From Wilde to Baldwin: The Literary Tapestry of Greenwich Village
Oscar Wilde (October 16, 1854 – November 30, 1900) was a playwright and poet, a native Irishman turned British transplant, and, of course, a maverick and icon whose work and legacy continues to light the way for the LGBTQ+ community. Known for works like The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde had a unique wit and flair that captured the attention of mass audiences and garnered him acclaim still notable a century and a quarter after his death. But his impact goes beyond style. Many in the contemporary gay rights movement view Wilde, who died tragically young, as a martyr. His untimely death came amid a sea of homophobia and Victorian attitudes after being outed, tried, and jailed for his homosexuality.
Today we honor not only Oscar Wilde’s birthday, but explore Greenwich Village and its deep ties to the gay community through some other literary icons.
On Christmas Eve, 1881, a 28-year-old Oscar Wilde left Liverpool on the SS Arizona, westward bound to the United States to conduct a year-long lecture tour to promote William S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan’s new satirical operetta, Patience. When Wilde arrived in New York 10 days later, he supposedly told the customs agent he had nothing to declare but his genius.
During his time in New York, Wilde found great success. He staged his first play Vera; or, The Nihilists at the Union Square Theater in August 1883. He got to know other literary icons like Walt Whitman and Henry James. And, he was famously photographed by the renowned Napoleon Sarony in the portraitist’s private studio located at 37 Union Square. In fact, Wilde posed for Sarony both at the start and end of his tour in 1882 and 1883.
Wilde’s trip and influence inspired Craig Rodwell to open the Oscar Wilde Bookshop in 1967, originally located at 291 Mercer Street and then in 1973 relocated to 15 Christopher Street. Rodwell’s shop received one of the recipients of Village Preservation’s Village Awards in 2008. The bookstore closed its doors in 2009, but while it thrived, Rodwell devoted his shop to serving the Village’s growing gay community, stocking the shelves with the works of new and established LGBTQ+ authors and stories.
The bookshop is just one of many locations that exemplify the history of the modern-day gay rights movement; today, Greenwich Village is known as the movement’s home and nexus. And like Oscar Wilde, many other openly gay and queer artists and creatives found (and continue to find) a home in the neighborhood. Notably, essayist and activist James Baldwin (August 2, 1924 – December 1, 1987) spent much time in the Village. Baldwin’s work addressed complex social themes like race, sexual orientation, and class long before they were accepted topics in the American zeitgeist. Baldwin wrote some of his most powerful pieces while living in the Village. He rented an apartment at 81 Horatio Street from 1958 to 1963 where he wrote, among other pieces, Notes of a Native Son. Today, you’ll find a historic plaque on the Greek Revival home, honoring Baldwin’s legacy. James Baldwin is also featured in Village Preservation’s interactive exhibit, VILLAGE VOICES.
Lastly, we look just off Greenwich Avenue at 16 Charles Street. Built in 1845, it was here where poet Elizabeth Bishop (February 8, 1911 – October 6, 1979) lived in this historic Greek revival townhouse with her partner, Brazilian heiress Carlota de Macedo Soares. Bishop, an openly gay woman, drew inspiration from the Village’s working-class atmosphere and likely reveled in the neighborhood’s overall sense of tolerance. Her poetry covered dark themes without revealing too much of her own psyche or personal life, and her second poetry collection, Poems: North & South/A Cold Spring (1955)won Bishop a Pulitzer prize. Contemporary critics regard Bishop as an LGBTQ+ pioneer and as one of the most important American poets of the 20th century.
Bishop’s words and spirit — and those of Wilde, Baldwin, and so many others in the LGBTQ+ community — remind us of the importance of the nurturing home they found in Greenwich Village. To learn more about Greenwich Village’s deep connections to both literary and LGBTQ+ history, explore our Greenwich Village Historic District Map’s LGBTQ+ Sites and Homes and Haunts of Great Authors tours.