Civic Club / Estonian House

Clubhouse in Manhattan, New York, U.S. "Civic Club" redirects here. For the heritage-listed Civic Club in Queensland, Australia, see Civic Club, Charters Towers. United States historic place

Significant dates

Civic Club (New York Estonian House)
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
New York City Landmark No. 0980

(2008)

Location	243 East 34th Street Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates	40°44′42.5″N 73°58′34.4″W / 40.745139°N 73.976222°W / 40.745139; -73.976222
Built	1898–1899
Architect	Thomas A. Gray
Architectural style	Beaux-Arts
NRHP reference No.	82003372
NYCL No.	0980
Added to NRHP	September 16, 1982
Designated NYCL	March 28, 1978

The Civic Club building, now the New York Estonian House (Estonian: New Yorgi Eesti Maja), is a four-story Beaux-Arts building located at 243 East 34th Street between Second and Third Avenues in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City.

The house was originally built for the Civic Club in 1898–1899, having been designed by Brooklyn architect Thomas A. Gray. The Civic Club was founded by the local social reformer F. Norton Goddard (1861–1905) to reduce poverty and fight against gambling in the neighborhood. After Goddard's death in 1905 the club ceased to exist, but the building remained in the Goddard family until 1946, when Frederick Norton's widow sold it for $25,000 to The New York Estonian Educational Society, Inc., which is still the owner of the house today. The building underwent a $100,000 restoration in 1992.

Known as the Estonian House (Eesti Maja), the building houses a number of Estonian organizations such as the New York Estonian School (New Yorgi Eesti Kool), The Foundation for Estonian Arts and Letters (Eesti Kultuurifond Ameerika Ühendriikides), choruses for men and women and a folk dancing group. Vaba Eesti Sõna, the largest Estonian-language newspaper in the United States, is also published at the New York Estonian House. The Estonian House has become the main center of Estonian culture on the U.S. Eastern seaboard, especially amongst Estonian-Americans.

The building was designated as a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1978 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

References

"National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
"Estonian House; Beaux-Arts Restoration". The New York Times. May 17, 1992. Retrieved September 5, 2009.
^ "Estonian House History, Board of Directors and Organizations". New York Estonian House. Archived from the original on August 3, 2009. Retrieved September 5, 2009.
"About | English". The Foundation for Estonian Arts and Letters. Retrieved December 24, 2024.
Goodnough, Abby (November 6, 1994). "Making it Work; Cold War Without End". The New York Times. Retrieved September 5, 2009.
"Estonia and the US". Estonian Consulate General in New York City. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved September 5, 2009.

External links

Official website
- New York Estonian House on Facebook
- New Yorgi Eesti Maja channel in YouTube
Estonian House described by Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1978
Images of the building in New York Architecture Images

Midtown (30th–42nd Sts) and Midtown South

Manhattan, New York City

Buildings

8th Av – 5th Av	One Penn Plaza 5 Times Sq 11 Times Sq 15 Penn Plaza 130 W 30th St 350 5th Av 452 5th Av (HSBC Tower) 1065 6th Av 1095 6th Av American Radiator Building The Bryant Bryant Park Studios Bush Tower Candler Building The Continental NYC Empire State Building Engineering Societies' Building Engineers' Club Building The Epic Greenwich Savings Bank Building James A. Farley Building Lord & Taylor Building Macy's Herald Square Manhattan Mall Marbridge Building Million Dollar Corner Music Bldg Nelson Tower New York Times Bldg Pennsylvania Plaza Springs Mills Building Times Square Tower
5th Av – 3rd Av (incl. Murray Hill)	One Grand Central Place 2 Park Av 3 Park Av 4 Park Av 10 E 40th St 18 E 41st St 29 E 32nd St (Grolier Club) 101 Park Av 110 E 42nd St 146 East 38th Street 152 East 38th Street 200 Madison Av 275 Madison Av 425 5th Av 461 5th Av Adelaide L. T. Douglas House Allerton 39th Street House Chanin Building Civic Club / Estonian House Colony Club Demarest Building George S. Bowdoin Stable Jonathan W. Allen Stable Joseph Raphael De Lamar House (Polish Consulate) Lefcourt Colonial Building Madison Belmont Building Pershing Square Building Robb House Socony–Mobil Building Tiffany and Company Building Union League Club Williams Club
Former	Bryant Hall Building Kaskel and Kaskel Building Latting Observatory Pennsylvania Station Waldorf–Astoria

Culture

Shops, restaurants, nightlife	Ai Fiori Café China The Cutting Room J. Levine Books and Judaica Keens Steakhouse Lan Sheng Okdongsik Sushi Sho Wolfgang's Steakhouse
Museums/cultural centers	Girl Scout Museum and Archives Houdini Museum of New York Morgan Library & Museum Museum of the Dog Scandinavia House
Hotels	Grand Hotel The Knickerbocker The Langham Library Hotel Martinique New York Hotel McAlpin Hotel Pennsylvania The Roger Hotel The Wilbraham Hotel Wolcott Wyndham New Yorker Hotel
Venues and theaters	AMC Empire 25 New Amsterdam Theatre Nederlander Theatre Madison Square Garden The Theater at Madison Square Garden
Former	Anco Cinema Belmont Hotel Broadway Theatre Browne's Chop House Cafe Rouge Garrick Theatre Herald Square Theatre Hotel Pierrepont Kajitsu Liberty Theatre Maxine Elliott's Theatre Metropolitan Opera House Morgans Hotel Princess Theatre Reuben's Restaurant Sam H. Harris Theatre Savoy Theatre

Other points of interest

Green spaces	Bryant Park
Education	CUNY Graduate School of Journalism CUNY School of Professional Studies Guttman Community College High School of Art and Design New York Public Library Main Branch Norman Thomas High School Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library Stern College for Women William Esper Studio Wood Tobé–Coburn School
Religion	Armenian Evangelical Church of New York First Zen Institute of America Holy Innocents Church Millinery Center Synagogue Our Saviour Roman Catholic Church Redeemer Presbyterian Church St. Francis of Assisi Church

Transportation

Subway stations	33rd Street 34th Street–Penn Station 34th Street–Herald Square 34th Street–Penn Station 42nd Street–Bryant Park/Fifth Avenue 42nd Street–Port Authority Bus Terminal Grand Central–42nd Street Times Square–42nd Street
Railroad/bus	Grand Central Madison Grand Central Terminal New York Penn Station Port Authority Bus Terminal
Streets and intersections	Third Avenue Fifth Avenue Sixth Avenue Seventh Avenue Eighth Avenue 34th 42nd Broadway Herald Square Lexington Avenue Madison Avenue Park Avenue Park Avenue Tunnel

Related topics
Caspar Samler farm Garment District Koreatown Murray Hill Sniffen Court Historic District Tenderloin

See also: Manhattan Community Board 5

East Midtown (34th–59th Sts, east of Lexington Ave) and Turtle Bay

Manhattan, New York City

Buildings

34th–42nd Sts	146 East 38th Street 152 East 38th Street 207 East 36th Street 325 East 38th Street 333 East 38th Street Allerton 39th Street House Civic Club / Estonian House The Copper The Corinthian Daily News Building George S. Bowdoin Stable Jonathan W. Allen Stable Kips Bay Brewing Company Manhattan Place Socony–Mobil Building Tudor City View 34
42nd–51st Sts	One Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza One United Nations Plaza Two United Nations Plaza Three United Nations Plaza 50 United Nations Plaza 219 East 49th Street 525 Lexington Avenue 569 Lexington Avenue Amster Yard Beaux-Arts Apartments Beekman Tower Edgar J. Kaufmann Conference Center Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice Lescaze House Luxembourg House Trump World Tower Tudor City Turkish House Turtle Bay Gardens United Nations headquarters Dag Hammarskjöld Library Conference Building General Assembly Building Secretariat Building
51st–59th Sts	One Sutton Place South 23 Beekman Place 252 East 57th Street 300 East 57th Street 303 East 51st Street 312 and 314 East 53rd Street 599 Lexington Avenue 731 Lexington Avenue 919 Third Avenue Citigroup Center Lipstick Building Modulightor Building River House Rockefeller Guest House The Sovereign Sutton House
Former	East Side Airline Terminal Kips Bay Generating Station Waterside Generating Station

Culture

Shops, restaurants, nightlife	P. J. Clarke's Sarge's Deli Shun Lee Palace Sparks Steak House Sushi Amane Sushi Yasuda Tempura Matsui Townhouse Bar
Museums/venues	The ImaginAsian Japan Society Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre Trygve Lie Gallery
Hotels	The Benjamin Royal Sonesta New York Lexington Hotel Millennium Hilton New York One UN Plaza The Westin New York Grand Central Hotel
Former	Belmont Plaza Hotel Café Nicholson Caesar's Retreat Christ Cella Cloud Club Convivio Costello's DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Metropolitan New York City El Morocco The Embers Lafayette Le Cirque Le Club Lutèce Mischa Murray Hill Theatre Museum of the Peaceful Arts Neary's New York Marriott East Side Tulsi Vong

Other points of interest

Green spaces	Amster Yard Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza East River Greenway Greenacre Park MacArthur Playground Peter Detmold Park Ralph Bunche Park Robert Moses Playground St. Vartan Park Trygve Lie Plaza
Education	Cathedral High School High School of Art and Design Lyceum Kennedy International School P.S. 135 Stern College for Women
Religion	Church Center for the United Nations Church of the Covenant Church of the Holy Family St. Agnes Church St. Boniface Church St. Gabriel Church St. John the Evangelist Church St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral Sutton Place Synagogue

Transportation

Subway stations	Grand Central–42nd Street Lexington Avenue/51st Street Lexington Avenue/59th Street
Railroad, ferry	Grand Central Madison Grand Central Terminal East 34th Street Ferry Landing
Streets	First Avenue Second Avenue Third Avenue 34th Street 42nd 47th 50th 51st 52nd 53rd 54th 55th 57th 59th Beekman Place Lexington Avenue Sutton Place

Related topics
Murray Hill Sniffen Court Historic District

See also: Manhattan Community Board 6

v t e U.S. National Register of Historic Places in New York
Topics	Contributing property Keeper of the Register Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places National Park Service Property types
Lists by county	Albany Allegany Bronx Broome Cattaraugus Cayuga Chautauqua Chemung Chenango Clinton Columbia Cortland Delaware Dutchess Erie Essex Franklin Fulton Genesee Greene Hamilton Herkimer Jefferson Kings (Brooklyn) Lewis Livingston Madison Monroe Montgomery Nassau New York (Manhattan) Niagara Oneida Onondaga Ontario Orange Orleans Oswego Otsego Putnam Queens Rensselaer Richmond (Staten Island) Rockland Saratoga Schenectady Schoharie Schuyler Seneca St. Lawrence Steuben Suffolk Sullivan Tioga Tompkins Ulster Warren Washington Wayne Westchester Northern Southern Wyoming Yates
Lists by city	Albany Buffalo New Rochelle New York City Bronx Brooklyn Queens Staten Island Manhattan Below 14th St. 14th–59th St. 59th–110th St. Above 110th St. Minor islands Niagara Falls Peekskill Poughkeepsie Rhinebeck Rochester Syracuse Yonkers
Other lists	Bridges and tunnels National Historic Landmarks New York City Outside New York City
Category List National Register of Historic Places Portal

Categories: