Chelsea Historic District

Chelsea Historic District is a residential neighborhood in Manhattan, mostly along West 20th to West 22nd Streets between 9th and 10th Avenues. Its rows of Greek Revival and Italianate houses were built chiefly from 1830 over about three decades, with a few earlier Federal houses. The land came to Clement Clarke Moore, author of "A Visit from St. Nicholas," who planned it as an elegant residential area. Covenants in lot sales required fireproof houses, ten-foot front yards, and a ban on stables and manufactories. The results include Cushman Row, seven Greek Revival houses with detailed ironwork, and Italianate brownstones on West 21st Street. St. Peter's Church and the General Theological Seminary, with its landscaped campus, add Gothic character. The neighborhood stayed middle-class rather than fashionable, but its architecture remained consistently high in quality. The district was recognized for this unusual planning and the homogeneity of its streetscapes.