nd probably was the most
ambitious coffee-house project the world has known. Built of stone,
marble, and brick, it stood seven stories high, and cost a half-million
dollars. Charles Bulfinch, America's most noted architect of that
period, was the designer.

[Illustration: EXCHANGE COFFEE HOUSE, BOSTON, 1808, PROBABLY THE LARGEST
AND MOST COSTLY IN THE WORLD

Built of stone, marble and brick, it stood seven stories high and cost
$500,000. It was patterned after Lloyd's of London, and was the center
of marine intelligence in Boston]

Like Lloyd's coffee house in London, the Exchange was the center of
marine intelligence, and its public rooms were thronged all day and
evening with mariners, naval officers, ship and insurance brokers, who
had come to talk shop or to consult the records of ship arrivals and
departures, manifests, charters, and other marine papers. The first
floor of the Exchange was devoted to trading. On the next floor was the
large dining room, where many sumptuous banquets were given, notably the
one to President Monroe in July, 1817, which was attended by former
President John Adams, and by many generals, commodores, governors, and
judges. The other floors were given over to living and sleeping rooms,
of which there were more than 200. The Exchange coffee house was
destroyed by fire in 1818; and on its site was erected another, bearing
the same name, but having slight resemblance to its predecessor.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: PRESIDENT-ELECT WASHINGTON WELCOMED AT THE MERCHANTS
COFFEE HOUSE, NEW YORK

The reception took place April 23, 1789, one week before his
inauguration. From a painting by Charles P. Gruppe, owned by the author]

CHAPTER XIII

HISTORY OF COFFEE IN OLD NEW YORK

_The burghers of New Amsterdam begin to substitute coffee for
"must," or beer, at breakfast in 1668--William Penn makes his first
purchase of coffee in the green bean from New York merchants in
1683--The King's Arms, the first coffee house--The historic
Merchants, sometimes called the "Birthplace of our Union"--The
coffee house as a civic forum--The Exchange, Whitehall, Burns,
Tontine, and other celebrated coffee houses--The Vauxhall and
Ranelagh pleasure gardens_

The Dutch founders of New York seem to have introduced tea into New
Amsterdam before they brought in coffee. This was somewhere about the
middle of the seventeenth century. We find it recorded that ab