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!