Village Preservation kicked off its campaign to honor, document, and seek landmark designation for the South Village and its remarkable immigrant and artistic histories in December 2006, and completed the effort in December 2016 with designation of the third and final phase of our proposed South Village Historic District, the largest expansion of landmark protections in the neighborhood since 1969. These historic districts are among the city’s first and only historic districts to honor immigrant and artistic history. Starting this year, we now celebrate each December as “South Village Month,” to celebrate this special neighborhood south of Washington Square and West 4th Street, and to remember the great efforts of so many to ensure this neighborhood’s preservation. 

You can join in the celebration! Here are a few ways:

• Sullivan Thompson Historic District Shop + Stroll, Wednesday, December 13, 5-8pm. Enjoy the amazing independent shops located in the South Village below Houston Street, take in the festive lights, and take advantage of the treats, prizes, or discounts being offered by more than 20 local shops for those who sign up for and participate in the stroll. Register + info HERE.
• Take part in a free Zoom webinar: South Village Italian Americans and the Arts, Tuesday, December 19, 6pm. Learn how this vital immigrant community interacted with, inspired, and contributed to the arts and artists around them in the late 19th and 20th century. Register + info HERE.
• Learn more about the rich history behind the South Village and the effort to preserve it — CLICK HERE.
• Explore our South Village Oral Histories HERE (click “South Village” tab)
• Watch our South Village videos.
• Explore the architecture and cultural history of the South Village in our original landmark proposal.
• Explore our history of “The Italians of the South Village.”
• Explore our entire South Village Historic District State and National Register of Historic Places report, photos, and map.
• Read the landmark designation reports for the three South Village historic districts: Greenwich Village Historic District Extension II, South Village Historic District, and Sullivan Thompson Historic District.
• Explore our South Village Historic Image Archive Collections: the Ricardo Spina Collection, the Center for Migration Studies Collection, and the Ferretti Cozzo Collection.