In 2021, Village Preservation secured landmark designation of 70 Fifth Avenue.

Constructed between 1912 and 1914, this striking Beaux-Arts style building is also culturally significant as the headquarters of the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization, the NAACP, for about a decade beginning in 1914. Here the NAACP waged key early battles against lynching, segregation, voting, housing discrimination, and defamatory portrayals of African Americans in the media. No. 70 Fifth Avenue was also the first home of The Crisis Magazine, founded and run by WEB DuBois, the first magazine for African Americans, a key component of the Harlem Rennaissance, and a major voice of the civil rights movement for over a century. The building also housed an unparalleled array of civil rights, human rights, civil liberties, peace, and educational organizations, from the ACLU to the American Federation of Teachers and the League for Industrial Democracy. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in the landmark designation report. . . .

47 Fifth Avenue received landmark designation in 1969.

Constructed in 1853, this building is the only intact mansion on lower Fifth Avenue, which was once lined with such structures. The four-story mansion was constructed in the Italianate style and was one of the first mansions to have its facade constructed of Brownstone. Its monumental entrance and decorative cornice, typical of the Italianate style, are perfectly intact. The home was constructed by Irad Hawley, a railroad and coal magnate. Hawley helped to form the Pennsylvania Coal Company and was one of the early, and heavy, investors in the new technology of the railroads in the early 1800s. Since 1917, 47 Fifth Avenue has served as the home of the Salmagundi Club. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

With the support of Village Preservation, 22-26 East 14th Street received landmark designation in 2008.

Baumann Brothers Furniture and Carpets Store to right of lamppost in 1895 Completed in 1881, this building serves as an exemplary symbol of industrial development in the area. The building is notable for its florid and highly detailed cast-iron construction and design. The ground floor’s cast-iron facade is complete with ornamented pilasters. The upper stories are comprised of a brick structure with a molded band brick course as the cornice. The structure was built as the Baumann Brothers Furniture and Carpets Store in 1880-81 for James McCreery, an Irish immigrant and prominent businessman in New York City also responsible for the construction of 801-807 Broadway. Baumann Brothers, established by Albert and Ludwig Baumann, Jewish immigrants, was located here from 1881 to 1887. The ground floor of the building served as a Woolworth store for eight decades. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 1998, 34 ½ East 12th Street was designated an individual New York City landmark.

Constructed in 1885, this Anglo-Italianate-style school was designed by architect Thomas R. Jackson for the Board of Education. It first served as Grammar School 47, an all-girls school which the landmark designation report notes “was one of the first New York City schools built exclusively for the education of girls at a time when the city was trying to expand learning opportunities for young women,” and later became the home of New York’s first high school for girls. The four-story building has a brownstone facade, complete with brownstone steps, and Corinthian pillars surrounding the entablature. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 2019, 841 Broadway received landmark designation following Village Preservation’s campaign calling for comprehensive landmark protections for the neighborhood.

Stephen Hatch designed this building in 1894 for James A. Roosevelt and Robert Barnwell Roosevelt. It was home to the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, famous for its early advances in filmmaking technology and one of the first American film studios. Brick piers supporting a track were installed on the building roof, allowing Biograph’s early film cameras to follow the sun and optimize natural light for filming. The company also developed the Biograph projector while here, allowing the film industry to shift from solitary viewers to a group audience. This projector was the beginning of the commercial motion-picture industry. 841 is an iron and steel-framed building with a roman brick facade. The NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission cited the building as an example of the “high-rise commercial development that occurred south of Union Square during the late-19th century using innovative new technology such as elevators, electricity, and metal framing.” . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 2017, Village Preservation saved 827-831 Broadway from planned demolition and replacement with a 300 ft. tall office tower by waging a successful campaign for landmark designation.

The 827-831 Broadway buildings were completed in 1867 by Griffith Thomas for Pierre Lorillard III, inspired by the Italian palazzi. The building's large windows made the buildings easily adaptable to studios for artists such as Willem de Kooning, Elaine de Kooning, Paul Jenkins, Larry Poons in the lather half of the 20th century, as well as apartments for tenants such as Cindy Lauper. The buildings were designated by the LPC for “their associations with prominent artists of the New York School and represented the pivotal era in which post-World War II New York City became the center of the art world.” . Read more about the history and significance of the building in their landmark designation report. . . .

In 2019, 817 Broadway received landmark designation following Village Preservation’s campaign calling for comprehensive landmark protections for the neighborhood.

Completed in 1898 to the designs of renowned architect George B. Post, the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission said it chose to designate the Sprauge building because it “represents the type of high-rise development that occurred on Broadway, south of Union Square, in the last decade of the 19th century,” and as one of New York’s earliest “skyscrapers,” though its relatively low height by contemporary standards would belie that title. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 2019, 840 Broadway received landmark designation following Village Preservation’s campaign calling for comprehensive landmark protections for the neighborhood.

840 Broadway was designed by Robert Maynicke and completed in 1901. The loft building was built to house garment manufacturers when this area was at the center of New York’s garment industry, one of the leading industries in late 19th and 20th century New York. In the 1970s, the building was converted to apartment buildings later serving as the home to a leading figure in experimental theater Tom O’Horgan. The landmarks preservation commission moved to designate the building because it “is a prominent reminder of Broadway’s turn-of-the-20th century development below Union Square.” . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 2019, 836 Broadway received landmark designation following Village Preservation’s campaign calling for comprehensive landmark protections for the neighborhood.

Completed in 1876, this is the second landmark in the area south of Union Square designed by Stephen Hatch. It was built on the site of James J. and Cornelia Roosevelt’s townhome. James, a well-respected judge, and Congressman was also the great-uncle of President Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. The building’s cast-iron facade is designed in a neo-Grec style and has a Renaissance revival-style mansard roof. The Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the building because it “led the transformation \[of the area ] from low-scale 19th-century residential and mixed-use to commercial store-and-loft-buildings by the turn of the 20th century.” . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

The above image shows 832-843 Broadway and 830 Broadway left to right In 2019, 832-834 Broadway received landmark designation following Village Preservation’s campaign calling for comprehensive landmark protections for the neighborhood.

Shown on Broadway left to right between 14th and 13th St: 862, 860, 858-56, 854-52, 848, 846, Left to right between 13th and 12th St 842, 840, 838, 832-34, 830, 828, 826 According to the Landmark Preservation Commission’s designation report, the building “is an architecturally significant example of the high-rise commercial loft and store development along Broadway south of Union Square in the late-19th century. This development was initiated as a result of the introduction of elevators, electricity and steel framing around the turn of the century, which made tall buildings more cost-effective to build… Garment industry companies located in 832-834 Broadway were among many picketed during the labor riots of the late 19th-century and early 20th century. The garment industry remained active in 832 Broadway until the 1930s. In the 1930s, 832- 834 Broadway became home to the Worker’s Library Publishing House later referred to as the New Century Publishers. The Worker’s Library was the official publishing company of the Worker Party of America, later the Communist Party of the U.S.A.” . Read more about the history and significance of the building in the landmark designation report:. . . .

The above image shows 832-843 Broadway and 830 Broadway left to right In 2019, 830 Broadway received landmark designation following Village Preservation’s campaign calling for comprehensive landmark protections for the neighborhood.

Shown on Broadway left to right between 14th and 13th St: 862, 860, 858-56, 854-52, 848, 846, Left to right between 13th and 12th St 842, 840, 838, 832-34, 830, 828, 826 830 Broadway is an 11-story Renaissance Revival-style store-and-loft building designed in 1897 by the prominent architectural firm of Cleverdon & Putzel for the builder Ferdinand H. Mela. Completed in 1898, it housed a variety of small manufacturing and wholesale businesses, largely associated with the garment industry, through the mid-20th century. By the 1970s, artists began to move into the building, using the large lofts as live/work spaces and by 1980 the building became a cooperative apartment house. The Landmarks Preservation Commission noted that it designated the building as “a significant example of a high-rise store-and-loft building built during a period of large-scale commercial development south of Union Square. This development was initiated as a result of the introduction of elevators, electricity, and steel framing around the turn of the century which made tall buildings more cost-effective to build… In the design of 830 Broadway, Cleverdon & Putzel employed decorative elements associated with the Renaissance Revival style to create a particularly elaborate facade.” . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

The Renaissance-Revival style building was designed by William H. Birkmire in 1902.

This building also features skeletal steel construction which significantly helped advance skyscraper construction. Beyond its architectural significance, the building was also designated for its association with the garment industry and has served as the home of The Strand bookstore since 1956. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 1966, 804 Broadway received landmark designation.

Constructed in 1846 as the rectory for Grace Church, it was designed by James Renwick Jr. in the Gothic Revival style, like the neighboring church. The design is one of the earliest uses of the Gothic Revival style in New York City. and according to the landmark designation report, it is also “probably one of the finest Gothic residences in Manhattan.” The building is ornate with arched windows and clad in stone. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in the landmark designation report. . . .

In 1966, Grace Church received landmark designation.

Completed in 1846 to the designs of renowned architect James Renwick Jr. when he was only 28 (his first major commission), the structure is considered of paramount architectural and cultural significance for New York City. The church building is one of several of Renwick’s designs in the South of the Union Square area, but it is the only one currently protected by landmark designation not associated with Grace Church. The church was one of the two churches that started the Gothic Revival movement in Manhattan. The church, like the rectory, is highly ornamented and clad in Sing Sing marble. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. . . .

In 2008, Webster Hall and Annex received landmark designation after being proposed for designation by Village Preservation.

Completed in 1887 and 1892, respectively, the striking Queen Anne style original structure and Renaissance Revival style Annex also bore witness to a tremendous amount of left-wing, progressive, labor, musical, and cultural history. It was the site of the formation of the Progressive Labor Party in 1887, and the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America in 1914. It was also the place of many famed recordings. Louis Armstrong and Julie Andrews recorded here. Early LGBTQ drag balls and gatherings were held here. . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report . . .

In 2012, the former horse auction mart received landmark designation after an emergency campaign for designation by Village Preservation in response to plans to demolish the building.

Completed in 1904, the Beaux-arts building was designated because it is “is one of the last remaining buildings in New York City that was erected for staging horse auctions.” The part of the building facing East 12th Street dates to 1890. 126-128 East 13th Street housed a vocational school for women during World War II, and was the studio for over a quarter-century of noted artist Frank Stella. . . . Read more about the history and significance of the building in its landmark designation report. To support our continued effort to designate the area south of Union Square click here, explore the area through our map here, and read more about this area on our blog here!