Metropolitan Club (New York City)

About

The Metropolitan Club is a private social club on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, New York. It was founded as a gentlemen's club in March 1891 by a group of wealthy New Yorkers led by the financier John Pierpont Morgan. The clubhouse at Fifth Avenue and 60th Street was designed by McKim, Mead & White and is a New York City designated landmark. The club is controlled by a 25-member board of governors. Initially, only men could become members, though women were given membership privileges in the mid-20th century. Like other Gilded Age social clubs, the Metropolitan Club functioned largely as a meeting place for the wealthy, hosting events such as luncheons, dinners, debutante balls, and business meetings. Over the years, the club's membership has included bankers, industrialists, doctors, lawyers, and CEOs, including several members each from the Goelet, Roosevelt, Vanderbilt, and Whitney families.