{"nrhp_refnum":"76001238","name":"Cook, Will Marion, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"221 W. 138th St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"New York","county":"Manhattan","state":"NY","lat":40.81787400750005,"lon":-73.94322996591943,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-05-11","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1976-05-11","areas_of_significance":["Black","Performing Arts"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story buff brick townhouse at 221 West 138th Street in Harlem, New York City, at the east end of a row of sixteen units in the area known as Strivers Row, built in 1891 by developer D. H. King with a Georgian-style design by Bruce Price and Clarence Luce.","why_significant":"The house was the home of composer Will Marion Cook from 1918 to 1944. Cook, classically trained at Oberlin, in New York and in Berlin, applied that training to black musical idioms and was a pioneer of black musical comedy on Broadway. He also mentored musicians such as Eubie Blake, Noble Sissle, Sidney Bechet and Duke Ellington.","narrative":"This three-story buff brick townhouse at 221 West 138th Street in Harlem anchors the east end of a row of sixteen units in the district known as Strivers Row. Built in 1891 by developer D. H. King, the block was designed by Bruce Price and Clarence Luce in an eclectic Georgian style. Notable features include a terra-cotta Palladian-style second-story window, a round-arched doorway and delicate wrought iron balconies. Parts of the cornice and stone balustrade are missing. The house matters chiefly for its link to Will Marion Cook, who lived here from 1918 until 1944. Cook trained at Oberlin, the National Conservatory in New York and in Berlin, then applied that classical training to black musical forms. His 1898 show Clorindy and later works with Bert Williams and George Walker helped open Broadway to black entertainment. He also guided younger musicians, among them Eubie Blake, Sidney Bechet and Duke Ellington.","period_of_significance":"1918-1944","architect_builder":"D. H. King / Not Known","architectural_style":"Georgian style of the eclectic period","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as a private residence also used as a doctors' office; the cornice, fascia and some balusters are missing.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:39.795401-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/76001238_NHL.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001238/23e6c2e1e7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001238/23e6c2e1e7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Dmadeo","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marion-cook-house.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Dmadeo</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marion-cook-house.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75315952","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will_Marion_Cook_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8002952"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/manhattan/cook-will-marion-house-76001238/"}