Bayonne Community Museum

Description

The Bayonne Community Museum is located in the Bergen Point section of Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.HistoryDesigned by architect Lansing C. Holden, Sr., the Bayonne Trust Company building is an excellent example of Beaux-Arts architecture. The general contractor for the building was Wells & Marvin of New York, and the granite work was done by the George Brown Company. Construction began on May 1, 1912, with a budget of $100,000, but it cost $150,000 when completed. The bank opened on November 8, 1913. The Commercial Trust Company, its first occupant, was dissolved in 1948, and the building was sold to the United Jersey Bank. It was subsequently owned by Summit Bank and Fleet National Bank. FleetBoston Financial, which merged with Summit Bancorp in 2001, sold the bank building to the city on December 19, 2001.The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 8, 2006.Until its purchase by the City of Bayonne, the building had been used as a bank, which has contributed to the preservation of its architectural integrity. The bank was remodeled in the 1970s. The remodeling involved adding drop ceilings that covered up three stain glass windows. The original bronze doors were replaced with double doors of contemporary glass and bronze oxidized aluminum in 1979. The two-story Vermont granite-clad structure features paired, fluted Ionic columns flanking the front door, with segmented arch windows over the doorway. The entrance is in a p