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Tag: South Village Historic District

Celebrating the South Village Historic District

Village Preservation has declared December to be South Village Month! Why, you ask? Well, we kicked off our campaign to seek landmark designation for the entire South Village and its remarkable multilayered architectural and cultural histories in December 2006, achieved landmark designation for the South Village Historic District (which was the second of what ended […]

Celebrating the Origins of the South Village

December is South Village Month – join us in celebrating this vibrant neighborhood all month long! In December 2016, following a multi-year advocacy campaign spearheaded by Village Preservation, the Sullivan Thompson Historic District was landmarked by the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission. This dozen-block, 175-building district designation was the culmination of a campaign formally begun by […]

Immigrant Heritage Week: The Importance of Preserving Immigrant History in Our Neighborhoods

Immigrant Heritage Week was established in 2004 and is coordinated by the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs as a city-wide celebration that honors the experiences and contributions of immigrants in New York City. The week commemorates April 17th,1909, when 11,747 immigrants entered the U.S. through Ellis Island — more than any other day in history. This citywide celebration honors […]

Welcome Aboard, Dena Tasse-Winter

Today we welcome Dena Tasse-Winter as Village Preservation’s Director of Research and Preservation. A native New Yorker, Dena joins us with a background in architectural and landscape history, archival research and writing expertise, and extensive experience within the governmental and cultural non-profit sectors in both New York City and Washington, D.C. Prior to joining Village […]

    ‘Seven to Save’: Did It Work? 

    Village Preservation’s proposed South of Union Square Historic District was recently named one of 2022-2023’s “Seven to Save” — the biannual list of the most important endangered historic sites in New York State — by the Preservation League of New York State. This designation shines a spotlight on the incredibly valuable and varied architecture of […]

    127, 129, and 131 MacDougal Street: Architecture, Artists, African Americans, and “Alternative Lifestyles”

    On June 8th, 2004, 127, 129, and 131 MacDougal Street, three 1829 Federal Style houses, were landmarked  — the first three of thirteen Village Preservation and the NY Landmarks Conservancy jointly proposed and campaigned for landmark designation. On December 17, 2013, they were landmarked again as part of the South Village Historic District following a decade of advocacy by Village Preservation. While all three […]

      Bravo’s Book Nook: Greenwich Village’s Newest Bookstore, In The Players Theatre

      Greenwich Village has a new bookstore located at 115 MacDougal Street in the lobby of the historic Players Theatre. The specialty bookshop, Bravo’s Book Nook, focuses on books about theater, music, children’s education, and Greenwich Village history. The store is co-owned by Michael Sgouros of the historic Players Theatre and Brenda Bell of Literally Alive […]

        The South Village Historic District Makes the National Register of Historic Places

        The South Village is an area rich in architectural, cultural, and historic resources, distinct from (though connected to) those of its surrounding historic communities, such as Greenwich Village, Soho, and Noho. Much of this area’s history is defined by tenements and immigrants, particularly Italian-Americans; by speakeasies, jazz clubs, beatnik coffeehouses, and folk music clubs from […]

        The Fight to Recognize LGBT Civil Rights History in Our Neighborhoods

        On January 16th, 2013, Village Preservation sent a letter to the  New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) requesting that it landmark key sites of significance to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) history we had identified. At this time, no buildings in the city were explicitly recognized or protected by the LPC primarily for […]

        A Video Campaign to “Save the South Village”

        On Columbus Day in 2012 ( which was on October 8th), Village Preservation launched its “Save the South Village” video campaign. Columbus Day is traditionally a time to celebrate the contributions made by Italian-Americans to our country.  Our “Save the South Village” video campaign began as an effort to highlight the incredible history (Italian-American and […]

        The Pepper Pot Inn, “The Realest Thing in Bohemian Atmosphere”

        When searching through the chronicles of Greenwich Village history, some things almost seem too Village-y to be true, with all their quirky details and theatrical anecdotes. A prime example: The Pepper Pot Inn at 146 West 4th Street, a 1920s multi-level restaurant that became a sensation. Purchased in 1918 by Carlyle “Doc” Sherlock and his […]

          My Favorite Things: Andrew Berman Edition

            This post is part of a series about our favorite things in and about the Village. Andrew Berman, GVSHP’s Executive Director since 2002, has a plethora of favorite things about our neighborhoods, so it’s hard to press him for a discreet list.  But there are a few things that Andrew feels particularly passionate about, […]

          My Favorite Things: Ice Cream Edition!

          It’s August in New York.  It’s hot.  Need I say more? And conversations tend to revolve around the temperatures at this time of year.  How hot is it?  How humid is it?  When will the heat let up?  Is autumn around the corner yet?  We here at GVSHP decided that it was high time to […]

          The Gay Activist Alliance is Founded

          On December 21, 1969, the Gay Activist Alliance (GAA) was founded.  Almost exactly six months after the Stonewall Riots, the group was founded by Marty Robinson, Jim Owles, and Arthur Evans, as an offshoot of the Gay Liberation Front.  The GAA was intended to be a “single issue, politically neutral [organization]”, whose goal would be to […]

          Sullivan-Thompson Historic Historic District Gets Its Landmark Street Signs

          The Sullivan-Thompson Historic District is the Village’s most recently designated historic district, and was designated in record time. We’re happy to report that it has received its new street signs in record time as well. Usually taking several years to install, the brown street signs that indicate an area lies within a historic district were recently installed, […]

          The Art of the Artist’s Studio

          This piece was originally posted in 2014 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 thought we’d use the occasion of these warm August days to conduct a brief survey of some of […]

            More is More: Greenwich Village Historic District Extension II

            In this series, ‘More is More,’ we look at historic district extensions in our area. The Greenwich Village Historic District Extension II was designated June 22, 2010 after a multi-year campaign led by Village Preservation.  Although this is an extension of the Greenwich Village Historic District which was designated in 1969, it was also the first phase […]

            Vice President, Villager Shoots and Kills Hamilton

            1804. Weehawken.  Dawn.  Guns. Drawn.* Perhaps the most famous duel in American history took place on July 11, 1804, a result of a bitter political rivalry.  Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton had been at loggerheads off and on throughout their careers, but escalating tensions between the two led to their face-off on a dueling ground […]

            Sullivan-Thompson, a District of Immigrants

            The recently landmarked Sullivan-Thompson Historic District is one of the first historic districts in New York City so designated almost exclusively based upon its immigrant history and working-class architecture. As stated by the LPC research staff in their presentation before the Commissioners’ vote, “The architecture in the proposed district reflects the waves of immigration that […]

            Coming Soon: The Sullivan-Thompson Historic District Designation Report

            Christmas is coming early this year!  We have been told by the Landmarks Preservation Commission that the designation report for the newly landmarked Sullivan-Thompson historic district, aka phase III of our original South Village proposal, will be published today.  Perhaps appropriately, it is scheduled to be released almost exactly three years after the designation of […]

            Honoring Patti Smith

            On Saturday, December 10, 2016, the extraordinary Patti Smith accepted the Nobel Prize for Literature on behalf of Bob Dylan in Stockholm, Sweden. In a transcendent performance, Smith was overwhelmed with emotion when she stopped mid-performance only to begin again and drive home her powerful rendition of Dylan’s “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” to a […]

            City Votes Unanimously to Landmark Final Phase of GVSHP’s Proposed South Village Historic District!

            Ten-block, 160-building district gets immediate protections from developers, incl. Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner; brings to 1,250 total number of buildings landmarked in neighborhood since 2003 The NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission voted unanimously today to landmark the third and final phase of GVSHP’s proposed South Village Historic District, called the Sullivan Thompson Historic District!  Landmark designation […]

            Bob Dylan’s South Village

            Bob Dylan in Sheridan Square The South Village has many reasons to be celebrated these days. Of course, the (hopefully) impending designation of the Sullivan Thompson Historic District is a big story for GVSHP. Our 13-year quest to protect all of the areas of the South Village is finally coming to fruition with the potential […]

              South Village Roundup

              Last week, news broke that the City will be moving ahead with the final phase of GVSHP’s proposed South Village Historic District, a roughly ten-block, one hundred sixty building area south of Houston Street between Sixth Avenue and West Broadway.  This amazing news is the culmination of a more than ten year campaign to seek […]

              Look Up! Its the South Village!

                Two and a half years after the designation of the South Village Historic District, the official brown terra cotta signs are now appearing identifying the streets included in the landmark district.  This district is part of the original proposal for South Village designation submitted to LPC by GVHSP in 2006.  To date, the City […]

              Who Was Jacob M. Felson?

              Recently, GVSHP has been reporting on and testifying against the plans for a building to replace the 2 story parking garage at 11-19 Jane Street.  Built in 1921, the structure is an early work by architect Jacob M. Felson.  While not a household name, some of Felson’s later buildings are among the most distinctive and characteristic structures of […]

              Celebrating 51 Years of Landmarking

              Fifty-one years ago today, on April 19, 1965, the New York City landmarks law went into effect.  A year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of the landmarks law has been spearheaded by Landmarks50, an incredible coalition of which Village Preservation is a member, led by Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel, the chair of the Historic Landmarks Preservation Center. […]

              Finding Out More About New York City Buildings Research

              An Off the Grid reader contacted us to ask for more background information and history about the buildings mentioned in last week’s e-newsletter “Pushing the Envelope in the West Village“. Fortunately, with the resources available on GVSHP’s website, finding out more information on buildings in our neighborhood is generally pretty easy to do — we’ll walk […]

              GVSHP African American History Month Series: Revisiting Spring Street Presbyterian Church

              In celebration of Black History Month, the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation will host several public programs this month with specific focus on the history of the African-American community in Greenwich Village. On Monday, February 9, archivist David Pultz will give an illustrated lecture at the First Presbyterian Church on the unique history of the former […]

              Saving Sacred Spaces

              After a nearly half-century wait, last week the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission finally voted to approve landmark status for the 150-year old religious building located at 334 East 14th Street, now the Tifereth Israel Town & Village Synagogue, and prior to that a German Baptist and a Ukrainian Autocephalic Church. Ironically, the Commission’s decision was followed soon […]

              LGBTQ History: MacDougal Street

              (This post is the first of a series on the history of the LGBTQ community in Greenwich Village.) It is easy to assume, in the aftermath of the Stonewall riots, that Greenwich Village’s LGBTQ history happened entirely on Christopher Street. Of course, there’s a lot more to LGBTQ history in the Village than Stonewall, just […]

              The Art of the Artist’s Studio

              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 thought we’d use the occasion of these warm August days to conduct a brief survey of some of our favorite artist’s studio windows in the […]

                Matt Umanov, Guitar Fixer and Village Storyteller

                This is the latest installment of the Off the Grid series in which we highlight the people, places and events featured in our new book Greenwich Village Stories, available for purchase now. Visit our Facebook page for the latest on book contributors, release events and readings, and contest information. Music first brought Matt Umanov to the Village. Playing, building, and repairing […]

                April 12, 1901: Back When the “New Law” was New

                The 20th century had hardly begun when the New York State legislature signed into law a new act to address old problems in this city regarding tenement construction. This groundbreaking event took place on April 12, 1901. Formally known as the New York State Tenement Act of 1901, the legislation was considered a big step […]

                Looking Up: West 3rd Street

                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 floor. In this week’s edition of Looking Up, we’re casting our gaze skyward on West 3rd Street to recall what was once up there – […]

                  The Beatles Arrive in Greenwich Village

                  “Yeah, yeah, yeah” – as the New York Times wrote in February 1964 – it was in fact February 7, 1964 that the Beatles arrived for the very first time on our shores. Landing first in New York, the four lads from Liverpool made their historic Ed Sullivan Show appearance two days later. With most […]

                    Upstairs/Downstairs: A Night Out on MacDougal Street

                    We’ve been focusing a lot lately here at Off the Grid on the newly designated South Village Historic District and the designation report that allows us to learn much about the architecture and history of the district. The designation report is a powerful tool, so we thought we would share one of the ways we […]

                    NYU Buildings Worth Landmarking, Not Protesting

                    Here at GVSHP, we’ve been poring over the new South Village Historic District designation report, and it has some wonderful facts and even a few surprises we thought we’d share. Earlier this month, New York State Supreme Court Justice Donna Mills delivered great news by announcing her legal decision that several of the pieces of […]

                    Explore the South Village’s History

                    As you likely know by now, the South Village was designated an official New York City historic district by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) at the end of December. Part of the landmarks process is the publication of a landmark designation report for the neighborhood by the LPC, which acts as an outline of the […]

                    South Village Landmarked Today!

                    We’re excited to share that the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) voted today to landmark the South Village Historic District, a two hundred forty-building, thirteen-block section of Greenwich Village south of Washington Square Park, and the second phase of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation’s (GVSHP) proposed South Village Historic District (the first phase […]

                    South Village: Local Landmark Designation vs. National Register Listing

                    Last week GVSHP took an important step in documenting the South Village for its listing on the National Register of Historic places by photographing a selection of sites to be included in the nomination report.  This nomination, written by architectural historian Andrew Dolkart, will soon be sent to the State Office for Historic Preservation to […]

                    John Sloan’s Village

                    Today marks the birthday of great Greenwich Village artist and chronicler of everyday life in Lower Manhattan John Sloan, born August 2, 1871. Sloan worked as an painter and illustrator, first in Pennsylvania, and then most notably in New York at the turn of the twentieth century. His work is now highly regarded, and he is considered […]