Stories from GVSHP’s Historic Image Archive- “Is That My Mother?”

Since its online release in August, 2017, GVSHP’s Historic Image Archive has been the source of several amazing stories. The recently released Carole Teller’s Changing New York Collection particularly so, perhaps because these images from the 1960s to 1990s cover relatively recent history, and thus many people connected to people and places in the images are […]

This Day in Preservation History: Home of Alexander Hamilton (Jr.) is Landmarked

The Federal-style rowhouse at 4 St. Mark’s Place, also known as the Hamilton-Holly house and the former home of  Trash and Vaudeville, was designated an individual New York City landmark on October 19, 2004.part of a proposal by GVSHP and the NY Landmarks Conservancy to seek landmark designation of thirteen (like the thirteen colonies) federal houses […]

The High Line is Dismantled and the West Side is Transformed

There’s no overstating it – we at Village Preservation love our members and friends sharing old mementos and images of our neighborhood. Personal or family pictures taken of one’s surroundings or familiar spots often now become, years later, important historical documents. Case in point:  we’ve just added to our ever-growing Historic Image Archive a mini-collection of […]

A Tale of Two 50’s!

Fifty years ago today, the musical Hair premiered at The Public Theater.  The first rock musical, it would go on to become a pacifist symbol throughout the world and bring groundbreaking innovations to the American musical theater genre.  As we remember this 50th Anniversary, we are preparing to celebrate another 50th that’s right up the street […]

Happy Birthday, Eugene O’Neill

On this day in 1888, Eugene Gladstone O’Neill was born, and the course of American theater would change forever. O’Neill became the first American dramatist to regard the stage as a literary medium and he remains the only U.S. playwright to capture the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Murder He Wrote: Gruesome Tragedies That Shook the Village

Our neighborhoods are home to many charms and delights, known throughout the world. But they’ve also been home to more than their fair share of horror and mayhem. Below are just a few of the more notorious examples that have wreaked havoc upon our neighborhoods. The Butchery on Bond Street On January 31st, 1857, dentist […]

Happy Birthday, Richard Meier

American architect Richard Meier was born on this day in 1934. Over the course of his nearly sixty-year career Meier has designed countless buildings all over the world and received numerous prizes including the Pritzker Prize in Architecture in 1984, the AIA Gold Medal in 1997 and the Architizer Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013. Arguably best […]

    Farewell to Matt Umanov Guitars

    Last week Matt Umanov Guitars released the following bittersweet statement: “After fifty-three years of having been in the business of helping so many guitar (and all the other fretted instruments) players have the tools with which to make music, forty-eight of those years at my store here in Greenwich Village, in the great City of New […]

    de Kooning’s Greenwich Village

    While much has been said lately about the 11th hour salvation of 827-831 Broadway, two critically important buildings in the life and work of artists Willem de Kooning and Elaine de Kooning, we thought it would be interesting to explore other spots in our neighborhoods that were also particularly meaningful to the de Koonings, and indeed […]

      The South Village’s Italian Heritage

      Many think of Little Italy’s Mulberry Street or the Bronx’s Arthur Avenue as the centers of Italian-American life and culture in New York. But some of the most historically significant sites relating to the Italian-American experience in New York can be found in the Greenwich Village blocks known as the South Village–from the first church […]

      Happy Birthday to Wolf Kahn, who Draws the City like a Landscape

      The renowned painter Wolf Kahn was born on October 4, 1927.  In his oral history with GVSHP, Wolf Kahn brought wit, snark, and great, detailed memories about his time in the Village and the role he played in the art scene there, attending salons, renting half his apartment to Robert De Niro Sr., and spending […]

        Iconic album covers of Greenwich Village and the East Village: Then and now

        There’s no shortage of sites in the Village and East Village where great makers of popular music lived or performed. Less well known, however, are the multitude of sites that were the backdrop for iconic album covers, sometimes sources of inspiration for the artists or just familiar stomping grounds. Today, many are hiding in plain […]

        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, […]

        W.E.B. Du Bois Makes – and Teaches – History at the New School, September 27, 1948

        On September 27, 1948, William Edward Burghardt Du Bois, more commonly known as W.E.B. Du Bois, began teaching the very first African-American history and culture class ever taught at a university, at Greenwich Village’s New School for Social Research. This history-making event appears on GVSHP’s Civil Rights and Social Justice Map (which can always be found […]

        Happy Birthday, Tom Bernardin!

        Our good friend Tom Bernardin was born on this day in 1948.  A longtime resident of the West Village, Tom is perhaps best known as the “unofficial” historian of Julius’ Bar, and is also a contributor to our oral history collection.

        From Willem de Kooning’s loft to the threat of the wrecking ball: The history of 827-831 Broadway

        Underneath the lyrical and much-admired sherbet-colored facades of the twin lofts at 827-831 Broadway lies a New York tale like no other. Incorporating snuff, sewing machines, and cigar store Indians; Abstract Expressionists; and the “antique dealer to the stars,” it also involves real estate and big money, and the very real threat of the wrecking ball. Ahead, […]

        Friends Apartments- Fiction or Fantasy?

        Love them or hate them, Friends was an acclaimed television mainstay, winning 69 awards during its eleven year run from 1994-2004. Friends debuted on September 22nd, 1994, with Greenwich Village as its somewhat implausible backdrop. Monica’s apartment, aka the “Friends Apartment”, as well as Joey and Chandler’s apartment, is shown to be 90 Bedford Street, […]

          Saved From the Wrecking Ball: Today, and Fifty Years Ago

          Victory snatched from the jaws of defeat! We have seen it on many occasions here at GVSHP. Most recently, in case you haven’t heard, we were victorious in persuading the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the New York City agency charged with administering the city’s Landmarks Preservation law, to begin the formal process of considering 827-831 Broadway […]

          Celebrating David Rothenberg and the Fortune Society

          Last night, GVSHP and the Fortune Society hosted a celebration in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Fortune Society’s founding by David Rothenberg, and marking the release of GVSHP’s oral history with David and his addition to our Civil Rights and Social Justice Map.  If you missed last night’s celebration, or want to relive […]

          Welcome Aboard, Ariel Kates!

          Today we are very excited to welcome aboard Ariel Kates as our new Manager of Programming and Communications.  Ariel is thrilled to be a part of our public programming and outreach highlighting our unparalleled neighborhood, and to work with our members.

            Preserving Small Businesses with the Murrays

            James and Karla Murray are influential artists, small business advocates, and 2015 GVSHP Regina Kellerman Village Awardees.  They have captured and preserved scores of Village locales (and thousands of NYC locales). Over 80% of the businesses featured in their first book have  gone out of business since its publication in 2008. Their photographs of these storefronts, and the […]

              How Alphabet City’s ‘milk laboratory’ led to modern pasteurization

              The utilitarian building at 151 Avenue C between 9th and 10th Streets would hardly elicit a second glance from the casual passerby today. But its unassuming looks belie the incredible story of how Gilded Age science and philanthropy converged here to save thousands of children’s lives. In the 1800s, intestinal infections and diseases like tuberculosis caused by […]

              Critical Public Meeting Tonight to Save Our Neighborhood!

              Critical Public Meeting on Saving Third & Fourth Avenue Corridors in the East Village TONIGHT — Wednesday, September 13th Anyone who cares about overdevelopment in the area between 3rd and 5th Avenues, Union Square to Astor Place: Join GVSHP and neighbors at the Community Board #3 Land Use Committee Meeting TONIGHT, Wednesday, September 13 Rutgers Community […]

              When Taxi’s Sunshine Cab Company Made A Home in Greenwich Village

              On this day in 1978, the award-winning television show Taxi aired its first episode. The much-loved pathos-filled comedy set in a New York full of misfits, dreamers, and malcontents largely took place in the garage of the fictional Sunshine Cab Company,  shown to be at 534 Hudson Street, at the corner of Charles Street in Greenwich […]

                Business of the Month – Blaustein Paint & Hardware – 51 Greenwich Avenue

                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 Village or NoHo:  click here to nominate your favorite.  Want to help support small businesses?  Share this post with friends. Sometimes you  just have to attend to […]

                When New York really became New York

                On this day in 1664, then-Dutch Governor Peter Stuyvesant surrendered what was known as New Amsterdam, the capital of New Netherland, to English naval Colonel Richard Nicolls. The European settlement on Lenape indigenous lands extended as far as Wall Street at the time and was the cause of a protracted war, despite the lore of […]

                “On the Road” Published

                This is an update of a post written by former GVSHP staffer Andito Lloyd. The seminal tome of the Beat generation, Jack Kerouac’s novel, “On the Road,” was published  on September 5, 1957.  Though written in 1951 on a continuous 120 foot roll of paper it took many years and many revisions to finally get published […]

                An East Village Landmark Gets a Facelift

                While we all get ready to enjoy the holiday weekend, there is no holiday for preservation! At next Tuesday’s Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) hearing, an exciting application will be presented for 74 East 4th Street, home to former Village Award winner, La Mama Experimental Theater Club. The application for this East Village landmark (both an […]

                In the Village Voice today – August 31, 1967

                Though the Village Voice ceased production some time ago, old issues can provide a nice insight into what was going on in the neighborhood and the world in years passed. So today we’re taking a look back at the August 31, 1967 issue, to see how things were looking as the “Summer of Love” came […]

                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 […]

                  Happy Birthday, Charlie Parker

                  On August 29, 1920, Charles Parker Jr. was born in Kansas City, Kansas.  A towering figure in American jazz, he spent his final years in New York, and lived at 151 Avenue B, in a now-landmarked building often referred to as the “Charlie Parker House,” from 1950 to 1954, one year before his untimely demise. Parker […]

                  East Village Cheese!

                  Tonight is GVSHP’s Cheese Please! Members Only Summer Tasting at Murray’s Cheese.  We LOVE cheese here at GVSHP!  Murray’s is a beloved and renowned Greenwich Village staple, and has been a wonderful supporter of the neighborhood and GVSHP for many years.  While Murray’s serves so many New Yorkers from its West Village location, we thought […]

                    Carole Teller — Photographer, and Artist

                    Carole Teller’s rich collection of photographs of our neighborhoods over the last half century, which she generously donated to GVSHP, have created quite the buzz on the web of late, with coverage in Lonely Planet, the U.K Daily Mail, NBC, Time Out NY, Gothamist, Curbed, World Journal, and Untapped Cities, among many others. But who […]

                      How LGBT activism led to NYC’s most notorious bank robbery: The real story behind ‘Dog Day Afternoon’

                      The most notorious bank robbery in New York City history took place on August 22, 1972, during the decidedly dog days of that long hot summer. Immortalized in the film “Dog Day Afternoon,” it was an unlikely anti-hero tale with a backstory that began in Greenwich Village, interwoven with the social and political currents running […]

                      August 23, 1813: “The Bowery” is Born

                      It was August 23 of 1813 when the Common Council of New York City officially put the name “The Bowery” on the books as a city street name. But New Yorkers had already been calling it by that name for centuries, and native residents of the island had been walking its path for even longer. […]

                      Solving Mysteries in Historic Photos

                      One of many wonderful things GVSHP does is accept donations of old photos for our historic image archive, so we can share them with the world.  Old photos of course can be wonderful to view, and provide valuable information about historic sites, events, or people, as well as charting how things have changed over time. […]

                      The Skidmore House becomes a landmark

                      On this day in 1970, the Landmarks Preservation Commission granted landmark status to the dignified Greek Revival house at 37 East 4th Street. This three and a half story house was built in 1844-45 by Samuel Tredwell Skidmore, a relative of Seabury Tredwell, who lived with his family only a few doors away at 29 East 4thStreet, […]

                      Throwback Thursday with Carole Teller’s Photos

                      You may know that every Thursday, social media (Instagram especially) is abuzz with #tbt. The hashtag stands for Throwback Thursday and it’s a chance for everyone to post fun, funny, or interesting old photos. We love to participate in #tbt because it’s a great chance to highlight historic images of our city, and today we’re […]

                      Happy Birthday, Madonna!

                      Madonna Louise Ciccione, known simply as Madonna, was born on this day in 1958 in Bay City, Michigan. The singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, film director, author and businesswoman has won more awards and earned more accolades than could possibly be listed here over the course of her thirty five-plus year career. And although she […]

                      Clifford Odets and The Group Theatre

                        Clifford Odets, one of America’s greatest playwrights, passed away on this day in 1963 at the age of 57. Odets grew up in the Bronx but migrated downtown as soon as he could in order to be around the artists, musicians, actors and writers who inhabited the Village. He began his career as an […]

                      Happy Birthday, Alex Haley!

                      Pulitzer-prize winning American author Alex Haley was born this day, on August 11, 1921. GVSHP’s Civil Rights & Social Justice Map highlights over a hundred sites in our neighborhood associated with civil rights and social justice, including more than twenty sites connected to African-American history and civil rights; click here to see them all. One […]

                      Ladies Like Beer Too

                      This is an updated re-posting of a piece written by former GVSHP staffer Dana Schultz. Walk into McSorley’s Old Ale House today and you will see an equal mix of the genders enjoying a beer. It’s hard to imagine that for 116 years this would not have been the case, as women were not allowed […]

                      The Village’s Twin Peaks: From a quirky ‘Swiss-chalet’ to a landmarks controversy

                      Few buildings capture the whimsy, flamboyance, and bohemian spirit of early 20th century Greenwich Village as does the building known as “Twin Peaks” at 102 Bedford Street. Described as a “wonderfully ludicrous mock half-timbered fantasy row-house castle” by architecture critic Paul Goldberger, the present incarnation of the building was born in 1925 as a radical remodeling […]

                      What’s in Webster Hall’s Past – and Future?

                      August 8th, 2007 was a joyous day in the GVSHP office – because that’s when we first received written notice from the LPC than they planned to consider Webster Hall for landmark designation. GVSHP had worked hard to achieve this milestone, providing the LPC with a dossier of research on the historic hall and its […]

                        The Glittering and Gritty History of 24 Bond

                        If you happen to look up while strolling down Bond or Lafayette Streets, you might come upon a curious sight – dozens of small, golden statues dancing along the wrought iron and brick of a traditional NoHo facade. Celebratory and airy, they’re a delightful addition to the heavy, industrial look of the rest of the […]

                        MacDougal Sullivan Gardens — One of New York’s Oldest and Most Special Historic Districts

                        On August 2nd, 1967, MacDougal-Sullivan Gardens was designated a New York City historic district. These 22 homes surround a beautiful private garden oasis, and this was one of the first historic districts to be designated in our area, prior to even the Greenwich Village Historic District in 1969 (only the Charlton-King-Vandam Historic District was designated earlier, […]

                        St. Mark’s in the Bowery: Sam Shepard’s First Theatrical Home

                         “…But who knows what is real anyway? Reality is overrated. What remains are the words scrawled upon an unwinding panorama, vestiges of dusty stills peeled from memory, a threnody of gone voices drifting across the American plain. The One Inside is a coalescing atlas marked by the boot heels of one who instinctively tramps, with open […]

                        The Ashcan School and the Beginnings of the Whitney

                        The streetscapes and street life of New York City are some of the most robust sensorial experiences. From towering skyscrapers to bright flashing lights to pungent (sometimes fragrant) smells and blaring sounds, the city runs on energy. It has been said that if the United States were a car, New York City would be its […]

                          Happy Birthday Marcel Duchamp!

                          This is an updated reposting of a blog by former staffer, Lauren Snetiker, July 28th, 2015 Today marks what would have been Marcel Duchamp’s 130th Birthday. Duchamp was born in France on July 28, 1887, trained as a painter in Paris until 1905, and spent much of his adult life living in Paris and New […]

                            USPS’ Landmark Legacy: the Cooper Station Post Office

                            On July 26, 1775 the United States Postal System was established by the Second Continental Congress, with Benjamin Franklin as the first Postmaster General.  Franklin, in his turn, put in place the foundation of many aspects of today’s mail system.  Today, the U.S. Postal Service is one the nation’s largest civil employers, with over 40,000 […]

                            How Zoning Shapes Our Neighborhoods

                            On July 25, 1916, New York City adopted the very first zoning rules anywhere in the country. This system for regulating the size, height, use, and other related characteristics of new development revolutionized the way cities looked and developed, and changed forever how we see property rights and our responsibilities and obligations to our neighbors […]

                            Happy Birthday Larry Fagin

                            The late poet Larry Fagin was born on this day in 1937, and would have turned 80. Well known in the East Village and poetry circles, sadly Larry passed away in May, 2017. He was a contributor to GVSHP’s book, Greenwich Village Stories, author of numerous books of his own, taught at The New School, was an assistant […]

                              A Glimpse of the Gilded Age on Renwick Row

                              We are fortunate enough to live in a neighborhood rich in 19th century architecture — both individual buildings and entire streetscapes. But while well-preserved 19th century buildings are not uncommon in the Village, perfectly preserved 19th century interiors that we can still view, especially from the apex of the Gilded Age, are quite rare.  Rarer still […]

                              Rosetta Stones Right in Our Home: Little Germany

                              On July 19, 1799, the Rosetta Stone was discovered during the Napoleonic Campaign in Egypt.  This stele is inscribed in three languages — Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Ancient Greek — and became the key to finally translating and unlocking the secrets of ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic script. Like ancient Egypt, our neighborhoods have been a shifting […]

                              Five Accomplished Writers and Thinkers Discuss Basquiat, NoHo & Identity

                              Didn’t make it to a recent GVSHP program? Visit our website to see photos, videos, and sometimes even presentation materials from recent programs. Photos and video from Saturday’s Basquiat and NoHo panel are now online! This past Saturday, just two doors down from Jean-Michel Basquiat’s last home and studio, GVSHP and Ayanna Jessica Legros presented a panel exploring the artist, his identity, and […]

                              Village Remains Tops for Artists in NYC

                              From the Center for An Urban Future Report Greenwich Village has long enjoyed a reputation as a mecca for artists.  The same can be said of nearby NoHo and SoHo, though the reputation for those neighborhoods is slightly newer (about fifty years, as opposed to well over a hundred for the Village).  The list of […]

                                Echoes of Bastille Day in Greenwich Village

                                On July 14, 1789, the Storming of the Bastille was the galvanizing event that kicked off the French Revolution.  The Bastille was a fortress-prison that held both political prisoners and a cache of weapons.  By storming the oppressive structure, the revolutionaries were not only able to obtain armaments to further their cause, but provide a symbol […]

                                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 […]

                                July 9, 1819: Slavery, Gentrification, and the Last Execution in Washington Square

                                This is a re-posting of a piece written by GVSHP’s Matthew Morowitz. Sunday, July 9th marked the 198th anniversary of the last execution that took place in Washington Square – the site of our neighborhood’s now-beloved public park. To commemorate this striking and layered anniversary, we are reposting an article on the subject originally written […]

                                Cool Down With Keith Haring!

                                The thermometer tells us we are definitely in the throes of summer.  However, we’re fortunate enough to have a city pool in our midst where you can not only immerse yourself in cool water, but also in a prime example of the 1980’s New York art scene. The Tony Dapolito Recreation Center, formerly known as […]

                                  Happy Birthday, Debbie Harry

                                  Deborah Harry, lead singer of the seminal punk and new wave band Blondie, was born July 1, 1945.  Both she as an artist and the group Blondie grew out of the ferment of the downtown scene of  the Village and East Village in the 1970’s.  From modest beginnings, they would go on to leave an […]

                                  Sheltering People with HIV/AIDS – In Fiction, and Reality

                                  This summer, members of GVSHP’s first-ever book club (myself included!) are reading Tim Murphy’s Christodora together. It’s a time-travelling exploration of evolving neighborhoods, the impact of HIV/AIDS, and how the lives of New Yorkers can intertwine and connect in ways you never quite expect. Each week, members receive an email containing story recaps, additional reading, discussion […]

                                  Happy Birthday to the Strand Bookstore!

                                  Today we celebrate 90 years of the Strand Bookstore. This beloved neighborhood institution was founded in 1927 by Benjamin Bass as a used bookstore on the famous Book Row, which consisted of 48 book stores along Fourth Avenue from Astor Place to Union Square. Strand remains among the last of these bookstores.  Today is actually owner Fred Bass’s 89th […]

                                    The Church of the Village: Remembering Injustice Against Gay Clergy Event

                                    On Wednesday, June 21st, the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation attended a plaque unveiling at the Church of the Village to honor former gay clergymen.  Reverends Clarence Edward Egan and Paul Abels were both pastors in the Village, very active in the neighborhood, and firmly rooted in fighting for civil rights and social justice.  […]

                                    PFLAG Plaque Unveiled

                                    On Sunday, June 23, 2013 outside the Church of the Village at the corner of Seventh Avenue and West 13th Street, GVSHP helped to unveil a plaque to commemorate the first meeting of PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). The organization, which now has 350 chapters in all 50 states, had its humble […]

                                    Happy Birthday to Villager Gloria McDarrah!

                                    To celebrate the birthday of Villager and oral history interviewee Gloria McDarrah, we’re reposting an earlier Off the Grid piece written by Lauren Snetiker. Since writing this piece, GVSHP has released even more oral history interviews. See a full list on our website, and look out for more releases later on in 2017. GVSHP is excited […]

                                    LGBT History in All Corners: NoHo

                                    June is Pride Month, an especially exciting time in our neighborhoods.  LGBT history is closely tied with the Village and environs, and this month we’re highlighting the LGBT history of the West Village, East Village, South Village, and NoHo.  Many of these sites can be found on our GVSHP Civil Rights and Social Justice Map, and we […]

                                    The Espionage and Sedition Acts

                                    The Espionage Act was passed on June 15th, 1917, shortly after the United States entered World War I in April of that year. Its goals included limiting interference with recruitment efforts and preventing the support of enemies of United States during wartime. In his message to Congress, President Woodrow Wilson warned that the war would require a […]