CROWN SANITARY FLOORING 



A important and novel feature in the Singer 

 Building is the flooring used throughout its 

 new portions. At first glance it appears to 

 be linoleum, yet, after careful inspection, the bases 

 around the walls and columns are found to be neatly 

 joined by a coved connection, thus producing a con- 

 tinuous seamless floor and base. 



This material is plastic when applied ; it is spread 

 upon the fireproof construction and carried up on 

 the side wall to form a base. It is a beautiful red 

 in color, and as the floor and base are in one sheet 

 with a cove between them, there is no chance for 

 dust and dirt to accumulate. 



It is almost as noiseless as rubber, can be laid 

 inch thick over wood and can be readily cleansed 

 by the usual means. 



It was manufactured and applied by the Robert 

 A. Keasbey Co. of New York City. 



It is remarkable how evenly the work is executed, 

 in view of the fact that many craftsmen were attend- 

 ing to their work about the building after the floors 

 were installed. 



To appreciate thoroughly the beauty of this 

 flooring one should examine some of the offices 

 occupied by the Singer Company. The simplicity 

 of detail in these rooms is very charming, the greatest 

 care having been exercised to bring out a harmonious 



effect between the wall colorings and the red floor- 

 ings. This is especially true of the Directors' Room 

 on the 34th floor. Not only these particular floors, 

 but the offices throughout the Singer Addition, from 

 the ground to the 39th floor; also the Liberty Street 

 Extension, from the 8th to the 13th floor, are equipped 

 with the Crown Flooring, more than 200,000 square 

 feet having been laid in all. 



When this immense floor space and the important 

 part that it necessarily plays in the construction of the 

 building are considered, it is only natural that a great 

 sense of safety must be inspired in the tenants and 

 those who continually use the building, in the fact 

 that Crown Flooring, in addition to its solidity and 

 strength when set in place, is absolutely fireproof. 

 The finish of the floors is perhaps its most interesting 

 feature in that the surface having been troweled to an 

 absolute level, nearly approaches the hardness of slate 

 without retaining any of the slippery qualities that 

 usually go with a smooth, even surface. There is no 

 doubt about the importance of the position in modern 

 construction that a fireproof and sanitary floor, which 

 at the same time permits of pleasing color schemes 

 and absolute comfort combined with a lack of noise, 

 must hold, and in the construction of this triumph 

 in up-to-date building, the problem of the proper floor 

 has been solved and perfection attained. 



MODELING 



THE modeling work for the many beauti- 

 ful and intricate ornaments to be found 

 throughout the Tower is deserving of par- 

 ticular praise. 



The most striking examples are the two figures 

 on the master-clock case in the main entrance cor- 

 ridor; the cartouches and caps of the marble columns, 

 and the cartouches, brackets and other embellish- 

 ments of this corridor. All this work is far above 

 the realm of commercial art. The column cap 

 cartouches are emblematical of the Singer Com- 

 pany's trade-mark, which has been interwoven with 

 the architectural treatment in a very successful 

 manner. 



The most prominent external ornaments for which 



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models were made, are the cartouches and brackets 

 of the eight great arches near the top of the Tower; 

 the urns, hip rolls and crestings on the dome, and the 

 various ornaments on the lantern surmounting the lat- 

 ter. In addition, practically every ornament through- 

 out the building had a model carefully prepared 

 for it from the architect's full size detail draw- 

 ing. These models were inspected and approved by 

 the architect, after which the ornaments, whether 

 of stone, copper, marble, iron, or bronze, were exe- 

 cuted according to them. 



The contract for all the modeling (excepting in 

 plaster and terra cotta) was in the hands of Henri J. 

 Scheltgen & Co., Sculptors, Decorators and Modelers, 

 No. 205 East Forty-fourth Street, New York. 



