Our area boasts some of the most historic and attractive architecture in the city, if we do say so ourselves. All too often, however, these buildings lose beautiful historic details, through lack of maintenance or intentional removal. The most common such alteration to the look of buildings is probably the removal of cornices, the protruding […]
Walking on East 9th Street the other day I saw a new and surprising element on the Mud Cafe storefront at 307 East 9th Street, between 1st and 2nd Avenues, that I never before noticed. The inviting bench that is usually outside was moved for a delivery, and one could see what at first appeared […]
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 neighborhood. The Police Athletic League Building at 34 1/2 East 12th Street between University Place and Broadway was built in 1855 for the […]
Cinema Village, located at 22 East 12th Street, is the oldest continuously operated cinema in Greenwich Village and one of the oldest continuously operated art cinemas in the city. Information from GVSHP’s research notes the following about the Cinema Village building: The façade appears to date from a 1964 alteration. The NB application shows that the […]
On the corner of 12th Street, the highly ornamented 817 Broadway is a visual treat. The building, which turns 120 years old this year, was constructed in 1895 to the designs of prolific architect George B. Post. Post designed several well-known buildings in New York that have long been demolished, so it was nice to […]
Recently, someone contacted us asking about the location of Stuyvesant Alley, which no longer exists. As it turns out, historic maps were able to help shine some light. This long-gone alley could once be found on the block between Second and Third Avenues, and East 11th and 12th Streets not too far away from GVSHP’s […]
Citizen Kane Psycho North by Northwest Taxi Driver Recognize these movies? Can you guess what they all have in common? As the title of this post suggests, they are all connected through the film scores of legendary composer Bernard Herrmann. Hermann was born on June 29, 1911 in New York City. Before scoring numerous Hollywood […]
A 19th century row house on the south side of East 12th Street between Second and Third Avenues is currently undergoing a facelift, though we can’t say it’s for the better. No. 224 East 12th Street was constructed in 1852. Since this year pre-dates the formation of the New York City Buildings Department in 1866 […]
Get out your trilby hats and flapper dresses- Boardwalk Empire, the HBO Prohibition-era mob drama, is filming right here on East 12th Street and 2nd Avenue at John’s Italian Restaurant. Set in Atlantic City, the series often departs to New York to check in with Jewish mob boss Arnold Rothstein and his then-“employee” Sicilian-American gangster […]
