Prudential Financial is based in Newark, New Jersey. It began as The Widows and Orphans Friendly Society in 1875, and for a short time it was called the Prudential Friendly Society. For many years after 1877 it was known as the Prudential Insurance Company of America,[1] a name still widely in use. The company has constructed a number of buildings to house its offices in downtown in the Four Corners district.[2] In addition to its own offices, the corporation has financed large projects in the city, including Gateway Center and Prudential Center. Prudential has over 5,000 employees in the city.

Prudential Home Office

Prudential Home Office
General information
Completed1892
Demolished1956
Height
Roof45.73 m (150.0 ft)
Technical details
Floor count11
Design and construction
Architect(s)George B. Post
Main contractorHedden Construction Company
References
[3][4]

The four original Prudential headquarters buildings were built from 1892 to 1911 as early examples of steel framing in Newark, clad in gray Indiana limestone with Romanesque styling, the work of George B. Post.[5][6] The four buildings were known as the Main Building, the North Building, the West Building, and the Northwest Building, and were the tallest in the city at the turn of the 20th century. All were demolished in 1956 to make way for the current Prudential Plaza building.[7]

Detail of the tower of the Main Building

The Prudential Lions are sculptures designed by Karl Bitter. The two carved limestone companion pieces depict seated male lions, each with its front paw placed on a sphere. They are approximately seven feet tall and weigh 2,900 pounds each. The works were originally created 1901 to stand above the front entrance of the Prudential Home Office. When it was demolished in they were removed and given to Essex County Parks Commission by the Prudential Insurance Company of America and installed in Branch Brook Park in 1959.[8][9][10]

Gibraltar Building

Gibraltar Building
General information
Location153 Halsey Street
Coordinates40°44′15″N 74°10′24″W / 40.7375175°N 74.1733776°W / 40.7375175; -74.1733776
Completed1927
Height
Roof67 m (220 ft)
Technical details
Floor count14
Floor area299,990 sq ft (27,870 m2)[11]
Design and construction
Architect(s)Cass Gilbert
References
[12][13][14]

The Gibraltar Building was built by Prudential in 1927 at 153 Halsey Street, across from the old Home Office as additional office space. The name was inspired by the Rock of Gibraltar, which is featured in the Prudential logo. The Gothic Revival structure was designed by the architect Cass Gilbert, renowned for many works including the Woolworth Building and the United States Supreme Court Building.

It was sold by Prudential in 1986 to Hartz Mountain Industries, which renovated the building.[12][14] It was sold in 2021 to an investment partnership, which planned a major renovation to upgrade and 'reactivate' it.[15][16] It houses the Superior Court of New Jersey's Essex County Vicinage Family Court, Chancery, and Tax Court, the New Jersey Motion Picture & Television Commission, as well as other government agencies and private enterprises.

Prudential Building

Prudential Building
General information
Location213 Washington Street
Coordinates40°44′16″N 74°10′28″W / 40.7378561°N 74.1744907°W / 40.7378561; -74.1744907
Completed1942
Height
Roof91 m (299 ft)
Technical details
Floor count21
Design and construction
Structural engineerGunvald Aus Company
References
[17][18]

The Prudential Building is located at 213 Washington Street, across from the Gibraltar Building. It was completed in 1942. Shortly after it was taken over by the federal government for use by the Office of Dependency Benefits (ODB), which responsible for payments to military dependents and their families and moved to Newark from Washington during World War II. Work went on around the clock at 213 Washington Street until it was returned to Prudential in 1946.

Prudential Plaza

Prudential Plaza
General information
Location745 Broad Street
Coordinates40°44′13″N 74°10′18″W / 40.7370285°N 74.1717390°W / 40.7370285; -74.1717390
Construction started1956
Opening1960
Height
Roof114 m (374 ft)
Technical details
Floor count24
Design and construction
Architect(s)Voorhees, Walker, Smith, Smith and Haines
References
[19][20]

Prudential's main headquarters, Prudential Plaza, opened in 1960 on the site of the former home office buildings during the New Newark era when modernist buildings were built downtown. The International style building is one of the tallest and most prominent on the Newark skyline. The facade of Vermont marble includes 1,600 windows set in aluminum frames. It was designed by Voorhees, Walker, Smith, Smith and Haines The lobby of the building was originally adorned with triptych of mosaics designed by Hildreth Meiere entitled "The Pillars of Hercules". The panels had been removed and put in storage; two were formally installed at the Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, D.C., and another in Newark Museum.[21][22]

On August 1, 2004, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced the discovery of terrorist threats against the Plaza prompting large-scale security measures such as concrete barriers and internal security changes such as X-ray machines.[23]

Prudential Tower

Prudential Tower
General information
StatusCompleted
Location655 Broad Street
Coordinates40°44′21″N 74°10′16″W / 40.7392880°N 74.1711990°W / 40.7392880; -74.1711990
Construction started2013
Completed2015
Opening2015
Height
Roof45.73 m (150.0 ft)
Technical details
Floor count20
References
[3][4]

In 2011, Prudential announced plans to construct another office tower near the Plaza headquarters. The company had received a $250 million urban transit tax credit from the state which required that it create new jobs and build within walking distance of a transit hub.[24] The site of the $444 million 650,000 sq ft (60,000 m2) tower is on Broad Street just west of Military Park.[25][26][27] Construction began in July 2013.[28][29][30] The exterior of the tower was completed in January 2015 and the building opened in July 2015.[31]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "History of The Prudential Insurance Company of America – FundingUniverse". fundinguniverse.com.
  2. ↑ "Emporis: Prudential Insurance Company Headquarters". Emporis.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2007. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  3. 1 2 Emporis GmbH. "Prudential Life Insurance - Main Building, Newark - 102776 - EMPORIS". emporis.com.
  4. 1 2 "The American Skyscraper, 1850-1940". google.nl.
  5. ↑ "Prudential Life Insurance Building · DANA". dana.njit.edu.
  6. ↑ "Newark Building Active" (PDF). The New York Times.
  7. ↑ Emporis GmbH. "Prudential Tower, Newark - 103166 - EMPORIS". Emporis.com.
  8. ↑ "Prudential Lions · DANA". dana.njit.edu.
  9. ↑ "Prudential Lions - Originals". KREILICK CONSERVATION, LLC.
  10. ↑ https://branchbrookpark.org/uploads/1/3/1/7/131747681/bbp_clr_vol4_1_-_structures_in_the_park.pdf
  11. ↑ "153 Halsey Street". Skyscraper Center. CTBUH. Retrieved October 15, 2017.
  12. 1 2 Kennedy, Shawn G. (October 26, 1987). "ABOUT REAL ESTATE; NEW LIFE AWAITS BUILDING SAVED IN HEART OF NEWARK". The New York Times. Retrieved October 25, 2017 – via www.NYTimes.com.
  13. ↑ Emporis GmbH. "153 Halsey Street, Newark - 121332 - EMPORIS". Emporis.com.
  14. 1 2 "Hartz Mountain Developments". HartzMountain.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2010. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  15. ↑ Johnstone, Amie (December 8, 2021). "Partnership Commits $150 Million to Reactivate Two Iconic Newark Buildings". Jersey Digs. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  16. ↑ Wiedmann, Tom (December 8, 2021). "$70M Investment Planned for Two Historic Downtown Newark Buildings Through Partnership". TAPinto. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Prudential Building". Emporis.com. Retrieved July 5, 2009.
  18. ↑ "Prudential Building". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved July 5, 2009.
  19. ↑ "Prudential Plaza Building". Emporis.com. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  20. ↑ "Prudential Plaza Building". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  21. ↑ Kahn, Eve M. (October 4, 2012). "Newark Museum to Exhibit Hercules Mosaic Panel". The New York Times. Retrieved October 25, 2017 – via www.NYTimes.com.
  22. ↑ McGee, Celia (May 1, 2014). "Hildreth Meière, the Forgotten Art Deco Artist". The New York Times. Retrieved October 25, 2017 – via www.NYTimes.com.
  23. ↑ George, Jason; Cave, Damien (August 3, 2004). "A Surprise at Prudential: It's a Terror Target". New York Times. Retrieved April 9, 2010.
  24. ↑ Portlock, Sarah; Megerian, Chris (September 19, 2011), "Prudential considering land near NJPAC for additional office space, sources say", The Star Ledger, retrieved March 15, 2012
  25. ↑ Portlock, Sarah (March 15, 2012), "Prudential changes location of proposed new office tower to Broad Street, near Military Park", The Star Ledger, retrieved March 15, 2012
  26. ↑ Portlock, Sarah (March 16, 2012). "Prudential plans to build new, $444M skyscraper in downtown Newark". NJ.com.
  27. ↑ De Poto, Tom; Giambusso, David (July 28, 2012). "Prudential considers second tower for new Broad Street location". NJ.com.
  28. ↑ Joshua Burd (June 4, 2013). "Prudential details plan to integrate new $444M office tower at ground level in Newark". NJBIZ.
  29. ↑ "Skanska Begins Construction of Prudential's Newark Office Tower - High Rise Facilities". High Rise Facilities. 26 May 2016.
  30. ↑ "Brick City Live - As employees settle in, prospects for Prudential Tower to become a center of gravity in its new neighborhood". brickcitylive.com.
  31. ↑ Mazzola, Jessica (October 1, 2015). "4 unique features of the newest addition to Newark skyline". NJ.com. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
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