India House Records, 1830-2014

File

Identifier: SC-0033

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The India House collection contains materials related to Executive Meeting Minutes, publications, events, Art Committee Meeting Minutes and some correspondence.

Research materials are majority textual with some photographs and 2 DVDs of photographs.

Dates

Majority of material found within 1830 - 2014

Conditions Governing Use

Reproductions may be provided to users to support research and scholarship. However, collection use is subject to all copyright laws. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.

Biographical / Historical

India House (1914-2020) was a private gentleman’s club for those involved in foreign trade. It operated out of historic landmark 1 Hanover Square for the length of its tenure. India house served lunch and dinner to members for decades, and regularly put on art events like the Art Luncheon through its Art Committee. The building housed Maritime art of many mediums, from paintings to ship models and sculptures. India House closed its doors permanently in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

1 Hanover Square was originally built for the Hanover Bank, serving later as the New York Cotton Exchange and finally as the officed of W.R. Grace & Co before India House (1).

References 1. Landmarks Preservation Commission. "Landmarks Preservation Commission December 21, 1965, Calendar No. 4 LP-0042." https://web.archive.org/web/20200921135220/https://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0042.pdf. Accessed 4/30/25. Archived at Wayback Machine. https://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/0042.pdf. Capture date September 21, 2020. 2. Christopher Gray. "Streetscapes/India House, at 1 Hanover Square; A Club Created With the Theme of World Commerce." New York Times, June 30, 2002, Section 11, Page 7. Accessed via TimesMachine https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/2002/06/30/690414.html?pageNumber=263. 4/30/25

Extent

5 Linear Feet (5 Banker Boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Arrangement

Materials are arranged into the following series: Meeting Minutes of the Executive Committee and Board of Governers Publications Correspondence Events Art Committee Operational Paperwork Miscellaneous Member Files

Physical Location

Stephen B. Luce Library, SUNY Maritime College 6 Pennyfield Avenue Bronx, NY 10465 Telephone:(718) 409-7231 library@sunymaritime.edu

Immediate Source of Acquisition

India House was located at 1 Hanover Square in the Financial District and served as a social club for gentlemen involved in foreign commerce. James A. Farrell and Willard Straight founded India House in July 1914. Over the years, its members came to include politicians such as U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt; U.S. secretary of commerce Harry Hopkins; U.S. treasury secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr.; U.S. secretaries of state George C. Marshall, James F. Byrnes, and Cyrus Vance; New York governor W. Averell Harriman; U.S. Senator Henry Cabot Lodge; and mayors John P. O'Brien and William Adams Delano. India House closed its doors in 2022.