South Street Seaport Museum to Hold Building Rededication Ceremony

The restoration of A.A. Thomson & Co. is nearing completion! In 2019, the South Street Seaport Museum began a careful renovation of this historic warehouse. The restoration is a vital step for the Museum, which serves as the beating heart and cultural anchor of the South Street Seaport Historic District.

On behalf of Capt. Jonathan Boulware and the Board of Trustees of the South Street Seaport Museum, please accept this invitation to the Building Rededication Ceremony for the historic 1868 warehouse A.A. Thomson & Co. on Thursday, October 30, 2024 at 10am at 213 Water Street in Manhattan. To RSVP for the A.A. Thomson & Co. Building Rededication Ceremony at the South Street Seaport Museum, please email development@seany.org

The outdoor ceremonial building rededication press event will include remarks from local officials, supporters, and friends to mark the completion of construction. Plans will also be announced for the inaugural exhibition that will span the first three floors of the renovated building and will feature works of art, historic artifacts, and archival materials from the extensive collections and archives of the Seaport Museum, to open in the coming months. The ceremony will be followed by special building tours. Light refreshments will be served.

Working with the celebrated preservation architecture firm Beyer Blinder Belle, the Seaport Museum transformed the historic 12,000-square-foot warehouse into a large-scale exhibition space, a hub for engaging educational programming, and a gathering space for the community. Once renovated, the building, which has not been updated in decades, will include a new climate control system, systems hardened against flooding, an elevator, and full accessibility to welcome all visitors into previously inaccessible space on "little" Water Street.

A Brief History

This Italianate cast iron and stone warehouse, located at 213-215 Water Street, was designed by the renowned New York City architect Stephen D. Hatch (1839-1894) in 1868 for Alexander and William A. Thomson of A.A. Thomson & Co.. Before the structure was built, this lot was occupied by two three-story buildings, originally part of a 1750 water lot grant, on what would have been considered one of the principal streets in New York City. Throughout the 19th century, the area was occupied by wholesale grocers and commission merchants, iron dealers, warehousers, and mechanics connected with the shipping industry.

Stephen D. Hatch became one of New York's well-known architects in the last quarter of the 19th century. Hatch designed mostly mercantile buildings, and his most famous accomplishments are the Murray Hill Hotel (1884) on Park Avenue and the Boreel Building (1902) on Broadway. When Hatch began to practice architecture in 1865, he was named Architect of the U.S. War Department and given the job of constructing all of the military posts in New York City. It is probable that 213-215 Water Street was one of Hatch's first civilian commissions. More information at seaportmuseum.org/about-thomson/