Turtle Bay Treasures

Which New York neighborhood has the wealthiest property?  The high-rise coops on 5th avenue overlooking Central Park certainly come to mind.  But let's not forget the townhomes surrounding Gramercy Park, including the "finest house in New York" at 19 Gramercy Park South.  But after a stroll through Turtle Bay (the area of midtown Manhattan between 43rd and 53rd street and east of Lexington Ave) certainly has "swank."

Overlooking the Hudson River at 1 Sutton Place (near 57th st) is the home of Teresa Heinz, heiress to the Heinz fortune and wife of Secretary of State John Kerry.  The home was built for the wealthy Mrs. William Vanderbilt, who was induced to move from her 5th avenue brownstone to Sutton Place by developers of the new Sutton Place enclave.  The goal was for Vanderbilt to act as "window dressing" to get people to move further east to Sutton Place.  Next door, at 3 Sutton Place, is the home of the Secretary General of the UN.  According to a 1994 New York times, a 2 bedroom, 2 bath home at 20 Sutton Place was on the market for $335,000, quite a steal in today's market.


Down the street from the Heinz mansion, is the former home of John D. Rockefeller, at 1 Beekman Place (near 50th st overlooking the East River).  Beekman Street is one of the wealthiest and smallest in all of Manhattan.   Irving Berlin, the composer of "White Christmas" fame lived for 40 years at 17 Beekman place until he passed away at the age of 101.  It now houses the Luxemburg government in New York City.

A few feet away is 39 Beekman place, a 5,300 square foot, 5 story townhome that appears to be valued at $7.3 million.  Interestingly, Aristotle Onassis purchased the home in 1968 for his new bride Jackie Kennedy.  The paparazzi set up shop full time next door, and the new couple never moved in.  The image to the rest shows the back side of the mansion.  It has plenty of outdoor space to barbeque and take in the scenic East River views, overlooking Queens and Roosevelt Island.

Finally, just east of 58th and Sutton Place leads to Riverview Terrace, shown to the bottom right.  It is one of the most private cul-de-sacs in all of Manhattan, complete with a private guard gate and cobble stonesstreet not open to the public.  It even

has private garages for each of the six row homes.  Who knew Manhattan had a private street?  The homes are elegant beauties, each in their own way.  A 1921 New York Times article described the homes at Riverview Terrace as "settled in the 1870s by nice people who were erratic enough to prefer a view of the river to a more convenient location."  Looks like they had it right, and the location sure makes for a nice escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.  Turtle Bay has many lush properties to brag about, but the homes at Riverview Terrace may just be the best.




 

The Ghosts of West Village

On a crisp fall day, I decided to check out some of West Village's charm and past.  It certainly did not disappoint, and by the end of my walk I was surprised how little I knew about the neighborhood and how much I had missed on my many trips through it.  First stop was Marie's Crisis Café at 59 Grove St (off 7th avenue).  It's currently a vibrant piano bar that usually stays open until the wee hours of the morning, but it has an interesting past. 


Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense (1776), died there in 1809.  After the American Revolution, Paine moved to France and became actively involved in the French Revolution.  He returned to New York City in 1802 and lived at 59 Grove Street until his death in 1809.  He became ostracized for his later works denouncing institutionalized religion, and only six people attended his funeral.

The plaque on the wall that the two people are looking at in the picture contains his epitaph: "The world is my country, to do good is my religion, and all mankind are my brethren."  The spot was turned into a brothel from 1850-1890, and later a speakeasy during prohibition.  The bar was renamed in honor of Paine's "Crisis" pamphlets during the American Revolutionary War.


Just down the street from Marie's Crisis Café is the narrowest house in New York.  At just 9.5 feet wide and 30 feet deep, 75 1/2 Bedford Street is a house on a diet.  Despite its small size, it was purchased in 2010 for the hefty price of $2 million dollars.  One year later, it was put on the market for $4.3 million.  The home's unique size is due to the fact the lot originally served as a carriage entrance to the adjacent homes' stables.  The house also served as the home of actor Cary Grant, who apparently didn't suffer claustrophobia.

A short walk west led to the White Horse Tavern, yet another gem in the neighborhood at 567 Hudson St.  The bar opened in 1880, but gained its fame during the 1950s and 60s when Bohemian authors frequented the watering hole.  According to legend n November 8, 1953, Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, whose works include "Do not got gentle into that good night," drank 18 whiskies there before dying the next morning at the nearby Chelsea Hotel.  Bob Dylan, Jim Morrison, and Hunter Thompson also frequented the Tavern.  The next time you are in West Village, take a look around.  The ghosts of West Village are everywhere!