Sniffen Court
The Sniffen Court Historic District is one of New York City's smallest historic districts,[1] created on June 21, 1966 by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.[2] Sniffen Court, named after John Sniffen, a local builder,[2] is a small close-ended mews that runs perpendicularly southwest off of East 36th Street between Third and Lexington Avenues in the Murray Hill neighbourhood of Manhattan. The district encompasses the entire alley, which consists of 10 two-story brick stables built in 1863-1864 in the early Romanesque Revival style.[1][3]
As the need for carriage houses lessened, the buildings were converted for other uses.[2] In 1918, two of the stables (#1, also known as 150 East 36th Street, and #3) were bought by the Amateur Comedy Club, which has been in existence since 1884, to be their clubhouse and theatre; they remain that today.[4] In the 1920s, the process of conversion continued,[1] and by 1966 one of the buildings was in use as an architect's office, the gabled building at #2 (156 East 36th Street) was the home of a noted architect, while the remainder were small private residences.[2]
Two artists associated with the mews were the sculptors Malvina Hoffman and Harriet Whitney Frishmuth, both of whom had studios in the Court.[1][5] On the rear of the alley are mounted two sculpted plaques of Greek horseman by Hoffman[2]
On November 28, 1973 the Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Washington Mews
Washington Mews is a private gated street in New York City between Fifth Avenue and University Place just north of Washington Square Park. Along with MacDougal Alley and Stuyvesant Street, it was originally part of a Lenape trail which connected the Hudson and East Rivers,[1] and was first developed as a mews (row of stables) that serviced horses from homes in the area. Since the 1950s the former stables have served as housing, offices and other facilities for New York University.
Washington Mews is on land that in the 18th century was part of a large farm owned by Capt. Robert Richard Randall; upon Randall's death, he bequeathed the land to what became known as Sailors' Snug Harbor.[2] The institution leased the land, using the resulting income to establish its Staten Island complex; the homes built on the land along the north side of Washington Square and the south side of Eighth Street came with two-story stables built along what became known as Washington Mews.[2] The private stables were used by the families of men such as Richard Morris Hunt, John Taylor Johnston, and Pierre Lorillard.[2]
In 1881, New York City's Department of Public Works ordered the construction of Washington Mews first gates at each end, in an apparent attempt to distinguish the Mews from public streets. In 1916, Sailors' Snug Harbor had a dozen of the stables remodeled into artist studios, designed by Maynicke & Franke; during the 20th century, artists living there included Paul Manship, Gaston Lachaise, and later Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney.[2][3]
Around 1950 New York University leased most of the entire property and gradually converted the buildings along the Mews into offices and faculty housing. In 1988, NYU hired architect Abraham Bloch to design a new six-foot-high Fifth Avenue gate, replacing the simple posts-and-chain used since the studios were b
For 26 years, a volunteer collective called the Garden People has carefully curated the block-long 91st Street Garden, the most colorful corner of Riverside Park. (It's also one of the most famous locations, having made a cameo in the romantic climax of the 1998 film You've Got Mail.) During the summer, keep an eye out for hundreds of varieties of flowers, blooming rose of Sharon treets, giant hibiscus flowers and monarch and swallowail butterflies, which emerge in the evenings and are drawn to the aromatic bushes.
And last but not least
Paley Park.
Paley Park is a pocket park located at 3 East 53rd Street in Midtown Manhattan on the former site of the Stork Club.[1] Designed by the landscape architectural firm of Zion & Breen, it opened May 23, 1967.[2][3] Paley Park is often cited as one of the finest urban spaces in the United States.[4]
Measuring 4,200 square feet (390 m2), the park offers a quiet urban oasis in the midst of the bustling city by the careful use of falling water, airy trees, lightweight furniture and simple spatial organization.[3]
Key to its success is a 20-foot (6.1 m) high waterfall spanning the entire back of the park. The waterfall creates a backdrop of grey noise to mask the sounds of the city. The park is surrounded by walls on three sides and is open to the street (with an ornamental gate) on the fourth side, facing the street. The walls are covered in ivy, and the overhead canopy formed by locust trees adds a degree of serenity to the park.[3]
A privately owned public space, Paley Park was financed by the William S. Paley Foundation and was named by Paley for his father, Samuel Paley. A plaque near the entrance reads:
- This park is set aside in memory of Samuel Paley, 1875-1963, for the enjoyment of the public.
