Astor Row is the name given to 130th Street between Fifth Avenue and
Lenox AvenueLenox Avenue / Malcolm X Boulevard is the primary north-south route through Harlem in the upper portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan. This two-way street runs from Farmers' Gate at Central Park North to 147th Street....
in
HarlemHarlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, long known as a major African-American residential, cultural, and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands.Harlem has been defined by a series...
, in the
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
boroughNew York City, one of the largest cities in the world, is segmented into five boroughs. A borough is a unique form of government that administers the five fundamental constituent parts of the consolidated city...
of
ManhattanManhattan is one of the five boroughs of New York City, located primarily on Manhattan Island at the mouth of the Hudson River.New York County, which has the same boundaries as the Borough of Manhattan , is the most densely populated county in the United States, with a 2008 population of 1,634,795...
. More specifically, it refers to the semi-attached row houses on the south side of the street. These were among the first speculative
townhouseHistorically in the United Kingdom, Ireland and in many other countries, a townhouse was a residence of a peer or member of the aristocracy in the capital or major city. Most such figures owned one or more country houses in which they lived for much of the year...
s built in Harlem, and their design is very unusual. The houses are set back from the street and all have front yards, an oddity in New York, and all have wooden porches. The effect is southern, and has been compared to the appearance of parts of
Savannah, GeorgiaSavannah is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Chatham County, Georgia, USA. Savannah was established in 1733 and was the first colonial and state capital of Georgia...
. The houses were built on land that had been purchased by
John Jacob AstorFor other pages relating to Astor, see John Jacob Astor John Jacob Astor , born Johann Jakob or Johann Jacob Astor, was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States...
in 1844 for $10,000, but the development was driven by his grandson,
William Backhouse AstorWilliam Backhouse Astor, Jr. was a businessman and a member of the prominent Astor family.-Biography:The younger son of William Backhouse Astor, Sr., he was joint heir to the Astor real estate empire, though he left its active management to his elder brother John Jacob Astor III .Astor graduated...
, who hired architect and builder
Charles BuekCharles Buek was a developer and architect in New York City in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He worked mostly on the east side of Manhattan, in the years between 1880 and 1914. Among his surviving projects are 20 East 69th Street, 829 Madison Avenue, and Astor Row. -References:* at The...
to oversee the project. The houses were all built between 1880 and 1883.
Ownership stayed in the Astor family until 1911, when the westernmost ten of the houses were sold to real estate investor Max Marx, who traded them in part for an apartment building in
Washington HeightsWashington Heights is a New York City neighborhood in the northern reaches of the borough of Manhattan. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest point on Manhattan island by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, to defend the area from the...
. The new owners, the Brown Realty Company, defaulted on their mortgage and the houses passed to the New York Savings Bank.
The Astor Row townhouses rented originally for $1,100 per year, and were so popular that there was for years a waiting list to live there. The Astor Row townhouses were occupied originally by whites, but in 1920, 20 of the 28 Buek houses (the ten owned by New York Savings Bank, plus ten still owned by the Astors) were purchased by a real estate operator named James Cruikshank and leased to black tenants.
The houses were not maintained as Harlem decayed from 1930 - 1990, and the porches were gradually lost. In 1978, the second edition of the
AIA Guide to New York City described the row as having "restrained beauty which has been tarnished by years of economic distress." In 1981, New York City declared the entire row to be landmarks and raised funds to restore their facades, and improve their plumbing, heating systems, and electrical lines where needed. The group overseeing and financing the work included the
New York Landmarks Conservancy,
New York City Landmarks Preservation CommissionThe New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The Commission was created in April 1965 by Mayor Robert F. Wagner following the destruction of Pennsylvania Station the previous year to make way for...
,
Vincent Astor Foundation,
Manhattan Community Board 10The Manhattan Community Board 10 is a local government unit of the city of New York, encompassing the neighborhood of Harlem and Polo Grounds in the borough of Manhattan...
,
Abyssian Development Corporation, the
Commonwealth FundThe Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation whose stated purpose is to promote a high performing health care system that achieves better access, improved quality, and greater efficiency.-History:...
, the
New York City Department of Housing Preservation and DevelopmentThe New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development is the mayoral agency of New York City responsible for developing and maintaining the city's stock of affordable housing...
, and several local banks. In 1992,
Ella FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as "Lady Ella", and the "First Lady of Song", was an American jazz vocalist....
performed at a benefit at
Radio City Music HallRadio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue located in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Its nickname is the Showplace of the Nation, and it was for a time the leading tourist destination in the city...
to raise money for the restoration. By the end of the 1990s, the porches and other decorative elements had been restored to almost all the buildings on the block. In August 2009, the
New York Times would write "the block is at the center of an intense but, as yet, unfinished revival of the surrounding streets in Central Harlem."
The houses on the north side of the street are large, attractive brownstones of a more common design. In 1932,
Father DivineGeorge Baker Jr. , also known as Father Divine, was an African American spiritual leader from about 1907 until his death. His full self-given name was Reverend Major Jealous Divine, and he was also known as "the Messenger" and George Baker early in his life...
, leader of
Father Divine's International Peace Mission MovementThe International Peace Mission movement was the religious movement started by Father Divine, an African-American who claimed to be God.-History:...
, lived on the north side of Astor Row.
Today, Astor Row is racially integrated, and is one of the stellar architectural landmarks in Harlem. It is located near
Sylvia's Restaurant of HarlemSylvia's Restaurant of Harlem is a soul food restaurant in New York City. It was founded in 1962 by Sylvia Woods. It has since expanded to a much larger space at 328 Lenox Avenue , and an adjacent building...
, the
Mt. Moriah Baptist Church, the former home of
Langston HughesJames Mercer Langston Hughes, was an American poet, novelist, playwright, short story writer, and columnist. He was one of the earliest innovators of the new literary art form jazz poetry...
, and other Harlem landmarks.
Sources
- "Past & Present On Astor Row in Harlem, Two Restorations Stand As Reminders Of What Once Was"; Newsday
Newsday is a daily American newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties and the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, although it is sold throughout the New York metropolitan area...
, October 8, 1992. p.77
- "The Sky Line: On Astor Row", Brendan Gill, The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry published by Condé Nast Publications...
, November 2, 1992, p.51
- Harlem: Lost and Found; Michael Henry Adams. Monacelli, 2002. p.103