The Charlton–King–Vandam Historic District is a small historic district in

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Designated by the

New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the Government of New York City, New York City agency charged with administering the city's Historic preservation, Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting Ne ...

(NYCLPC) in 1966, the district contains "the city's largest concentration of row houses in the

Federal style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classical architecture built in the United States following the American Revolution between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was influenced heavily by the works of And ...

, as well as a significant concentration of

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

houses.", p.41 It is sometimes included as part of the

South Village The South Village is a largely residential area that is part of the larger Greenwich Village in Lower Manhattan, New York City, directly below Washington Square Park. Known for its immigrant heritage and bohemian history, the architecture of th ...

(to the east) or

Hudson Square Hudson Square is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by Clarkson Street to the north, Canal Street (Manhattan), Canal Street to the south, Varick Street (Manhattan), Varick Street to the east, and ...

(to the southwest), though it is historically distinct from both neighborhoods."Charlton–King–Vandam Designation Report"

(August 16, 1966) The district includes parts, but not all, of Charlton, King and Vandam Streets between the

Avenue of the Americas Sixth Avenue, also known as Avenue of the Americas, is a major thoroughfare in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The avenue is commercial for much of its length, and traffic runs northbound, or uptown. Sixth Avenue begins four blocks b ...

(Sixth Avenue) and

Varick Street __NOTOC__ Varick Street runs north–south primarily in the Hudson Square district of Lower Manhattan in New York City, New York. Varick Street's northern terminus is in the West Village, where it is a continuation of Seventh Avenue South sout ...

(the southern extension of Seventh Avenue), as well as the block bounded by King, MacDougal and

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Streets and Sixth Avenue. In its designation report, the NYCLPC emphasized that this area was not a modern creation but had once been part of a larger "distinct and separate neighborhood" that was generally developed between 1820 and 1829 and originally extended from the Hudson River (then at Greenwich Street) to MacDougal Street, and from Vandam Street to King Street. In 1973, the district was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

.NRHP database entry

History

The Charlton–King–Vandam area was part of the estate of Richmond Hill, a Georgian

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...

built in 1767 and said to be one of the most beautiful mansions in Manhattan. It was used by

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

as a headquarters and later became

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

' Vice Presidential Mansion when the new country's capital was New York City.

Aaron Burr Aaron Burr Jr. (February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836) was an American politician, businessman, lawyer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805 d ...

bought the mansion, and after living in it for a time and using it as the site of lavish parties, it was Burr who, in 1797, mapped the property, dividing it into lots and laying out the grid of three streets, which would become Charlton, King and Vandam. After Burr's duel with

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...

, he lost control of the estate to

John Jacob Astor John Jacob Astor (born Johann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was a German-born American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor. Astor made his fortune mainly in a fur trade monopoly, by exporting History of opiu ...

, the leading land developer of the time, who paid off Burr in 1817 and proceeded to develop the area. Astor had the mansion moved from the top of the hill it stood on to the corner of Charlton and Varick, and the hill was levelled; the mansion was subsequently used as a theatre. Builders bought the majority of the lots Astor laid out, so that much of the construction in the neighborhood took place in the early and mid-1820s, although some Greek Revival houses date from the 1840s, replacing houses destroyed by fire. After the mansion was razed in 1849, the neighborhood name "Richmond Hill" fell into disuse.Where was colonial Manhattan's Richmond Hill?
November 3, 2011.

Architecture

The north sides of Charlton and Vandam Streets display "exceptional examples" of Federal-style architecture, especially #37 and #39 Charlton Street,, pp. 154-155 as well as houses showing elements transitional to the early Greek Revival style. King Street has a more varied mix, including Greek Revival houses, particularly those at #20 and #40-44, and houses in the Federal, Anglo-Italianate and

Roman Revival Neoclassical architecture, sometimes referred to as Classical Revival architecture, is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy, France and Germany. It became one of t ...

styles. King also includes the former Public School 8, now converted to residences, designed by David Skagg and built in 1886, which has been characterized as a "lively Queen Anne-style building".

References

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Charlton-King-Vandam Historic District Greenwich Village Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan New York City designated historic districts Historic districts in Lower Manhattan Hudson Square

History

Architecture

See also

References

External links