Tag Archives: Greenwich Village

East Village - Cooper Union Foundation Building

East Village (Manhattan)

Work In Progress: This neighborhood gallery is not yet complete.

The East Village was once among New York’s most prestigious residential neighborhoods, with elegant architecture in classical styles. In the mid-1800s wealthy New Yorkers moved “uptown” and waves of immigrants moved in. Pieces of Germany, Eastern Europe, and much later Latin America all became part of the Lower East Side tenement tapestry.

More than 30 individual landmarks and four historic districts earned protection of The NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission. The top 12 are referenced below. The NYC Landmarks Map is highly recommended!

One of the most important landmarks anchors the northwest corner of the district: The Cooper Union Foundation Building. This building was the first to use rolled iron “I” beams, so essential to development of skyscrapers. The building also contained an elevator shaft – even before passenger elevators were available. Additionally, this is where then-candidate Abraham Lincoln gave an address that catapulted him to the nomination and the Presidency.

The photos here are just a sampling of the most picturesque buildings.

East Village Recommended Reading
East Village Building Photos

◉ = Landmark. This table is sortable and searchable.

LMname#streetbuiltarchitect
Astor Place IRT Subway EntranceAstor Placeunknown
51Astor Place2013Fumihiko Maki
Cooper Union Foundation Building50Astor Place1859Frederick A. Peterson
141Avenue Aunknown
First Houses29Avenue A1936Frederick L. Ackerman
50Avenue Bunknown
131Avenue B
Grace Church800Broadway1846James Renwick, Jr.
The Standard, East Village25Cooper Place2009Carlos Zapata, Perkins Eastman
Cooper Union41Cooper Square2009Thom Mayne - Morphosis
206E 10th Streetunknown
213E 10th Streetunknown
Dora Park Apartments172E 10th Streetunknown
Sarah Powell Huntington House347E 10th Streetunknown
293E 10th Streetunknown
317E 10th Street1848James C. Whitlock
329E 10th Street1853
311E 10th Street1853
St. Nicholas of Myra Orthodox Church288E 10th Street1883James Renwick, Jr.
Tompkins Square Branch, NY Public Library331E 10th Street1904McKim, Mead & White
All Saints Ukrainian Orthodox Church206E 11th Street1852unknown
Webster Hall125E 11th Street1886Charles Rentz
St. Marks Rectory232E 11th Street1900Ernest Flagg
NYC Free Public Bath538E 11th Street1905Arnold William Brunner
126E 12th Streetunknown
St. Ann's Church120E 12th Street1847unknown
Elizabeth Home for Girls307E 12th Street1892Calvert Vaux
151E 3rd Street
141E 3rd Street
Most Holy Redeemer Church165E 3rd Street
246E 4th Streetunknown
235E 4th Street
Merchant House Museum29E 4th Street1832unknown
542E 5th Street
545E 5th Street
226E 6th Street1890Jobst Hoffman
228E 6th Street1890Jobst Hoffman
Tompkin Square Lodging House295E 8th Street1887Calvert Vaux
206E 9th Streetunknown
True North127Fourth Avenueunknown
U.S. Post Office - Cooper Station93Fourth Avenueunknown
Grace Memorial94Fourth Avenue1883James Renwick, Jr.
141Second Avenueunknown
144Second Avenueunknown
145Second Avenueunknown
151Second Avenueunknown
159Second Avenueunknown
166Second Avenueunknown
170Second Avenueunknown
12th Street Ale House192Second Avenue
St. Mark's in the Bowery Church165Second Avenue1799Ithiel Towne, unknown
101Second Avenue1880Julius Boekell
Ottendorfer Branch, NY Public Library135Second Avenue1884William Schickel
Stuyvesant Polyclinic Hospital137Second Avenue1884William Schickel
71Second Avenue1886Adam Munch
69Second Avenue1887Julius Kastner
77Second Avenue1903George F. Pelham
97Second Avenue1903Sass & Smallheiser
65Second Avenue1926Charles B. Meyers
105Second Avenue1926Harrison Wiseman
Village East189Second Avenue1926Harrison G. Wiseman
Saul Birns Building111Second Avenue1928Ralph H. Segal
8St. Marks Placeunknown
10St. Marks Placeunknown
32St. Marks Placeunknown
Daniel Leroy House20St. Marks Place1832unknown
German-American Shooting Society Clubhouse12St. Marks Place1889William C. Frohne
Barney Building - NYU28Stuyvesant Street1896unknown
Nicholas and Elizabeth Stuyvesant Fish House21Stuyvesant Street1804unknown
110Third Avenue

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Greenwich Village signs

Greenwich Village

Work In Progress: This neighborhood gallery is not yet complete.

New York’s Greenwich Village preserves two centuries of architectural treasures. These photos only hint at the historical architecture protected by the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1969.

Although “the Village” usually includes West Village, NoHo, and East Village, this gallery excludes those subdivisions – which have their own galleries.

As befits the district’s bohemian/counterculture image, the streets here ignore (because they predate) Manhattan’s street grid. Hence, you’ll find West 4th Street and West 10th Street intersecting, when they should be parallel, six blocks apart. Getting lost may be fun, but first-time visitors will want to bring a map!*

Wikipedia summarizes:

Greenwich Village, often referred to by locals as simply “the Village,” is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan, New York City. Greenwich Village has been known as an artists’ haven, the Bohemian capital, the cradle of the modern LGBT movement, and the East Coast birthplace of both the Beat and ’60s counterculture movements. Groenwijck, one of the Dutch names for the village (meaning “Green District”), was Anglicized to Greenwich. New York University (NYU) is located in Greenwich Village.

Greenwich Village has undergone extensive gentrification and commercialization; the four zip codes that constitute the Village – 10011, 10012, 10013, and 10014 – were all ranked among the ten most expensive in the United States by median housing price in 2014, according to Forbes, with residential property sale prices in the West Village neighborhood typically exceeding US$2,000 per square foot ($22,000/m2) in 2016.

Highly recommended: NYC Landmarks Map

* P.S., the West Village’s Gay Street has nothing to do with sexual orientation. Go ahead, Google it!

Greenwich Village Recommended Reading
Greenwich Village Architecture Photos
Building / Address Year Architect
1 Fifth Avenue 1927 Helme & Corbett, Sugarman & Berger
37 Washington Square West 1928 Gronenberg & Leuchtag
39 Fifth Avenue 1922 Emery Roth
Beauclaire / 25 E 9th Street, 26 E 10th Street, 40 University Place 1926 Sugarman & Berger
Cable Building / 611 Broadway 1894 McKim, Mead & White
Devonshire House / 28 E 10th Street 1926 Emery Roth
Lockwood de Forest house / 7 E 10th Street 1887 Van Campen Taylor
The New School / 63 Fifth Avenue 2014 Skidmore Owings & Merrill
Novarre / 135 W 4th Street 1860 Charles Hadden
Roosevelt Building 1894 Stephen D. Hatch
Wordsworth / 21 E 10th Street 1926 Sugarman & Berger

Google Map Note: Google’s definition includes the West Village; this gallery encompasses only the area east of Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas).

NYC Landmarks Map

West Village

West Village (Manhattan)

The West Village runs from Sixth Avenue to the Hudson River, between W 14th Street and W Houston Street. Almost all of the neighborhood is protected by landmark status, preserving centuries of history. As the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission noted:

“Greenwich Village is one of the oldest sections of Manhattan which was laid out for development in the years following the American Revolution. Today, it contains the greatest concentration of early New York residential architecture to be found anywhere within the five Boroughs of the City.

“Unlike Chelsea, Gramercy Park and other small residential islands in Manhattan which have managed to survive from the last century, Greenwich Village is unique because it is the only good-sized residential area which has remained largely intact and where the architecture reflects the continuum of a community. Many old buildings have retained their old uses while others, treasured as architecture, have been preserved to serve new and viable uses. Thus a sashmaker’s workshop, a medical dispensary, a malt house, a public livery stable, a fire station, a court house, a grocery or drygoods shop and dozens of other structures, built to serve the early community, are today as much a part of the architectural and historical heritage of The Village as are its many fine town houses, smaller dwellings and churches.”

Highly recommended: NYC Landmarks Map

West Village Recommended Reading
West Village Buildings Pictured
Building / Address Year Architect
1 Christopher Street 1931 Van Wart & Wein
2 Cornelia Street 1907 Fred Ebeling
11 Christopher Street 2006 Richard A. Cook
12 & 14 Gay Street 1828 Daniel H. Weed, Joseph D. Baldwin
15 Barrow Street 1896 H. Hasenstein
17 Grove Street 1822 unknown
19 Barrow Street 1834 David Christie, John W. Christie
25 Barrow Street 1826 Jacob Shute
45 Christopher Street 1931 Russell M. Boak and Hyman F. Paris
172 Waverly Place 1868 Richard A. Davis
224 W 4th Street 1932 Phelps Barnum
228 Bleecker Street 1901 Michael Bernstein
255 W 10th Street / 519-525 Hudson Street 1889 Rentz & Lange
257 W 10th Street 1889 Rentz & Lange
259 W 10th Street / 697 Greenwich Street 1892 Martin V.B. Ferdon
473-477 Hudson Street 1825 James N. Wells
527 Hudson Street 1858 unknown
679 Greenwich Street / 139 Christopher Street 1900 F.A. Burdett
Church of St. Luke in the Fields / 479 Hudson Street 1822 James N. Wells
The Gansvoort / 95 Christopher Street 1931 H.I. Feldman
Jane Hotel / 113 Jane Street / 505 West Street 1908 William A. Boring
One Jackson Square / 122 Greenwich Avenue 2011 Kohn Pederson Fox Associates
Our Lady of Pompeii / 240 Bleecker Street 1928 Matthew W. Del Guadio
PATH Christopher Street Station / 137 Christopher Street 1906 Robins & Oakman
Public School 3 / 97 Bedford Street 1906 C.B.J. Snyder
Shenandoah / 10 Sheridan Square 1929 Emery Roth
St. John’s Lutheran Church / 81 Christopher Street 1822 Berg & Clark
St. Joseph’s Church / 365 Sixth Avenue 1834 John Doran, Arthur Crook (1885 repair & alteration)
St. Veronica’s Church / 149 Christopher Street 1890 John J. Deery
Standard Hotel / 848 Washington Street 2009 Ennead Architects (formerly Polshek Partnership)
The Waverly / 136 Waverly Place 1928 Walter S. Schneider

NYC Landmarks Map

Google Map

1 Christopher Street

1 Christopher Street

1 Christopher Street is an imposing Neo-Federalist apartment house in the heart of Greenwich Village, towering over nearby landmarks Stonewall Inn and Jefferson Market Courthouse.

The 16-story structure was built in 1931. Architects Van Wart & Wein designed One Christopher six years after their Beekman Mansions on E 51st Street. The pair are an interesting contrast. One Christopher is best viewed from afar, as its best architectural details are a dozen stories up. Beekman Mansions is best viewed close up, as its architectural details are in the four-story base.

Retail spaces are at street level along the Greenwich Avenue facade; 131 rental apartments – studios and one-bedroom units – rise above.

Largely because of the views, City Realty calls the building “one of the finest pre-war rental apartment buildings in Greenwich Village.” Thanks to Greenwich Village’s landmark status, those views will be preserved for decades to come.

1 Christopher Street Vital Statistics
1 Christopher Street Recommended Reading

Google Map

The Waverly, 136 Waverly Place

Waverly

The Waverly is a beautifully maintained West Village landmark, erected in 1927-1928. The 16-story apartment building was designed by Walter S. Schneider.

The structure uses brickwork to achieve most of its texture – the spandrels and simulated quoins. The two-story entry is of stone and terra cotta; there are terra cotta decorations on the top two floors reminiscent of Herman Lee Meader’s Cliff Dwelling.

The cooperative includes street-level retail space along Sixth Avenue, and 76 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments.

If the building looks familiar, it may be because it’s the TV home of “Mad Men” character Don Draper.

Waverly Vital Statistics
Waverly Recommended Reading

Google Map

228 Bleecker Street

228 Bleecker Street

228 Bleecker Street is a nicely maintained example of the larger apartment buildings that replaced small dwellings in the early 1900s. Greenwich Village at that time was growing, with an influx of Italian immigrants.

The building is across the street from Our Lady of Pompeii RC Church (built 27 years later).

The tiny residential entry is on Bleecker Street, sandwiched between the building’s gustatory tenants: Trattoria Spaghetto, on the right, Molly’s Cupcakes on the left. Buon appetito!

228 Bleecker Street Vital Statistics
228 Bleecker Street Recommended Reading

Google Map

Our Lady of Pompeii

Our Lady of Pompeii

Our Lady of Pompeii Roman Catholic Church is prominently sited on Bleecker Street at Carmine Street. It replaces an earlier church that had been demolished during widening of Sixth Avenue.

Our Lady of Pompeii Vital Statistics
Our Lady of Pompeii Recommended Reading

Google Map

Washington Square and Vicinity

Washington Square, the heart of Greenwich Village, is also the heart of New York University (NYU) – a sprawling campus that contributes more than its share of interesting architecture.

Besides being the southeast anchor of the Greenwich Village Historic District, the park is just two blocks west of the NoHo Historic District. Keep your camera handy!

Google Map

Maritime Buildings

Once upon a time the National Maritime Union was so big it had three “headquarters” buildings in New York: The actual headquarters on Seventh Avenue between 12th and 13th Streets (Joseph Curran Building, 1964); an annex between 16th and 17th Streets just off Ninth Avenue (Joseph Curran Annex, 1966); and then a plaza – an annex to the annex if you will – that ran along Ninth Avenue (Joseph Curran Plaza, 1968). All three of the so-called Maritime Buildings were architectural standouts, designed by Bronx-born but New Orleans-based architect Albert C. Ledner.

Alas, New York’s maritime jobs dried up and the union sold all three buildings.

St. Vincent Catholic Medical Centers acquired the headquarters and renamed it the Edward & Theresa O’Toole Medical Services Building. St. Vincent’s later (2007) wanted to replace the O’Toole Building with a new 21-story hospital, but official NYC Landmark status (as part of the Greenwich Village Historic District) apparently saved it – temporarily. The Landmarks Commission later (2011) granted a “hardship” exemption allowing demolition. As of November, 2011, the plan is to keep the shell but demolish the interior and build a smaller facility: 140,000 square feet, down from 160,00 square feet. The conversion is to be completed by November, 2015.

Covenant House purchased the annex and plaza, after fighting off a challenge by then-Mayor Ed Koch, who wanted the buildings for a prison; later the plaza building was converted to the Maritime Hotel. The annex itself has been converted to the Dream Downtown Hotel. This is actually the second renovation of the annex. The building originally had 100 porthole windows in its sloping 12-story white tile facade; in later years the new owners built fake brick storefronts at ground level in an attempt to better blend in with the neighborhood (pictured on p. 179 of “Five Hundred Buildings of New York”). The Dream Downtown Hotel conversion has removed the fake storefronts and applied a metal skin. The windows are still round, but there are more of them on the 17th Street side and the overall effect is more like Swiss cheese rather than portholes. The 16th Street facade is now vertical, not sloping, and covered with a perforated dual-layer metal skin that frames 35 very large circular “windows” which are actually tiny balconies. The real (floor to ceiling) windows are behind.

The plaza building has changed the least. It was originally built as a dormitory for seamen; the nautical-themed hotel conversion was natural. And from the outside, “pizza box” is still an apt description.

Joseph Curran Building Vital Statistics
  • Location: 36 Seventh Avenue between W 12th and W 13th Streets
  • Year completed: 1964
  • Architect: Albert C. Ledner
  • Floors: 6
  • Style: Modern
  • New York City Landmark: 1969 (part of Greenwich Village Historic District)
Joseph Curran Annex Vital Statistics
  • Location: 355 W 16th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues
  • Year completed: 1966
  • Architect: Albert C. Ledner
  • Floors: 12
  • Style: Modern
Joseph Curran Plaza Vital Statistics
  • Location: 363 West 16th Street at 9th Avenue
  • Year completed: 1968
  • Architect: Albert C. Ledner
  • Floors: 12
  • Style: Modern
Maritime Buildings Suggested Reading

Google Map

Jefferson Market Courthouse

Jefferson Market Courthouse (bounded by Sixth Avenue, Greenwich Avenue and W 10th Street) was completed in 1874, designed by Frederick Clarke Withers. The former Third Judicial District Courthouse is now the Jefferson Market branch of the New York Public Library.

The style is American High Victorian Gothic, faced in red brick with black brick and yellow Ohio sandstone trim. The sculpture in the pediment depicts the trial scene from “The Merchant of Venice.” The clock/bell tower originally served also as a fire watch tower (the stairstepped tower windows reveal a spiral staircase within).

The court moved out in 1958; local preservationists campaigned to have the building saved as a library, and the New York Public Library agreed in 1961. The building reopened in 1967.

Source: “Guide to New York City Landmarks, Fourth Edition,” New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.

This is where Harry Thaw was tried for the assassination of prominent architect Stanford White. Coincidentally, White’s firm – McKim, Mead and White – designed 11 branches of the New York Public Library.

Jefferson Market Courthouse Vital Statistics
  • Location: 425 Sixth Avenue at W 10th Street
  • Year completed: 1874
  • Architect: Frederick Clarke Withers
  • Floors: 6
  • Style: American High Victorian Gothic
  • New York City Landmark: 1969 (part of Greenwich Village Historic District)
  • National Register of Historic Places: 1972
Jefferson Market Courthouse Suggested Reading

Google Map