Gilsey House Architecture, New York City

The French Second Empire style Gilsey House, located on Broadway at West 29th Street in an illustration published on June 29, 1872, in the Canadian Illustrated News.

According to the magazine, this hotel was opened on the 15th of April, 1871. It was conducted strictly on the European plan and was a marvel of beauty and luxury in every description. Eight stories in height, containing three hundred apartments, with one hundred bath-rooms, a thorough heating apparatus, and a most effective method of ventilation. It possessed every requisite of a first-class hotel, as well as the latest improvements, at the time, that insured the comfort of the guests. The ladies parlours - of which there are three - were elegantly furnished, and exhibited the finest specimens of fresco art. The floors were covered with Axminster carpets, made in Europe to fit the rooms. The entire hallway of the parlour-floor was very wide, affording a retired promenade for ladies and children. The halls were covered with velvet carpet and the stairs with a fine scarlet Wilton. A view of the grand stairway from an upper floor reminded the visitor strongly of a European palace. The fresco-work represented the Etruscan order was warm in tone.