It just never stops growing…Village Preservation’s Historic Image Archive, that is. The latest addition is the Pryor Dodge Collection, a collection taken between 1966 and 1967. They provide a wonderful … Continued
A newly-released study by Village Preservation shows that the City’s SoHo/NoHo Rezoning Plan will make both of these neighborhoods richer, whiter, and more expensive to live in than they are now, … Continued
We’re proud to share the latest additions to our historic image archive, both donated by photographer Pryor Dodge. The first shows the stunning interiors of 52 West 9th Street, the home and … Continued
In honor of Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating, honoring, and advocating for the important contributions of women in our neighborhoods. And today we’re highlighting the innovative work of women poets … Continued
Café Le Metro, now the 13th Step Sports Bar, was located at 149 Second Avenue. A four-story Greek Revival row house, it is the oldest on its block front and … Continued
Like the New York branch of the Black Panther Party, the Umbra Poets Workshop started in an unidentified location somewhere in the East Village. Working to establish a Black poetic … Continued
Continuing our Cemeteries of the Village series, today we look at the blocks surrounding 2nd Street and Second Avenue. Two landmarked cemeteries still exist here, and four other 19th-century cemeteries … Continued
Some of our favorite local small businesses were recently prominently featured in the New York Times. Longtime neighborhood anchors Veselka (‘rainbow’ in Ukrainian) and (the former) Dinosaur Hill were the … Continued
From the late nineteenth century until the mid-twentieth century, four elevated rail lines crossed over the streets of our neighborhoods.
Village Preservation is celebrating its 40th Anniversary this year, and in honor of this momentous milestone, we have created an interactive storymap that charts the historic journey of our organization. … Continued
The poets and New York natives Anne Waldman and Lewis Warsh met at the Berkeley Poetry Conference in 1965, while absorbing the Zen-influenced poems of San Francisco-based writer Robert Duncan. … Continued
In 1804, New York City had already celebrated 190 years since its founding. Comparatively, the United States was only 28 years young. In order to honor the already rich history … Continued
James Renwick was one of the most influential, accomplished, and skilled American architects of the 19th century.
De Blasio’s Just-Released SoHo/NoHo PlanWould Change the Face of Historic NeighborhoodsWith Massive UpzoningPlan Has Devastating Implications forNeighborhoods and Historic DistrictsAcross the City Late yesterday the de Blasio administration released details … Continued
Do you love old photos like we do? It’s fascinating to see the changing and remaining face of our neighborhoods over the years and decades. Village Preservation is fortunate to … Continued
In 2007, Village Preservation published “The Italians of the South Village” by Mary Elizabeth Brown, Ph.D. The report is exhaustive and highlights buildings, people, and dynamic histories of a long-storied … Continued
One of my favorite things about our neighborhoods is the history that is under our feet and to our side and yet unknown. Case in point is 49-51 Fifth Avenue. … Continued
One of New York’s most historic but least known landmarks is the Bowne House, built ca. 1661 at 37-01 Bowne Street in Flushing, Queens. The two-and-a-half story wood house is the oldest building in the Borough of Queens and one of the oldest in New York City.
Continuing our Cemeteries of the Village series, today we look at two historic cemeteries that predate the modern street grid: The St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery Vaults and the nearby but long … Continued
You never know what you may find when doing historic research in our neighborhoods, and it often raises more questions than it answers. I was recently looking into the history … Continued
Hilly Kristal is no doubt best known as the owner of CBGB in the East Village. But he actually had his first restaurant and bar in Greenwich Village just a … Continued
In 1626, Paulo d’Angola arrived to New Amsterdam on the first ship bringing enslaved people to this region.
On the 19th of April in 1860, the New York state legislature passed a bill punishing an act, or omission of an act, that caused pain to animals “unjustifiably.” It … Continued
A collective supportive response to health disasters or other struggles is not new to our neighborhoods. “Mutual aid” as it’s often called and mutual aid societies have been a hallmark … Continued
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t … Continued
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t landmarked. … Continued
On the 19th of April in 1860, the New York state legislature passed a bill punishing an act, or omission of an act, that caused pain to animals “unjustifiably.” It … Continued
Churches often represent some of the most historic and stunning architecture in a community, and that’s as true if not more so of the East Village as it is of … Continued
In 1958, a twenty-five-year-old Philip Roth (March 19, 1933 – May 22, 2018) moved into a basement apartment at 128 East 10th Street in the East Village. The Anglo-Italianate building, … Continued
For many, celebrating Irish American heritage in March brings one to Fifth Avenue for the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade, or perhaps a visit to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. But for … Continued
Your input is needed! Today we feature our latest Business of the Month — help us to select the next. Tell us which independent store you love in Greenwich Village, … Continued
Part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but somehow aren’t landmarked. … Continued
The streets, parks, and squares of Greenwich Village are named for a unique collection of historical figures. Last year in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Greenwich Village Historic … Continued
With 53 million items and 92 locations across Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island, the New York Public Library (MYPL) is the largest municipal library in the world. It’s also … Continued
On January 31, 1795, Nicholas William Stuyvesant, descendent of Director-General Petrus Stuyvesant, married Catherine Livingston Reade, herself a descendant of New York royalty of sorts (the family name can be … Continued
The New-York Historical Society was established as New York’s first museum in 1804, a mere 15 years after George Washington’s inauguration. Its present home on Central Park West was built between 1902 and 1908 and designed by the architectural firm of York and Sawyer
2019 has been a huge year for Village Preservation. We celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Greenwich Village Historic District, fought increasing pressure on Greenwich Village and the East Village … Continued
This post is part of our blog series Why Isn’t This Landmarked?, where we look at buildings in our area we’re fighting to protect that are worthy of landmark designation, but … Continued
Urban Archive is a location-based mobile app that empowers New Yorkers to learn about history where it happened. The site brings together the digital collections of New York City’s museums, … Continued
The Village has a long history of putting on the best Halloween festivities. From the world-renowned NYC Village Halloween Parade to local specials at our many small business establishments, there … Continued
In the second half of the twentieth century, particularly during the city’s fiscal crisis of the 1970s, the East Village experienced high rates of crime and drug use, and a … Continued
The area south of Union Square, on the border between Greenwich Village and the East Village, is changing. The approval of the new 14th Street Tech Hub south of Union Square combined … Continued
Scrolling through the NYC Department of City Planning website, it is easy to get lost amidst the zoning texts and maps and terms. But, as we come to realize from … Continued
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and … Continued
The city might at times feel like its on fire during the summer, but there have been times in the past when it has actually been. In the 1970s the … Continued
On August 12th, 1882, the very first Yiddish theatrical performance in New York City was held in a building which still stands at 66 East 4th Street, between the Bowery … Continued
On August 8, 2008, Village Preservation and the East Village Community Coalition (EVCC) submitted a request to the LPC to landmark a little-known but remarkable survivor– Congregation Mezritch Synagogue at 515 East 6th … Continued
Village Preservation has a collection of over 2,000 images in our Historic Image Archive, ranging from the 18th to the early 21st century, most of Lower Manhattan, but with some … Continued
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and … Continued
“A long time ago in the 1960s, a young white girl from Ohio committed herself to being a revolutionary,” begins a short feature documentary about Patti Astor and her FUN … Continued
Architect Stanford White (November 9, 1853 – June 25, 1906) designed many of New York City’s most beautiful Gilded Age buildings, including the Washington Square Arch and Judson Memorial Church … Continued
Six sites were recently designated landmarks by the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission based on their LGBT history and association, two of which were part of a five-year campaign by Village Preservation: … Continued
The buildings we pass in our neighborhoods can offer windows into some rather specific aspects of New York history, and the interesting and sometimes complicated figures involved in the city’s … Continued
The East Village has been fertile ground for theatrical innovation since the beginning of the 20th century. Off-Off Broadway productions began in the East Village as an anti-commercial and experimental … Continued
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and … Continued
The East Village is generally credited with being the birthplace of punk music, which emanated from CBGB in the mid-1970s and the bands who played there, including the Ramones, Television, … Continued
This is part of a series of curated tours to help the public explore the buildings and history shared on our recently-launched East Village Building Blocks site — see it here. From 19th-century concert … Continued
On March 12, 1651, Peter Stuyvesant, Director General of the Dutch West India Company, purchased Bouwerie (Dutch for ‘farm’) #1 and part of Bouwerie #2 in what is today’s East … Continued
From the mid-19th through the early 20th century, the East Village was the center of what came to be known as Kleindeutschland, or “Little Germany” – the largest German-speaking community in … Continued
GVSHP is a proud leader and co-founder of the Friends of the Abe Lebewohl Yiddish Theater Walk of Fame. As part of our ongoing efforts to celebrate and preserve this … Continued
If you’re not familiar with the Urban Archive App, now is a great time to delve into it. GVSHP has partnered with Urban Archive extensively, and we’re adding one more … Continued
Today we begin a new blog series, Strange Bedfellows, where we take a look at unlikely pairs or assortments of noteworthy people who lived or spent time in surprisingly close … Continued
If only these old bones could talk! Well, in the case of Rick Kelly and his amazing craft, the old bones can indeed talk, or sing, if you will. Rick … Continued
One of New York City’s most charming and distinctive corners, the St. Mark’s Historic District was landmarked by the City of New York on January 14, 1969. Containing fewer than 40 buildings … Continued
Your input is needed! Today we feature our latest Business of the Month — help us to select the next. Tell us which independent store you love in Greenwich Village, the East … Continued
I was holiday shopping at my local bookstore and was delighted to encounter Emily Jenkins’ “All of a Kind Family Hanukkah.” In the book, a Jewish immigrant family prepares for … Continued
Mass transit emerged in New York City in 1827 with the omnibus, a large stagecoach pulled by horses that could accommodate about a dozen riders at a time. While horse-drawn carriages had … Continued
On November 12th, 1968, Firehouse Engine Co. 33 at 44 Great Jones Street was designated a New York City landmark. The design of the firehouse, a “distinguished example of French … Continued
On November 1, 1871, one of America’s most influential writers, Stephen Crane, was born in Newark, New Jersey. He is probably best know for his Civil War novel The Red … Continued
Caffe Cino at 31 Cornelia Street was a community, a haven, the birthplace of countless theatrical careers and movements, and the origin of off-off-Broadway theater. In November 2017, Caffe Cino … Continued
GVSHP has partnered with the free Urban Archive App over the past year to share our historic image archive via this location-based tool. As part of this partnership, we conducted … Continued
Folk music icon Woody Guthrie was a little man with beady eyes – as described by his second wife Marjorie, though she had imagined him to be taller, strapping, and … Continued
Ithiel Town, born on October 3, 1784, transformed American architecture, as well as the landscape of our neighborhoods. A significant figure in beginning the Greek and Gothic Revivals in this … Continued
Gay Street is one of the most charming and picturesque streets in Greenwich Village, an icon of the historic neighborhood’s anachronistic character. But the origins of its name are hotly … Continued
New York City publishes a very useful map-based website with one very big flaw. NYCityMap offers users a tremendous amount of information on all properties in New York City. Some of … Continued
Earlier this week, photographer and NYC tour guide David Schmidlapp took us on a meander through the East Village using four old, beautiful maps of New York City as part of … Continued
In the mid-1970s, New York City was falling apart. Its finances, infrastructure, and social cohesion were, figuratively speaking, crumbling. But in one very tragic case, they were literally crumbling, too. And it … Continued
Last week we shared an online Historic Bowery Walking Tour. This week we are sharing a walking tour of the Gansevoort Market Historic District, landmarked in 2003 thanks to efforts by GVSHP. Back … Continued
Your input is needed! Today we feature our latest Business of the Month — help us to select the next. Tell us which independent store you love in Greenwich Village, the East … Continued
On June 6th in 1892, the Chicago “L” (elevated train line) began running. But did you know that elevated trains (or “Els” as they were known) were once a not … Continued
The 20th Annual Spring House Tour Benefit on May 6th, 2018 featured an array of homes unlike any others in the tour’s twenty year history. Tour goers and volunteers … Continued
May the 4th be with you! While today is a special day for many Star Wars fans, for us in the Village today’s date is a reminder of that the … Continued
On April 6th, 1968, The Who rocked the Fillmore East as part of a two-night residency. On April 20th, they will release a double CD and triple LP of that … Continued
On March 26, 1647, Anthony (also referred to as Antony) Congo, a newly manumitted slave of the Dutch West India Company, was granted six acres of land by the Council … Continued
As we approach St. Patrick’s Day, we realized we’ve discussed Irish churches, Irish heritage, Irish parade riots, and have written about cool East Village bars, East Village sports bars, historic bars, … Continued
Today, 105 Second Avenue is a bank. The city moves on and overtakes what used to be at a given spot pretty quickly, but maybe you know that 105 Second … Continued
Scratch the sidewalk anywhere in the Village or East Village and you’ll always find interesting layers of history. Last month, we went out on a limb and talked about 2nd … Continued
Greenwich Village is well known as the home to libertines in the 1920s and feminists in the 1960s and ’70s. But going back to at least the 19th century, the … Continued
Some good news for small businesses and the written word in our neighborhoods. Bucking the prevailing trend of disappearing bookstores, we actually have two new ones in our neighborhood, and … Continued
Over 80 new historic photos taken by Carole Teller were recently added to the GVSHP Image Archive. Every time we add photos to our collection, we uncover some great stories, like … Continued
In continuing our celebration of black history, we have a new and exciting entry to our Civil Rights and Social Justice Map: North America’s First Freed Black Settlement. According to … Continued
In this part of New York, the Stuyvesant name is all around us: Stuyvesant Street, Stuyvesant Town, Stuyvesant Square, the old Stuyvesant Casino (a former East Village jazz club, now the … Continued
Nearly all of the East Village falls in line with the Manhattan street grid, dating back to the Commissioners’ Plan of 1811. However, one defiant street, only one block long, … Continued
The following is a re-posting of a post by Elizabeth Finkelstein from 2011: Call it whatever you’d like: antique, vintage, or historic. If one thing is for certain, the Village is really, really … Continued
Most New Yorkers spend some time underground every day as part of their daily commute, but some spend eternity beneath our streets, and in a few cases occupy some pretty … Continued
It’s the case every year – what we want for the holidays, much like every other time of year, is to save our neighborhood. On a very cold December 20, … Continued
Greenwich Village is known as the birthplace of many things – the modern gay rights movement, Off-Broadway theater, the New York School of artists and poets, the “new urbanism” pioneered … Continued
Perhaps no single photographer could be said to have captured the energy, the cultural ferment, the reverberating social change emanating from New York City in the second half of the 20th century … Continued
If you look at Astor Place and Cooper Square on a map, it looks as though somebody took a lasso and tied a bunch of streets together. Multiple streets and … Continued
On 2nd Avenue, just south of 9th Street at No. 140-142, sits one of the East Village’s oddest structures. Clad in metal and adorned with Cyrillic lettering, the building sports … Continued
