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More about the East Village

Thank you for all of your support! 126-128 East 13th Street was designated a New York City landmark on May 15, 2012. Show your support with a 128 East 13th Street “We Can Save It!” shirt from GVSHP

NY Press 05/22/12 DNAinfo 05/15/12 NY Times 05/15/12 The Real Deal 01/31/12 Villager 01/27/10 NY Times 09/03/06

128 East 13th Street LPC Landmark Designation Report 05/15/12 Urging the LPC to move ahead with landmarking of 128 E. 13th St. 03/04/08 GVSHP’s testimony to the LPC in support of landmarking 09/07/06 State and National Register Nomination

128 East 13th Street is believed to be the last surviving horse and carriage auction mart building in New York City. A once-common building type in New York, these marts are distinguished by their high central halls, where horses were paraded around on rings for potential buyers to review. This particular survivor also has an unusually distinguished history.

It was built in 1903 by Jardine, Kent, and Jardine, one of the era’s most distinguished architectural firms. According to contemporary reports in the New York Times, in the mart’s early years “the Belmonts and the Vanderbilts and other families transacted their horse affairs” there.

Later, the building was converted to a machine shop, and there according to the New York Times during World War II women were taught “assembly and inspection work, the reading of blueprints, and various mechanical aspects needed in defense industries.”

Most recently, the building served as the studio of Frank Stella, one of the 20th century’s most notable and influential artists. Few buildings in New York could be said to have had such a distinguished history, intersecting with so many key phases of our city’s development and transformation.