Happy 50th Birthday,
Greenwich Village Historic District!

On April 29, 1969, the City of New York designated the Greenwich Village Historic District.  The culmination of a multi-year effort by neighborhood leaders and preservationists, it secured landmark designation for much if not all of the neighborhood, creating the city’s largest historic district, encompassing more than 2,200 buildings, and over one hundred blocks.

Then as now, powerful interests like REBNY opposed the designation, saying it would stifle economic development and lead to the inevitable decay of the neighborhood.  Fifty years later, the Greenwich Village Historic District is among the most vital, desirable, and sought-after neighborhoods in the world, and if anything struggles with the effect of its success.   Of course, there are institutions, developers, and politicians that still seek to destroy its unique and irreplaceable historic character, and to weaken or undo the landmark designation.

Village Preservation was founded in 1980 to advocate for and protect the Greenwich Village Historic District.  We’ve since expanded our mission to include all of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo, and to advocate for preservation of small businesses and cultural institutions as well.  But preserving the Greenwich Village Historic District remains at the heart of our mission.

We do that every day by monitoring and responding to every application for changes to properties within the district.  And we’ve taken particular joy in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the district with a series of lectures, tours, programs and performances continuing throughout the year that highlight the district’s unique beauty and value.

Today we add to that with the release of our new interactive online map: Greenwich Village Historic District, 1969 – 2019: Photos and Tours.  This great new tool allows you to see side-by-side photos of every one of the more than 2,200 buildings in the district in 1969 at the time of designation, and today.  It also offers tours of the district’s incredibly rich history, architecture, writers and artists, theaters, houses of worship, and more.  Explore it all here.

There are currently hundreds of entries on the map, but we will be adding to it with new tours, images, and information throughout the year as we celebrate the Greenwich Village Historic District’s 50th anniversary.

We hope you’ll join us in celebrating the irreplaceable wonder that is the Greenwich Village Historic District and all it encompasses, and support our efforts as we fight to protect the special architectural and cultural heritage of all of the Village, East Village, and NoHo.

Special thanks to the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission for providing the 1969 images of the Greenwich Village Historic District.