Long Room, Fraunces Hotel

The historic Long Room in Fraunces Tavern, on the corner of Pearl and Broad streets. Original title: Fraunces Hotel New York, by Thomas Wakeman (1812-1878), dated about 1850. Source: New York Public Library. Other illustrations of New York by this artist is found to be created from 1828 to 1850.

The illustration shows the Long Room with a decayed ceiling and walls, indicating that it was created before the 1852 fire. It was certainly not the

Samuel Fraunces established his historic tavern in 1762, after he bought the former de Lancey mansion. Fraunces rented out his tavern’s Long Room for meetings and other events. Governor Clinton hosted a banquet for George Washington and his officers here on November 25, 1783, Evacuation Day, when the British troops left the city. Washington again dined at Fraunces Tavern on December 4 for a last meal with his officers. When New York City was the national capital, rooms were rented for government offices, including the War Department and the Treasury.

The Long Room was restored in 1906/1907 and redesigned in the 1960s.