The Montauk Club in Park Slope

Montauk Club South Facade

Montauk Club from Corner

Located on 8th Avenue and Lincoln Place, the Montauk Club (1889) was a Victorian era gentlemen's club designed by architect Francis H. Kimball. The Montauk was one of the only  gentleman's clubs of the era to included separate facilities for its members wives. Originally the top two floors contained bedrooms and the first, second and third floors were for dining and entertaining. There was also a bowling alley in the basement.[1] The Montauk is one of the few surviving clubs from its time and it continues to serve its members, as well as the Park Slope community by hosting "talks by local authors, jazz performances, Prohibition era cocktail functions and Victorian era salon parties". The clubhouse also provides a venue for personal and business entertaining.[2]

Pennsylvania Convention Center - Philadelphia
(Designed by Francis H. Kimball)

The builders:
Francis H. Kimball had worked for London architect William Burges and had many noteworthy buildings credited to his name including the Pennsylvania Convention Center - Reading Terminal Headhouse in Philadelphia (pictured above), Manhattan Life Insurance Building and the Empire Building.[1][3] He was also partially responsible for establishing a "New York School" of architecture during the same time that architects like Louis Sullivan were establishing the well known "Chicago School" of architecture.[3] In addition to the building's well known architect it is worth noting that the stone mason responsible for the Montauk Club's construction was Charles T. Mills, the most highly regarded stone mason in New York City at the time. Some of the buildings Mills was responsible for constructing include: the DeLamar House, University Club of New York and Pierpont Morgan Library.[1]

Montauk Club Loggia with Montauk Indian Frieze Above

Montauk Club - Montauk Indian Terracotta Ornament

The building:
The building's design is based on the Venetian floral Gothic style. The quatrefoil spandrels, inflected arch windows, balustraded balconies and loggias all harken back to Venetian Gothic architecture. When I fist saw the Montauk Club building, I was reminded of the Palazzo Pisani Moretta (pictured below) and other buildings I photographed while in Venice. Venice's Ca' d'Oro and Palazzo Pisani Moretta have been cited as models for the Montauk's design. The building materials used to construct the Montauk Club are brownstone and brick with terracotta ornamentation. Much of the building's ornaments depict scenes that illustrate the lives of the Montauk Indians.[1] 

Palazzo Pisani Moretta - Venice, Italy

Included here is a photo of the Palazzo Pisani Moretta for comparison. Note the quatrefoil motif and similar roof line.

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References:

1. Morrone, Francis An Architectural Guidebook to Brooklyn. Gibbs Smith, Publisher, 2001
2. "The Montauk Club" Montaukclub.com.
3. "Kimball Symposium" The Skyscraper Museum. Online. 2007