History and architecture
The main building of Cooper Union is one of those proud buildings on the American Scene which may rightly take its place with the pioneer buildings of all lands. It was here that innovations were made both in the physical structure of the building and in the use for which it was designed - all of them brainchildren of the great philanthropist Peter Cooper.
Employing some of the first rolled sections ever used in New York City, this large six-story brownstone building was built in the Anglo-Italianate Style. It displays the heavily-enframed round-arched windows which were such a conspicuous feature of this style and two handsome roundarched porches at the north and south ends. The building was designed to accommodate an elevator practically before that invention had been made available for passenger use. Peter Cooper not only assisted in the perfection of the rolling machinery necessary to produce beams but paid for and had built the machinery from which they were rolled in his own plant at Trenton, New Jersey.
These pioneer beams are an integral part of this great building. They made possible the later development of the skyscraper.
Established as one of New York's earliest free institutions equipped to give its pupils the equivalent of a college education, Cooper Union nonetheless stressed the trades and the useful arts whereby its pupils could make a living in the world. It also opened its doors for women, further indicating the breadth of Peter Cooper's vision and his anticipation, by many years, of women's rights movements. In this building in February of 1860, Lincoln gave the speech which he later credited with winning him the Presidency.
Sources and further reading
This history comes from the Landmarks app’s historical catalog. Names and building uses may reflect the period described.