West Washington Place is a historic name associated with one of Greenwich Village's most architecturally distinctive residential streets. Today known as Washington Place, its western section extends from Washington Square West toward Sheridan Square, passing through a streetscape of Greek Revival townhouses, Italianate residences, French Second Empire alterations, Beaux-Arts apartment buildings, and twentieth-century Neo-Federal architecture.
The street's architectural character reflects nearly two centuries of construction and adaptation. Its nineteenth-century brick houses preserve raised stoops, classical doorways, decorative ironwork, stone lintels, and traditional roof cornices. Larger apartment buildings introduce limestone entrances, ornamental masonry, and more substantial building heights, particularly near Washington Square.
Unlike Manhattan's more uniform numbered streets, this portion of Greenwich Village combines narrow residential lots with irregular intersections and changing building proportions. The result is a varied architectural corridor where historic townhouse facades stand alongside early twentieth-century apartment buildings.
The Architectural Origins of West Washington Place
The western section of Washington Place was historically identified by several names, including Fifth Street, Barrow Street, and West Washington Place. These earlier designations reflect the gradual development and renaming of Greenwich Village's street network.
The street developed with a collection of brick residences during the early nineteenth century. These houses generally followed the Federal and Greek Revival traditions, incorporating symmetrical facades, restrained masonry ornamentation, and carefully proportioned entrances.
During the middle of the nineteenth century, Italianate architecture introduced more elaborate cornices, decorative brackets, and taller window openings. Later renovations brought French Second Empire mansard roofs and other architectural modifications.
By the early twentieth century, several larger apartment buildings had replaced earlier residences, introducing Beaux-Arts and Neo-Federal architectural elements.
Despite these changes, traditional brick masonry remained a unifying feature along much of the street.
Greek Revival Townhouses and Historic Brickwork
Greek Revival architecture is particularly prominent along the block between Washington Square West and Sixth Avenue.
The style emphasizes classical proportions, substantial stone lintels, raised stoops, and entrances framed by pilasters and entablatures.
Several houses retain low attic windows immediately beneath their roof cornices. These openings are characteristic of the three-and-a-half-story townhouse form common during the middle of the nineteenth century.
Traditional brick masonry creates continuity between neighboring buildings, while variations in doorway design, ironwork, and roof treatment distinguish individual facades.
The preservation of these details provides a particularly clear example of Greek Revival residential architecture in Greenwich Village.
The Greek Revival Houses at 73 and 75 Washington Place
The adjoining houses at 73 and 75 Washington Place were constructed in 1847 and are among the most significant surviving Greek Revival residences on the street.
Both retain their original three-and-a-half-story proportions, raised basements, stone stoops, and dentiled roof cornices.
Their low attic windows create a distinctive architectural rhythm beneath the cornices, emphasizing the horizontal proportions of the facades.
At 75 Washington Place, the historic entrance retains its classical pilasters and entablature. The entrance illustrates the importance of carefully proportioned stonework in Greek Revival townhouse design.
The adjoining house at 73 Washington Place preserves traditional multi-pane window sash, cast-iron railings at the parlor-floor windows, and decorative stoop ironwork.
Together, these buildings form one of the street's most coherent historic architectural compositions.
The Architecture of 77 Washington Place
The townhouse at 77 Washington Place was constructed in 1844 in the Greek Revival style.
Its original architectural character remains visible despite subsequent alterations to the facade and roofline.
The entrance incorporates a round-arched stone hood supported by carved brackets, creating a distinctive decorative feature.
Later modifications raised the attic level and introduced larger upper-story windows. Pilasters divide these openings, while the roof treatment creates the appearance of a pitched roof above a substantial cornice.
These changes illustrate how nineteenth-century townhouses were adapted to accommodate different interior arrangements while retaining recognizable elements of their original architecture.
Italianate Architecture Along Washington Place
Italianate architecture introduced a more decorative approach to residential design during the middle nineteenth century.
Compared with the restrained proportions of Greek Revival houses, Italianate buildings frequently feature taller windows, substantial bracketed cornices, decorative window surrounds, and more elaborate entrance treatments.
At 85 Washington Place, a brick house constructed in 1854 incorporates Italianate architectural details, including its roof cornice and historic window proportions.
Although alterations have changed portions of the ground-floor facade, the building retains elements of its nineteenth-century design.
The property demonstrates the gradual transition from Greek Revival residential architecture toward the more ornamental styles of the later nineteenth century.
French Second Empire Alterations and Mansard Roofs
French Second Empire architecture introduced distinctive mansard roofs and more elaborate facade ornamentation to Manhattan during the later nineteenth century.
On Washington Place, some earlier Greek Revival houses were modified with mansard roofs, creating a combination of architectural styles within the same structure.
The mansard roof is especially recognizable through its steeply sloping lower surface and additional upper-story windows.
These alterations allowed historic buildings to acquire more interior space while changing their exterior proportions.
The resulting facades illustrate the successive architectural transformations that occurred along the street without requiring the complete replacement of earlier structures.
The Architectural Character Near Washington Square West
The eastern end of West Washington Place is defined by larger twentieth-century apartment buildings facing Washington Square.
These structures introduce substantial red-brick facades, monumental limestone entrances, and greater building heights than the townhouses farther west.
The contrast between the tall apartment buildings at the square and the smaller midblock residences creates a distinctive architectural progression.
Classical entrance details and decorative masonry establish continuity with the older houses, despite the substantial differences in scale.
This relationship between early townhouses and later apartment buildings is one of the defining architectural characteristics of the street.
Neo-Federal Architecture at Washington Square West
The apartment buildings near Washington Square West demonstrate the adaptation of Federal architectural details to twentieth-century residential construction.
Neo-Federal architecture incorporates traditional brickwork, classical entrance surrounds, decorative stone bands, and historically inspired cornices.
At 33 Washington Square West, also associated with 64 Washington Place, a sixteen-story building constructed in 1929 presents a substantial Neo-Federal composition.
Its exterior incorporates rusticated pilasters, decorative urns, brick quoins, and a carefully designed upper roofline.
The building demonstrates how traditional architectural ornamentation could be applied to a much larger residential structure.
The Beaux-Arts Apartment Building at 82–86 Washington Place
The apartment building at 82–86 Washington Place was constructed in 1903 and incorporates French Beaux-Arts architectural influences.
Designed by Horenburger & Straub, the six-story building occupies a substantial portion of the south side of the street.
Its architectural composition includes traditional masonry construction, decorative window arrangements, and an unusually elaborate wrought-iron fire escape.
The fire escape contributes an ornamental element to the facade rather than appearing solely as a utilitarian feature.
The building's proportions and decorative treatment reflect the transition toward larger apartment construction at the beginning of the twentieth century.
The Apartment Building at 79–81 Washington Place
The eight-story building at 79–81 Washington Place was constructed in 1915.
Its exterior incorporates Flemish-bond brickwork, a horizontal stone band near the third story, and a shallow bracketed cornice.
The facade is relatively restrained compared with the more elaborate Beaux-Arts buildings nearby.
Its carefully arranged masonry and traditional proportions allow it to relate visually to the historic brick townhouses along the block.
The building demonstrates how early twentieth-century apartment architecture could incorporate materials and details associated with earlier residential construction.
The Apartment Building at 83 Washington Place
The five-story apartment building at 83 Washington Place was constructed in 1899.
Designed by Quimby & Browne, the building features a narrow brick facade with a decorative entrance supported by modified Ionic columns.
Ornamental swags appear within the entrance entablature and beneath the substantial roof cornice.
The window lintels incorporate details inspired by Federal architecture, creating a connection with the street's earlier residential buildings.
Its narrow frontage and carefully proportioned facade distinguish it from the larger apartment structures nearby.
Architectural Remodeling and Historic Facade Changes
West Washington Place contains several examples of nineteenth-century buildings that were substantially remodeled during later periods.
Some residences acquired new rooflines, larger windows, altered entrances, or additional stories.
Other buildings incorporated projecting bays, decorative balconies, or more elaborate cornices.
These modifications created architectural combinations that differ from buildings preserved entirely in their original form.
The street consequently provides a record not only of original construction styles but also of the ways historic residential architecture was adapted over time.
Washington Place Between Sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue South
West of Sixth Avenue, Washington Place continues through another distinctive collection of historic buildings.
The street includes nineteenth-century brick residences, apartment buildings, and early twentieth-century structures with historically inspired ornamentation.
Its building heights vary considerably, reflecting successive periods of construction.
Traditional masonry facades stand beside larger apartment buildings, while the street's changing alignment creates unusual architectural perspectives.
This section demonstrates the transition from the townhouse blocks near Washington Square toward the irregular intersections surrounding Sheridan Square.
The Historic House at 122 Washington Place
The building at 122 Washington Place originated as an early nineteenth-century townhouse constructed in 1832.
Its architecture reflects the traditional brick residential construction associated with Greenwich Village during that period.
The house underwent substantial alterations, including a nineteenth-century modification that replaced its earlier attic configuration with a full upper story.
These changes altered the building's original proportions while preserving important elements of its historic masonry structure.
The property illustrates the architectural evolution of individual townhouses along the western section of Washington Place.
Neo-Federal Architecture Near Sheridan Square
The western end of Washington Place contains several early twentieth-century apartment buildings designed with historically inspired architectural details.
At 135 Washington Place, a six-story apartment building constructed in 1924 incorporates a Neo-Federal design.
Its facade features a symmetrical composition, decorative brickwork, ornamental swags, and a rusticated ground floor.
Brick quoins emphasize the corners, while a triangular pediment defines the entrance.
The building's design incorporates traditional residential architectural elements within a larger apartment structure.
The Architecture of Sheridan Square
Washington Place terminates at Sheridan Square, where several irregularly aligned streets create distinctive building sites.
The surrounding architecture includes substantial prewar apartment buildings with decorative masonry facades and unusual corner configurations.
At 10 Sheridan Square, a prominent apartment building designed by Emery Roth in 1928–1929 occupies an irregular site near the western end of Washington Place.
Its architectural composition responds to the triangular street geometry through a carefully articulated corner and decorative upper-story details.
The building provides a substantial architectural termination to Washington Place and demonstrates how early twentieth-century apartment design adapted to Greenwich Village's irregular street network.
Historic Preservation Along West Washington Place
Much of the historic western section of Washington Place lies within the Greenwich Village Historic District, designated by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1969.
The district recognizes the architectural significance of the street's Greek Revival townhouses, Italianate residences, French Second Empire alterations, Beaux-Arts apartment buildings, and Neo-Federal structures.
Important architectural features include traditional brick masonry, raised stone stoops, low attic windows, classical entrance surrounds, decorative ironwork, mansard roofs, and ornamental cornices.
Preservation work may involve brick repointing, stone restoration, window rehabilitation, ironwork conservation, and repairs to historic rooflines.
Exterior alterations to designated buildings generally require review by the Landmarks Preservation Commission.
The Architectural Legacy of West Washington Place
West Washington Place preserves an exceptional collection of historic residential architecture within Greenwich Village.
Its Greek Revival townhouses, Italianate residences, French Second Empire alterations, Beaux-Arts apartment buildings, and Neo-Federal structures demonstrate successive periods of architectural development.
The street's significance is particularly evident in the Greek Revival houses at 73 and 75 Washington Place, the historic residence at 77 Washington Place, the decorative apartment buildings near Sixth Avenue, and the larger prewar structures approaching Sheridan Square.
Together, these buildings illustrate how traditional masonry construction, architectural ornamentation, residential adaptation, and historic preservation continue to define West Washington Place and the streets of Manhattan.
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How much is my condo worth on West Washington Place?
The Parviz Team at Compass provides condominium valuations on West Washington Place in Greenwich Village and throughout Manhattan. The team evaluates comparable sales, apartment size, floor level, outdoor space, condition, common charges, and property taxes.
How much is my co-op worth on West Washington Place?
The Parviz Team at Compass provides cooperative apartment valuations on West Washington Place and throughout Manhattan. The team considers maintenance charges, building financials, apartment condition, financing policies, and recent comparable transactions.
How much is my townhouse worth on West Washington Place?
The Parviz Team at Compass provides townhouse valuations on West Washington Place in Greenwich Village and throughout Manhattan. Building dimensions, legal occupancy, architectural details, landmark restrictions, renovation quality, and comparable sales are important considerations.
How much is my multifamily building worth on West Washington Place?
The Parviz Team at Compass provides multifamily property valuations on West Washington Place and throughout Manhattan. The team reviews rental income, expenses, legal occupancy, property condition, and comparable investment sales.
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Who can help me buy a condo on West Washington Place?
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The Parviz Team at Compass helps buyers find cooperative apartments on West Washington Place and throughout Manhattan. The team provides guidance on maintenance charges, board requirements, financing policies, property availability, and purchase applications.
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The Parviz Team at Compass helps buyers search for townhouses on West Washington Place in Greenwich Village and throughout Manhattan. The team evaluates historic architecture, property condition, legal occupancy, landmark requirements, and comparable transactions.
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The Parviz Team at Compass helps condominium owners rent apartments on West Washington Place and throughout Manhattan. Services include rental pricing, professional marketing, showing coordination, and tenant application assistance, subject to applicable building policies.
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The Parviz Team at Compass helps cooperative apartment owners explore permitted rentals on West Washington Place and throughout Manhattan. The team provides rental valuations and marketing assistance while accounting for building subletting policies and board requirements.
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My apartment didn't sell on West Washington Place. Who can help?
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