Designed by William Welles Bosworth, who played a significant role in designing Kykuit, the Rockefeller mansion north of Tarrytown, New York, it was a modern steel structure clad top to bottom in a Greek-styled exterior, the three-story-high Ionic columns of Vermont granite forming eight registers over a Doric base. 13 The lobby of the ATT Building was one of the most unusual ones of the era.

For the 2005 company that resulted from the acquisition by SBC, see ATT.

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Formerly American Telephone and Telegraph Company Former type Subsidiary Industry Telecommunications Fate Became subsidiary of ATT Inc.

At its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, it employed one million people and its revenue ranged between 3 billion in 1950 2 (34.7 billion in present-day terms 3 ) and 12 billion in 1966 4 (97.9 billion in present-day terms 3 ).

Originally a verbal agreement, it was formalized in writing in 1875 as Bell Telephone Company.

The project was the first of its kind to create a nationwide long-distance network with a commercially viable cost-structure.

The project was formally incorporated in New York State as a separate company named American Telephone and Telegraph Company on March 3, 1885.

On December 30, 1899, the assets of American Bell were transferred into its subsidiary American Telephone and Telegraph Company (formerly ATT Long Lines ); this was because Massachusetts corporate laws were very restrictive, and limited capitalization to ten million dollars, forestalling American Bells further growth.

With this assets transfer on the penultimate day of the penultimate year of the 19th century, ATT became the parent of both American Bell and the Bell System.

It established station WEAF in New York as what was termed a toll station.

ATT could provide no programming, but anyone who wished to broadcast a message could pay a toll to ATT and then air the message publicly.

The idea, however, did not take hold, because people would pay to broadcast messages only if they were sure that someone was listening.

As a result, WEAF began broadcasting entertainment material, drawing amateur talent found among its employees.

Opposition to ATTs expansion into radio and an agreement with the National Broadcasting Company to lease long-distance lines for their broadcasts resulted in the sale of the station and its developing network of affiliates to NBC.

Anxious to avoid action from government antitrust suits, ATT and the federal government entered into an agreement known as the Kingsbury Commitment.

In the Kingsbury Commitment, ATT and the government reached an agreement that allowed ATT to continue operating as a monopoly.

While ATT periodically faced scrutiny from regulators, this state of affairs continued until the companys breakup in 1984.

A settlement to this case was finalized in 1982, leading to the division of the company on January 1, 1984 into seven Regional Bell Operating Companies, commonly known as Baby Bells.

ATT announced in 1995 that it would split into three companies: a manufacturingRD company, a computer company, and a services company.

NCR, Bell Labs and ATT Technologies were to be spun off by 1997.

In preparation for its spin-off, ATT Technologies was renamed Lucent Technologies.

With its expansion it moved to New York City, to a headquarters on 195 Broadway (close to what is now the World Trade Center site ).

The property originally belonged to Western Union, of which ATT held a controlling interest until 1913 when ATT divested its interest as part of the Kingsbury Commitment.

Construction of the current building began in 1912.

The lobby of the ATT Building was one of the most unusual ones of the era.

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