University Club of Albany | |
 South profile and east (front) elevation, 2011 | |
  Location within New York | |
| Location | Albany, NY |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 42°39′21″N 73°45′39″W / 42.65583°N 73.76083°W |
| Built | 1924[2] |
| Architect | Fuller & Robinson Company |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 11000268[1] |
| Added to NRHP | May 11, 2011[1] |
The University Club of Albany, New York, was a social club founded in 1901 that closed in 2022.[3] It was most recently housed in a Colonial Revival brick building at the corner of Washington Avenue (New York State Route 5) and Dove Street.
In 2011 that building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]After purchasing the building in 2022 for $950,000,[4] Business for Good donated use of the building to the Albany Black Chamber of Commerce, which opened its doors in February 2023.[5]
Young men who had recently graduated from college founded the club in the early 20th century as a place to gather until they had achieved the social status necessary to follow their fathers into the older Fort Orange Club. It met in one founder's house for several years until it could purchase a house that stood at its last location, on which it built a wing. When that house burned down in the 1920s, Albany architects the Fuller & Robinson company designed the current main building to replace it. It was his last major work in the city.
The club has played a role in the city's social and cultural life since its founding. Speakers at its events in its early years included President William Howard Taft, Andrew Carnegie, Earl Grey and various governors of New York. Its amenities include a library, dining facilities, meeting rooms, and one of the oldest bowling alleys in the country, which may also be the oldest private bowling alley in continual use in the state.[6]
- ^ a b c "National Register of Historic Places listings for May 20, 2011". National Park Service. May 20, 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ^ Alvarez, Kimberly Conrad (November 15, 2010). "National Register of Historic Places nomination, University Club of Albany". NYSOPRHP. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ^ Grondahl, Paul (2022-04-06). "University Club sells landmark Albany building, faces uncertain future after 121 years". Times Union. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
- ^ Grondahl, Paul (6 April 2022). "University Club sells landmark Albany building, faces uncertain future after 121 years". Albany Times Union. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ Manno, Melissa (2 February 2023). "Albany Black Chamber of Commerce opens doors at former University Club". Albany Times Union. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
- ^ "The University Club". All Over Albany. May 25, 2011. Retrieved December 22, 2011.