Eberhard Faber Pencil Factory

The Eberhard Faber Pencil Factory (currently, Pencil Factory Recording) is a former pencil factory complex in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York City. Designated as a historic district by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (NYCLPC) in 2007, it is composed of nine buildings spread across two blocks.

The factory was founded by John Eberhard Faber, the great-grandson of 18th-century pencil entrepreneur Kaspar Faber. The younger Faber established a pencil factory in Midtown Manhattan in 1866. Following a fire six years later, Faber moved to a larger location in Greenpoint, which expanded through the late 19th and early 20th centuries with the acquisition or addition of several buildings. Faber's children split the company from its German parent in 1898, and it remained in Greenpoint until 1956, when it moved to Pennsylvania.

By the 21st century, part of the complex was in use as the Kickstarter headquarters, while other portions of the complex had been converted to residential, commercial (the "Pencil Factory Recording" studio[1]) and or industrial uses.

History

Expansion

Over the next twenty years, the Eberhard Faber Pencil Factory complex was expanded with several buildings.[15][16] The first such building, located at 100–106 West Street predated the factory itself, having been erected in the mid-1860s as a real estate investment for local resident and iron merchant Francis N. Gove. Another building predating the factory was 98 West Street, built by the Faience Manufacturing Company circa 1870. These structures, originally three stories, both received a fourth floor around 1901. Additional structures were built in the 1880s. The four-story 37 Greenpoint Avenue, at the corner with West Street, was built in 1881 by S.A. Valentine and taken over by Faber in the late 1880s, whereupon it was used as a mailing address and for offices. The three-story 76 Kent Street, on the south side of the street, was built at some point from 1886 to 1904 and was originally used as a stable before being taken over by Faber for storage in the early 20th century.[17]

Eberhard Faber's children split the company from its German parent in 1898. Structures built afterward were larger and had architecture that complemented the existing buildings. The facade running along 58–70 Kent Street incorporates three former factory structures: the German Renaissance Revival structure at 60–64 Kent Street, as well as two demolished strictures, the German Renaissance Revival building at 66–70 Kent Street and the Italianate building at 58 Kent Street. This facade includes a brick cornice, cast-iron lintels, segmental windows, and courses of dentil.[17] Three other German Renaissance Revival buildings were constructed in the complex at the turn of the 20th century. The first was the five-story 39–45 Greenpoint Avenue, built by the Valentine family in 1901. The second, a three-story structure with basement at 72–74 Kent Street, was built in 1904–1908 and possibly made specifically for the Faber factory. The third was the five-story building at 59–63 Kent Street, on the north side of Kent Street across from the main factory complex, originally connected to the main complex by a footbridge on the fourth floor.[18] A final building at 47–61 Greenpoint Avenue was built in 1923–1924 in the Art Deco style.[19]

The Eberhard Faber Pencil Company announced its plans to move to Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in 1955.[20] The following year, the company moved to Pennsylvania and the factory was sold to a syndicate.[21][22] By 2000, the old factory was being renovated into manufacturing and office space for several small companies.[23] By the mid-1980s, two of the buildings in 58–70 Kent Street had been destroyed, while 76 Kent Street had been partly converted into a residential building.[17]

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Eberhard Faber Pencil Factory historic district on October 30, 2007.[24] In 2011, Kickstarter purchased several of the buildings in the complex for US$3.6 million,[25] and announced its plans to renovated these structures, having gotten approval from the NYCLPC.[26] The following year, 58–70 Kent Street was made into the Kickstarter headquarters.[27] In 2018, the New York University School of Medicine signed a lease to occupy part of 72–74 Kent Street.[28] Whalar, a talent firm, bought 58 Kent Street in December 2023 after Kickstarter transitioned to fully remote work.[29]

Kent Street buildings

There are four buildings on both sides of Kent Street: three along 58–76 Kent Street on the south side, and a building at 59–63 Kent Street on the north side.[34]

58–70 Kent Street, located on the south side of Kent Street east of the intersection with West Street, incorporates the facades of three former factory buildings on the site. The westernmost of these (on the right when facing the entrance) is 58 Kent Street, an Italianate building designed by Philemon Tillion in 1860 and erected by Francis Gove. In the center is 60–64 Kent Street, a Renaissance Revival building designed by Theobald Engelhardt and built in 1895 by Faber; this facade contains brick dentil courses and corbels, cast iron lintels, radiating brick arches, and bluestone water tables. The easternmost is 66–70 Kent Street, erected in the Romanesque Revival style, with jutting brick header arches above the windows, cast iron lintels above the doors, and iron shutter hinges. The pediments above the latter two sections show the company motif.[38][39] In the 2010s, the building was renovated into the Kickstarter headquarters, but the architecture remained mostly intact.[39]

72–74 Kent Street, a three-story brick factory in the Renaissance Revival style, was erected around 1904–1908.[40] Measuring nine bays wide, it contains a central pediment upon which the company's motif was placed. It contains projecting greystone window sills, lintels above the windows, and a brick corbel.[41] Two fire escapes are located on the building's facade, one shared with its eastern neighbor, 76 Kent Street.[40] As of 2018 this space is partially occupied by the New York University School of Medicine as a physical therapy and imaging center.[28]

76 Kent Street, a three-story Renaissance Revival building, was built at an unknown date between 1886 and 1904. It contains brick lintels, cornice and parapet, as well a first-floor steel lintel. Sometime in the 1980s it was partially made into a residential building.[41]

59–63 Kent Street, a five-story building built around 1910–1911, is located on the north side of Kent Street. It was built to a design by F. Nelson, an obscure architect whose listed address was the same as Faber's mailing address.[38] 59–63 Kent is nine bays wide and contains Renaissance Revival ornamentation, including brick corbels, a central pediment, and the company's motif at the top. There is one fire escape on the facade. It was formerly connected to a building across Kent Street, which is now occupied by 58–70 Kent.[42]

coordinates	40.73028°N, -73.95889°W
built	1872
operated	1872–1956 (as a factory)
location	Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York City
industry	Stationery
products	Pencils
buildings	9
owner	Eberhard Faber Pencil Company (1871–1956)

Eberhard Faber Pencil Factory

History

Context

Expansion

Architecture

Greenpoint Avenue buildings

See also

References

Kent Street buildings

West Street buildings