneled room, you may think of an old study or library in an early to mid-1900s home. Some may think it’s a dated feature in older homes, but nothing could be further from the truth. The trickiest design element is creating eye-catching color balance, letting the walls, ceiling, floor, and furnishings work together. Think about how your favorite furnishings can pop. Everyone has a style of their own that they want their home to represent. We found examples of how four styles can be represented in a Wood Paneled Room.

Modern


Photo credit: Evan Joseph, Town & Country. Featured in Elizabeth Arden’s Former New York City Townhouse Is On the Market

Please look at how the wood paneling was painted a glossy gray paint paired with a sleek marble mantel. It creates an ultra-modern feel. The room balance was created using dark gray walls and ebony finished floors with a white ceiling and cream throw rug.

 

Minimalism


Photo credit: Evan Joseph, Town & Country. Featured in Elizabeth Arden’s Former New York City Townhouse Is On the Market

Minimalism represents living with very few items as possible. Decorating with just chairs, side tables, table lamps, and a throw rug gives that minimal feel. The room balance was created using dark chestnut carved panel walls and dark wood finished floors with a white ceiling, cream throw rug, and neutral gray furniture.

Traditional


Photo credit: PFD Design Group, The Spruce – 15 Elegant, Traditional Living Rooms

Traditional style rooms represent comfortable furniture, classic designs, and casual décor. The big huge windows create a bright airy atmosphere in such a neutral-colored room. The room balance is created with a white ceiling and light furnishings paired with the neutral rug and warm medium-toned wood paneling and flooring. Typically, in an antique paneled room, sconces were used as a source of lighting.

 

Eclectic

Photo Credit: Douglas Friedman, Harper’s Bazaar  – The Fashionable Life: A New York Fairy Tale

Eclectic is a mixture of textures, time periods, styles, trends, and colors. This room has a mix of modern sconces, a Victorian crystal chandelier, mid-century chairs, carved wooden paneled walls and mantel, and modern art. The room balance was created with a white ceiling, white rug, and bright metal furnishings paired with the dark medium tone paneled walls and floors.

 

In-Stock Wood Paneled Rooms

Here at Olde Good Things, we put our hearts into our salvage projects. We spend countless hours carefully removing one panel at a time, one bookcase at a time, from these special wood rooms. Now that you’ve seen above how you can decorate a wood paneled room in your style, it’s time to see what we have available in stock.

 

Ceiling Height Knotty Pine Library Room with Ladder

This knotty pine paneled library room was salvaged from one of New York City’s turn of the century townhouse estates. Click on the listing and see all the pieces included in this room. Picture adding antique sconces, antique paintings, many books, a bright solid colored rug, and a large executive desk.

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1940s Secret Wall to Wall Bookcase Library Room

Carefully extracted from a hidden library of an East Side Manhattan estate.  Click on the listing and see all the pieces included in this room. Picture adding brass sconces, a crystal chandelier, vintage globes and maps, many books, a bright oriental rug, and comfy leather furniture.

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Recessed Panel Dark Oak Paneled Room from Riverside Drive Estate

19th Century solid carved oak paneled room from Manhattan’s Riverside Drive. Click on the listing and see all the pieces included in this room. Picture adding crystal sconces, a petite crystal chandelier, a modern painting, antique lamps and a set of armchairs all positioned around the carved mantel.

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Tiger Oak Recessed Paneled Room

Tiger oak recessed paneled room with elaborately carved crown molding, arches, and columns. This is true 19th-century craftsmanship carefully extracted from one of the New York City estates of Huguette Clark. Click on the listing and see all the pieces included in this room.

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4 Foot Raised Panel American Chestnut or Oak Wainscot

Circa 1910 raised panel American chestnut or oak wainscot from an Upper East Side Manhattan church. Click on the listing and see all the pieces included in this room.

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Shop all the Paneled Rooms & Wainscoting available online

Top 10 Countdown: Most Valuable Salvaged Pieces at OGT

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Through the years, Olde Good Things has acquired some of our most priceless artifacts from old buildings getting a face lift or being demolished. We hear from time to time that our salvaged inventory is priced on the higher side. The actual salvage act from our team is sometimes overlooked.  Our demo team spends long hours and extreme manpower to preserve these items. It takes many unique skills to remove a giant marble mantel or stone frieze from the outside of the building while keeping it intact. It’s not all removing a door from the hinges.

We complied a list of the most valuable salvaged pieces we have online today. Please click into the listings to ask any questions or make an offers on a specific piece.

Let The Countdown Begin

 

10. Pair of 3 ft Salvaged Waldorf Conrad Suite Marble & Bronze Urns – $38,000 These are original to the Conrad Suite of the NYC Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

 

9. 10 ft Bronze Religious Sculpture of Moses Parting the Red Sea – $40,000 Salvaged from a North Bergen, New Jersey synagogue before its demolition.

 

8. White Red & Yellow Inlaid Marble Mantel from the US Ambassadors Suite of the Waldorf Astoria – $40,000 This mantel is original to Room 42A2 of the US Ambassadors Suite in the Waldorf Astoria hotel.

 

7. Massive 5 ft Gilt Bronze American Baroque Style Chandelier – $45,000 Huge 18 arm bronze chandelier featuring a crown of four cartouches, each bearing the New York City seal. Salvaged from a lobby of a New York City building.

 

6. Neoclassical Walnut Panel Room with Grand Carved Mantel – $45,000 Solid walnut panels from the negotiating room of the prominent Williamsburg Savings Bank in Brooklyn, New York.

 

5. 19th Century Louis XIV Style Gray Marble Mantel – $51,000 This is one of several additions from Danny Alessandro & Edwin Jackson mantel company.

 

4. Large Bronze Architectural Plaque from New York City – $70,000 From the National American Building, formerly located at 340 Madison Avenue, New York City.

 

3. 5 ft Silvered Bronze Ten Arm Georgian Caldwell Chandelier – $75,000 Manufactured by EF Caldwell, New York in 1895. 

 

2. 13 ft Monumental Tennessee Marble Mantel – $76,500 Made of 150 pieces of Tennessee marble, this mantel is now reconstructed and on display in our Scranton warehouse.

 

1. 1964 Solid Cast Bronze 12 ft Mid Century Modern Room Divider – $250,000 This was retrieved from the lobby of the Public Safety Building in Syracuse, NY. Plans were drawn in 1959; construction started July 1962 and was completed in 1964 by King & King Architects.

 

 

Rose Hill Mansion in Mount Kisco, NY: What We Rescued

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Rose Hill the Beautiful

The Rose Hill Mansion was located on 98 acres of land at 773 Armonk- New Castle, Mount Kisco, NY. The original Tudor style manor built in 1904 at 10,000 square feet was then later expanded to 70,000 square feet. At the time of demolition, it contained 8 main bedrooms and 12 bathrooms, along with a grand ballroom, reception halls, seminary containing 130 bedrooms & chapel.

The gallery below is Rose Hill in the early 2000’s – photos courtesy of Doug Elliman from its Zillow listing.

Who Lived There?

Best remembered as the lyricist for “Me and My Shadow” and “It’s Only a Paper Moon,” Billy Rose (1899-1966), the famous Broadway impresario, lived here from 1928 till his death. A devastating fire in 1956 destroyed many of the home’s original features, as well as Rose’s art collection, which included several works by his friend Salvador Dali. Over the years, the estate changed hands several times, most recently serving as a seminary for the Legionaries of Christ Church in 1994. Then it was operated as the Our Lady of Mount Kisco Retreat Center before putting the estate up for sale in 2011.

Demolition of Rose Hill

The demolition of Rose Hill was completed as of June 2019. Sadly, we weren’t able to connect with an interested buyer in time to save the beautiful limestone entryway. However, we did salvage some impressive pieces from the interior, which we are now making available for sale in our stores and online. Here are some of the highlights from our Rose Hill salvage project.

Leaded Glass Windows

For many years after Billy Rose’s departure, Rose Hill was occupied by religious institutions, including the Sisters of the Cenacle, the Unification Church, and finally the Legionaries of Christ. Rose Hill’s theological past is captured beautifully in these stained glass windows, painted with excerpts from the Sermon on the Mount.

Mantels

Rose Hill’s main rooms were dominated by immense fireplaces, and OGT workers salvaged two that are beyond extraordinary. The large wood mantel is hand carved, the back of one of the pieces has a penciled list of three names and a note reading “3 good men from Albany NY – June 12 ’05.” The limestone mantel is elaborately carved, with a central coat of arms guarded by mythical beasts.

Crown Molding

Rose Hill’s interior featured some truly remarkable crown molding. Our workers reclaimed over 150 linear feet of oak crown molding and approximately 95 linear feet of cherry crown molding.

 

Woodwork

The woodwork throughout Rose Hill was absolutely phenomenal. Among the many pieces rescued by Olde Good Things were a raised oak paneled room, a solid cherry carved door header, an intricately carved oak newel post, and three massive carved oak ceiling beams.

If you’d like to see more of what we rescued from Rose Hill, click here.

Salvage Alert: Rescue a Remnant of Rose Hill

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Rose Hill, the New Castle estate of American impresario Billy Rose, is scheduled for demolition within the next week or two. Help us save its magnificent limestone entryway!

Best remembered as the lyricist for “Me and My Shadow” and “It’s Only a Paper Moon,” Billy Rose (1899-1966) the famous Broadway impresario, lived here from 1928 till his death. A devastating fire in 1956 destroyed many of the home’s original features, as well as Rose’s art collection, which included several works by his friend Salvador Dali. Over the years, the 98-acre estate changed hands several times, most recently serving as a seminary for the Legionaries of Christ Church.

It’s now the end of the road for this beautiful home, but with your assistance we can save its elegantly carved main entrance from the landfill. If you are interested in purchasing this unique artifact, or if you know someone who is, please contact us right away. Help us preserve and reuse this piece of historic American architecture!

Reflections of the Past: Mirrors Made from Toy Center Muntz Metal Window Frames

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Every object at Olde Good Things has a story. Sometimes the story is lost, and the object remains silent with mystery, keeping its stories to itself. But sometimes the details survive, and we salvage not only a physical, tangible item but also bits and pieces of its past.

Yellow Metal

This particular story begins all the way back in 1832, in Birmingham, England, when industrialist George Frederick Muntz patented a new brass alloy, a 60/40 mix of copper and zinc with trace amounts of iron. Muntz designed his metal as a cheaper substitute for copper, intending it for use in the sheathing of boats. Like copper, Muntz’s alloy resisted corrosion from salt water and also prevented organisms like barnacles and mollusks from attaching to a ship’s hull – at a fraction of the cost of pure copper. Muntz metal (as it came to be known) became very popular in the shipping industry; the hull of the famed tea clipper Cutty Sark was clad in Muntz metal, and to this day, shipwreck divers continue to recover “Yellow Metal” stamped with Muntz’s name.

Muntz metal cladding on the hull of the Cutty Sark – photo courtesy of Cmglee (CC BY-SA 3.0)

 

Muntz stamp on metal recovered from 19th century shipwreck – photo courtesy of shipwrecks.com

Interest in Muntz metal began to extend into other industries. Designers valued its color, a soft golden yellow that matures into a reddish-brown patina over time. Architects valued the alloy for its malleability and strength, using it in roofing, trim, and paneling. Noting that its anti-fungal properties protect wood just like pure copper, they also used it for door and window frames, which brings us to the next part of our story.

The Toy Center of the World

Fast forward a few decades to May 1, 1909, opening day for the Fifth Avenue Building (200 Fifth Avenue) in New York City. The neighboring Flatiron Building, completed in 1902, had been drawing new activity and commerce into what is now the Ladies’ Mile Historic District.

The Fifth Avenue Building is an 800,000 square foot commercial building, 16 stories high. Designed by architectural firm Maynicke and Franke, the building features a Beaux Arts exterior and an impressive interior courtyard, clad in white terra cotta. When it was first constructed, its ground floor housed storefronts and a bank, and outside was installed an ornate two-faced cast-iron street clock (which still stands today, as a historic landmark). Among the earliest tenants were the Boy Scouts of America, who used the Fifth Avenue Building as their national headquarters from 1910-1927.

Fifth Avenue Building, ca. 1910 (original photo courtesy of Detroit Publishing Company Photograph Collection, Library of Congress, derivative image from Shorpy)

Then came the tumultuous years of World War I. In reaction to the devastation abroad, the United States enacted policies imposing restrictions and tariffs on imported products from Europe. These policies had a massive impact on American manufacturing, including one area that is of particular importance to our story – toys.

Beginning in these post-war years, the Fifth Avenue Building became a hub for the newly expanding American toy industry, earning it a new name – the International Toy Center. Over the next few decades, the Toy Center would house showrooms for dozens of major toy companies like Mattel, Tonka, Kenner, and Hasbro. Each year, the building played host to the American International Toy Fair, which showcased new products (such as, in 1959, Mattel’s new doll named Barbie). By the 1960s, Toy Center leases were restricted to only toy companies.

Toy center of the world, 1958 – image courtesy of American Flyer Displays

Interestingly, though stuffed with the latest toys, the Toy Center shrank from welcoming members of its most prized consumer demographic – children. A 1981 New York Times article warned interested visitors away:

But do not go to the center looking for fun. ”We are not here to entertain kids or the public,” says Morton Lieberman, who has worked in the center for 25 years, and takes a dim view of ”invaders” who ”try and play with everything; we’re here to do business.”

All things end, however, and the Toy Center was no exception. In the early 2000s, toy companies started to terminate their leases. In early 2005, the building was sold to new owners, and by 2007, the last toy tenants had moved out. Renovations in 2008 by STUDIOS Architecture converted the former Toy Center into an office building, known now simply as 200 Fifth Avenue. Major tenants include Tiffany & Co. and Grey Advertising, although appropriately the building also houses a Lego Store.

Copper-Clad Memories

Endings are also beginnings, and the end of the Toy Center offered an opportunity for the rebirth of some of its components. A primary feature of both the building exterior and the interior courtyard is paired fenestration, with sets of windows filling the façade. Also key to the building’s design are the arched windows lining its crown. During the 2008 renovation, all of these windows were replaced, and Olde Good Things moved in to salvage them. How were they clad? Muntz metal, of course.

Salvaged windows from the Toy Center

In order to give these historic Muntz metal windows new life, we are converting them into hand-silvered mirrors. Already, some of the arched windows found a new home behind the bar at Cata, a restaurant on the Lower East Side. Other Toy Center windows have traveled to the homes of customers not only in New York but as far away as Atlanta, Washington, and even Brazil. Their Muntz metal cladding brings a warm glow to any environment, and there are several sizes available to accommodate diverse spaces.

Toy Center crown window mirrors at Cata

Mirror made from a copper window from the Toy Center’s neighbor, the Flatiron Building, displayed in a customer’s apartment

Is your interest piqued? Then perhaps it’s time to call one of our Toy Center Muntz metal mirrors your own. Install it in your living room, sit back, and listen. Let the Muntz metal tell tales of alloy ancestors who sailed the open seas on the bottoms of British boats. Let the windows whisper about their favorite toys. So many stories, all yours for the hearing.

Shop all Toy Center salvaged materials

 

The Lights of Broadway: Salvaging Fixtures from the Palace Theatre

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In the mid-90s, Times Square was undergoing massive redevelopment. Some of our first salvage finds were from well-known Times Square venues, including the Rialto, Lamb, and Ford Theaters.

Now, almost 25 years later, Times Square is undergoing more changes, and Olde Good Things is on the job for another theatre salvage. But this time, rather than raze a building to the ground, developers plan to raise the theatre up!

Playing the Palace

Located in the heart of Times Square at W. 47th Street and Broadway, the Palace Theatre first opened in 1913. Designed by Milwaukee architects Kirchoff and Rose, it is one of the largest theaters on Broadway, with three levels of seating and tiered, parquet-style boxes accommodating over 1,700 patrons. The New York Landmarks Conservancy designated its famous baroque interior as an Interior Landmark in 1987.

The Palace was a vaudeville center from its 1913 opening through the early 1930s; actor Jack Haley called it “the epitome of the more than 15,000 vaudeville theaters in America.” Performers dreamed of “playing the Palace,” and its stage was graced by such legends as Ethel Barrymore, the Marx Brothers, Bob Hope, Mae West, and Fred Astaire.

The Palace Theatre in 1916
Photo courtesy of the New York Public Library

In the 1940s and 1950s, the Palace struggled to find its niche as a venue, serving mostly as a movie house as ticket sales for live performances dwindled. Notably, in 1941 the Palace was the site of the world premiere of Citizen Kane.

In the 1960s, the Palace was renovated and transformed into a full-fledged Broadway theater. Its first show was Sweet Charity, starring Gwen Verdon and choreographed by Bob Fosse (both well-known to viewers of the new FX series Fosse/Verdon). More recently, the Palace housed productions of Beauty and the Beast, Aida, and An American in Paris.

Moving on Up

In 2018, after a final run of SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical, the Palace closed down as part of a massive building renovation called TSX Broadway. This unusual project includes plans to raise the Palace interior three stories (nearly 30 feet!), in order to add 10,000 square feet of retail space underneath and to accommodate a new, giant wraparound billboard. The renovation also features a new lobby, dressing rooms, and other amenities for Palace Theatre patrons. Construction is expected to be completed by 2021.

Broadway Lights

The $50 million Palace Theatre rehabilitation includes updates to its famous interior – so not only is the Palace moving up in the world, it’s also getting a facelift! While the theatre’s historic ornamental plasterwork will stay in place, other design elements are being replaced.

Enter Olde Good Things to salvage some of the historic treasures from this old landmark. We were able to reclaim much of the vintage and antique lighting, including exquisite crystal chandeliers and Art Deco style flush and semi-flush mount fixtures. Some of these fixtures appear to date from the 1965 renovation.

Longing to bask in the lights of Broadway? Take a look at just a few examples online and come see many more in our New York locations. We promise the ghosts of the Palace Theatre won’t follow you home.

Salvaged Antique Door Hardware from Philadelphia Civic Center

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Recently at Olde Good Things, we rediscovered in the depths of hardware department a large collection of bronze Corbin made door hardware salvaged from the Philadelphia Civic Center. In 2005, when the Philadelphia Civic Center was demolished, Olde Good Things reclaimed many architectural friezes, industrial lights, seats, copper roof, marble wall plaques, doors & door hardware.

 

The hardware is of an Art Deco style with a medallion shaped Philadelphia Civic Center emblem on the top. Each bronze piece is Corbin made in the early 1900s. The commercial types range from mono-lock, push plate, door pull, & door knob with plate. Typically, one pull and one push plate completes a swinging door on each side. Below views each type now available, with a limited quantity.

 

See below on how the hardware was used in Philadelphia Civic Center. The mono-locks were used in phone booths and the door push plates & pulls were used in the common hallway areas.

 

To learn more about this amazing 2005 salvage job and the history of Philadelphia Civic Center, read our initial blog post Architectural Find of the Week: Historic Limestone Friezes from Philadelphia Civic Center.

To view ALL remaining inventory left from this salvage job, click here.

Using Salvaged Materials for a Fixer Upper Home Purchase

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Few would deny that unique style is a bonus for prospective buyers of renovated homes. While quality and function are important, it can be the unexpected touches that trigger a positive response and prompt an offer.

Investors who purchase property with the goal of renovating and reselling for profit sometimes overlook the potential to add character with reclaimed materials and architectural salvage, instead choosing more expensive options that can sometimes be hard on the budget.

Recognize Possibilities  

While most buyers appreciate the style and reliability of modern heating and cooling systems, new appliances and  energy-efficient lighting, there is a certain charm associated with vintage bath fixtures, period chandeliers and wall sconces, and reclaimed beams, flooring, doors, millwork and hardware.

When the quality of workmanship is evident, there is no reason why design items from the past cannot be fully integrated into modern interiors. Even exteriors can be enhanced with older architectural features. The truth is that salvaged materials and vintage home decor can constitute a bargain when used to update a “tired” property. They also add much-needed character to transform a bargain fix-and-flip project from mundane to extraordinary.

Rather than squandering potential profit on high-ticket items, why not exercise a bit of ingenuity to incorporate a stately vintage aesthetic into a modern property, whether that’s through DIY projects or hiring a professional craftsman? Whether your finished design theme is rustic farmhouse, industrial, Euro-tech, distinctively contemporary or vintage elegance, the unique appeal of repurposed elements can add spirit and new life to a renovation.

Be Inventive

The matching look — in home design as in furniture and clothing — is now passe, and color today depends less on popular trends than on personalization and individuality.

Designers and architects, as well as savvy investors and builders, realize the benefits of cost-effective options. Budgeting for a renovation requires keeping a tight lid on costs. Prospective buyers will respond to the unique and unusual. Salvaged architectural materials have the ability to raise the bar of perception: Buyers respond to one-of-a-kind features. Homes with custom features and distinctive personality sell faster and for higher prices than cookie-cutter models.

Look for Multi-use Value

The possibilities for integrating artistic features and period elegance are endless. Just consider these:

  • Add a carved wood fireplace surround as the focal point for a sleek modern fireplace;
  • Incorporate a freestanding armoire into a kitchen filled with standard upper and lower cabinets;
  • Add a kitchen island top of French marble rescued from an elegant hotel’s lobby;
  • Add Victorian tin ceiling panels to spark design elegance in a modern kitchen or dining room;
  • Create an elegant vanity cabinet from an old buffet or desk;
  • Reclaimed glass — seeded or chicken-wire panes — looks great in new kitchen cabinets;
  • Panel a den wall with peeling painted siding from an old barn;
  • Reclaim antique brick or stone to create a patio wall or pave a small entry;
  • Create porch columns from older pilasters and stairway balusters;
  • Hang a antique framed mirror in a contemporary power room;
  • Incorporate transom windows from an aging hotel as interior accents that bring additional light into dark halls;
  • Use a serviceable chest or bookcase as a window seat or bathroom bench; extra storage is always welcome.

When renovating existing property, don’t let your vision be limited to “modernizing.” Keep all options on the table. Sometimes older is better, not only because the price is good, but because the value far outweighs the cost.

Salvaging the Walter Keane Staten Island Ferry

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When the architecturologists at Olde Good Things worked to salvage the former Staten Island Ferry the Walter Keane, they came ashore with a variety of marine architectural salvage treasures.

Exterior photos of the Walter Keane, formerly the Cornelius G. Kolff in its glory days as a steam-powered Staten Island ferry.

 

History of Staten Island Ferry

The beginnings of a Staten Island ferry system dates back to 1810, when Cornelius Vanderbilt began transporting passengers between Staten Island and the Battery in lower Manhattan on twin-mast sailboats. The ferry system grew over the years, changing hands from different investors and railway companies, gaining new boats and technologies as times changed, and finally coming under the control of New York City itself in the early 20th century to become the ferry system we know today. The modern ferry fleet has grown to include several classes of ships of varying sizes, but the ferry still travels between Staten Island and lower Manhattan. In 2005, a newly modernized terminal was dedicated at the Manhattan end of the ferry, with connections inside for the New York City Subway System as well as buses and taxi stands. Service is provided 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, running roughly every 30 minutes and having transported 23.9 million passengers in 2016 alone.

The history of the ship the Walter Keane goes even deeper than its use as a ferry. After 36 years of loyal service shipping passengers back and forth between Staten Island and Manhattan, the last two steam ferries, the Cornelius G. Kolff and its twin the Private Joseph F. Merrell , were docked in the East River as part of Rikers Island in 1987 to deal with prison overcrowding. The Kolff was later renamed after Walter B. Keane, a veteran correctional officer. The two ferries, along with several decommissioned British troop carriers, were repurposed as floating housing for the prison’s inmates. They were later used to as offices, inmate programs, and services.

Nautical Artifacts Salvaged

Our architectural salvage staff were able to recover a variety of pieces including salvaged anchors and weights, industrial chain, nautical bells, and marine equipment. The interior revealed beautiful architectural benches, tables, chairs, showers, industrial sinks, and nautical light fixtures.

 

Salvaged Boat Chain Custom Tables

The nautical anchor chains that we have salvaged from the Walter Keane and other maritime locations become custom tables in our Altered Antiques line. Our master craftsmen weld these chains together to make sturdy industrial table legs of varying sizes and shapes, from coffee tables to end tables in both round and rectangular designs. These chains can also be made into table lamps, providing an industrial or nautical motif to any project.

For more information about our nautical anchor chain tables, or to see what other treasures await in our Altered Antiques line, visit any of our Olde Good Things brick-and-mortar stores or stop over to our webstore to shop Nautical Antiques or Nautical Lighting.

Architectural Salvage in the Heart of Tribeca

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While New York City is a place of constant growth and change, it is also a city filled with numerous architectural wonders from the past. Sadly, as many New Yorkers are saying goodbye to some of the city’s fantastic buildings and older architecture, not much is done to save the more interesting aspects from a landfill. That’s why whenever older buildings are being renovated or demolished, the team of architecturologists from Olde Good Things work tirelessly to uncover and preserve these architectural artifacts.

Olde Good Things recently spent time salvaging pieces from several late 19th century buildings in the West Broadway city block in the Tribeca neighborhood, just a short walk from Ground Zero. The area, scheduled to be developed for condominiums and retail space, held multiple unique architectural details.

One of the many reclaimed pieces brought back from this Tribeca neighborhood were an abundance of original ornate ceiling tin. Tin ceilings were popular in businesses and homes until around the beginning of the 20th century and feature intricate stamped designs. These tin ceiling tiles will either be sold individually, or the OGT craftsmen will turn them into beautiful frames and ornate mirrors in a multitude of colors – perfect for any commercial or residential restoration projects.

Another interesting architectural feature recovered from this property were several original wrought iron balconies and fire escapes. Developed in the latter part of the 19th century for New York’s tenement apartments, wrought iron balconies and fire escapes soon found uses in other commercial, residential and industrial buildings. These reclaimed wrought iron balconies and fire escapes would add an unexpected element of classic city chic to any renovation.

Also recovered from our recent trip are several interior and exterior wooden doors. These doors, some of which include the original glass windows or hand-lettered company names, can be incorporated in modern homes to create a unique design style. These doors are also especially popular for use as exterior doors in older buildings.

While preservationists and those who love the “old” New York lament the demolition of these older properties, Olde Good Things is thrilled to be able to help save what we can so others may be able to repurpose or reuse these pieces of architectural history.

Whether you’re interested in one of these great architectural artifacts from this Tribeca neighborhood, or you’re looking for other unique antique features, you’re always welcome at any of our Olde Good Things stores or at our webstore. We’re sure the perfect piece of history awaits you.

 

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