A History of the East Village in 10 Objects
The following is an updated re-posting originally authored by Dana Schulz. As May is Lower East Side History Month, we at GVSHP thought it would be nice to revisit a … Continued
The following is an updated re-posting originally authored by Dana Schulz. As May is Lower East Side History Month, we at GVSHP thought it would be nice to revisit a … Continued
Off the Grid is highlighting the 2017 Village Awards winners in the lead up to the June 6th Annual Meeting & Award Ceremony. Click here for more information about the event and to RSVP. … Continued
Join us on Tuesday, June 6th at 6:30 pm for the 37th GVSHP Annual Meeting and 27th Village Awards — RSVP required; click here. Co-hosted by The New School The … Continued
In these uncertain times, I’m finding it especially useful (and comforting) to remember days gone by – days, and people, who railed against the status quo, tirelessly pushed for progress, … Continued
One of my favorite two-block sections in Greenwich Village may be an unlikely one – East 9th Street between Broadway and 5th Avenue. It’s not the oldest strip in the … Continued
School has started and we are eagerly anticipating our fascinating program this Thursday evening organized with The Loisaida Center Inc. at their 710 East 9th Street location near Avenue C. The program … Continued
Occasionally in the course of my research of buildings in our area, I come across a familiar name. Last week exactly that happened. In looking into the history of 35 … Continued
On August 12th, 1988, art legend Jean Michel-Basquiat was announced dead at Cabrini Medical Center on East 19th Street. According to the autopsy, Basquiat died from “acute mixed drug intoxication (opiates-cocaine).” … Continued
Note: This is an updated version of a post originally written by Drew Durniak On this day in 1973, what was once one of the largest and most elegant hotels in the … Continued
Today marks the ten year anniversary of the LPC designation of 605 East 9th Street, the former P.S. 64 & Charas-El Bohio Cultural Center. GVSHP fought hard in support of this … Continued
Off the Grid is highlighting the 2016 Village Awards winners in the lead up to the June 14th Annual Meeting & Award Ceremony. Click here for more information about the event … Continued
As regular readers of “Off the Grid” will know, one of many ways Village Preservation has worked to preserve the neighborhood heritage of Greenwich Village has been to install a … Continued
During the holiday season we reflect back on the past year. Here at GVSHP we’ve certainly had some big accomplishments. We have also had a lot of wonderful support from … Continued
This has been no small year for preservation in New York City, and we at the GVSHP in the season of thanks wish express our gratitude to our members and … Continued
On Monday evening, GVSHP presented a program at the Sixth Street Community Center with our own Karen Loew, Director of East Village and Special Projects, and Liza Zapol, an artist … Continued
Influential American abstract expressionist painter Lee (Lenore) Krasner, was born on October 27, 1908 to Russian Jewish immigrant parents in Brooklyn, New York. After graduating from high school, where she … Continued
By Lauren
As part of NYCLandmarks50, the celebration of this year’s 50th Anniversary of the NYC Landmarks Law, we are taking a look at some of the many and varied individual landmarks in our … Continued
Greenwich Village has long been associated with the arts and countercultural movements. Former publishing house Grove Press in particular exemplifies this history. Founded in 1947 and named for its location … Continued
Your input is needed! Today we feature our latest Business of the Month — and we need your help selecting the next. Tell us which independent store you love in … Continued
East Village activists were surprised to learn recently that the city’s Department of Buildings had issued new work permits for 605 E. 9th Street, the former public school that served … Continued
Off the Grid is highlighting the winners of GVSHP’s 2015 Village Awards, in the lead up to our June 17th Annual Meeting & Award Ceremony. Previous entries include Barbara Shaum, Bonnie Slotnick Cookbooks, and David … Continued
If you’ve been involved in a movement for going on 40 years, you probably have a few things to say about it. And if you’re as observant and educated about … Continued
By Karen
It’s easy to see, from the many blogs devoted to the subject, that New Yorkers are fans of our local hawks. These raptors add notes of wildness and grace to … Continued
By Karen
In celebration of Valentine’s Day today, we thought we would tip our hats to some of our neighborhood’s architectural cherubs. There’s a wonderfully rich supply of them in the East … Continued
Christopher Street is the place most of us look to when it comes to LGBTQ history in New York. It is the site of the Stonewall Uprising, with the second … Continued
As we near the end of 2014, we thought we’d look back on the several dozen exciting lectures, book talks, exhibitions, walking tours, forums, panels, and community meetings conducted by … Continued
When you’ve been involved in a struggle since last century – 16 long years – you don’t let an opportunity to celebrate pass by. Some 200 East Villagers, elected officials … Continued
Much of the Village Voice from the 1950s to the mid-2000s is available to view online via a Google digitization project. The huge trove of scanned newspapers helps reveal the … Continued
GVSHP has always been concerned about the status of small businesses, whether they be restaurants, theaters, or small shops. We also recognize outstanding local businesses as part of our … Continued
By Drew
These beautiful late summer days have got us thinking about sun and sky. Which has us thinking about that most iconic of Village architectural features, the artist’s studio. So we … Continued
Much has been said lately about the potential sale of 121 Charles Street in the Greenwich Village Historic District. This summer, members of the Glass family (owners of the house … Continued
By Amanda
Two weeks ago our friends at Green Guerillas led us on a tour of some remarkable gardens in the East Village. There are more community gardens in the East Village … Continued
By Ted
We have two great birthdays in the world of punk to mark. The two celebrants straddle the East and West Village, and both sides of the Atlantic.
If one has the occasion to think about incarceration in the Village, many long-time residents would likely recall the Women’s House of Detention, an imposing building that loomed over Jefferson … Continued
By Drew
This is the latest installment of Off the Grid’s series, “Greenwich Village Stories,” in which we highlight the people, places and events featured in our upcoming book release Greenwich Village … Continued
By kait
The Looking Up series of posts explore the unique architectural and historical stories that can be discovered when we raise our gaze above the sidewalk, the storefront, and the second … Continued
By Drew
This post is the last of a four-part series called Everyday Lives, Ordinary People: A History of East Village Immigrants, a collaboration between GVSHP and the students in NYU’s Fall … Continued
By Amanda
Here we are in the midst of the holiday season. The city was blanketed with snow this weekend and shoppers are frantically working through their holiday gift-giving lists. For today’s … Continued
By Amanda
This week, our friends at the Jefferson Market Branch Library will host workshops for a new project they are undertaking called Your Village, Your Stories. The library’s foray into recording … Continued
With the recent news that things are finally beginning to move with the city’s redevelopment of Astor Place, including pedestrianizing sections of Astor Place between Lafayette Street and Cooper Square and … Continued
Talking Point Read the full article here July 18, 2013 BY ANDREW BERMAN | In late June we learned that the state Assembly and Senate had passed … Continued
As the city’s and nation’s economy works through its slow recovery, the New York public library reminds us how the last great national economic crisis affected our city. Though we … Continued
On June 5, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, as he left the ballroom after giving his victory speech following his win in the … Continued
March is Women’s History Month; the month-long celebration highlights the accomplishments of women in various fields throughout our history. With so much to choose from in New York City alone, … Continued
We recently highlighted the marvelous illustration work of James Gulliver Hancock as he continues in his attempt to draw all the buildings in New York. This week, we thought we’d … Continued
By Drew
On this day, January 16, in 1919, Prohibition took effect, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes.” Today, the Prohibition speakeasy has become a novelty … Continued
Over the summer we told you about the 1959 Greenwich Village Guide book published under the auspices of The Villager newspaper. This past week GVSHP received a donation to our … Continued
Walking East 3rd Street is a collaboration between GVSHP and the students in NYU’s Fall 2012 Intro to Public History course. Each pair of students was tasked with researching the … Continued
The New York Times recently published an amazing article titled “A History of New York in 50 Objects,” which was “inspired by ‘A History of the World in 100 Objects,’ … Continued
By Dana
We hope you can join us for our upcoming lecture on Charles B. J. Snyder on Tuesday, September 4th (RSVP information). An architect and Superintendent of School Buildings from the … Continued
As Off the Grid chronicled last year, today is the anniversary of New York City’s draft riots, five days of rioting, looting, burning, and wanton violence that erupted after the … Continued
Off the Grid recently reported on how St. Mark’s Bookshop, the beloved independent bookshop in the East Village that won a GVSHP Village Award in 2007, was able to successfully … Continued
New York City has no shortage of Irish watering holes, but if you’re looking to escape the parade crowds there are plenty of Village pubs where you can celebrate St. … Continued
In response to our recent post “A Sign That Tells More Than Just Street Names,” about the oddly ‘elevated’ street sign embedded above the third floor of 128 Charles Street, … Continued
This one was a long time coming. Just in time to ring in the new year, the fake ivy over at 47 West 8th Street has finally come down!
Recently, we told you all about the East Village Meat Market, a traditional Ukrainian butcher shop on 2nd Avenue and 9th Street. We also told you that this was the … Continued
By Dana
Talk about 6 degrees of separation! A half- painted over, fading ghost sign (old hand painted advertisement) on a wall of a tenement building at 620 East 6th Street has more … Continued
If you’re like me and grew up around Eastern-European family, you know that it’s pronounced kah-bah-see and that it’s best served with a little sauerkraut and spicy mustard. You then … Continued
Want to see pictures of the crazy, quirky, opening weekend of the Big Gay Ice Cream Shop?….here’s a sneak peak- Anthony Bourdain dressed up as a nun….see pictures here, here, … Continued
By Dana
One of the East Village’s few individually designated New York City landmarks is a distinctive Gothic Revival church at 545 East 11th Street. The building, today known as Father’s Heart … Continued
Susan Sarandon Buys West 9th Street Penthouse (NY Observer) Author Takes Readers Back to Greenwich Village’s Heyday (DNAinfo) A Soft Spot for Goat-Milk Ice Cream (NY Times) Printing House Opens … Continued
By Dana
123 Third Avenue Retail Space Sells for $11 Million (EV Grieve) Stranded Cat Rescued from East Village (NY Daily News) Foes of Historic District Plan Emerge (The Local East Village) … Continued
We were – to put it calmly – a tad bothered when we read recently on EV Grieve that 160 Second Avenue (corner of East 10th Street), the former home … Continued
Woah! Can you believe the corner of St. Marks Place and Second Avenue once looked like this? Our survey of the history of every single building in the East Village … Continued
It’s now been almost a year since the owners of Nos. 47 West 8th Street and 62 West 9th Street illegally installed fake ivy on their buildings. Because both buildings … Continued
Did you know that the iconic department store Macy’s actually started out right here in the Village on the southeast corner of Sixth Avenue & 14th Street? Today the Landmarks … Continued
The recently released 2010 census figures for New York City have certainly stirred some controversy, with their finding of only a modest overall population increase in the city, coupled with … Continued
The New York Public Library’s digital gallery contains some fun photos of the Second Avenue elevated train, which began operation in 1880 and cast shadows upon the street for more … Continued
By Elizabeth