Village Preservation Releases 'Then And Now' Online Tour To Mark Greenwich Village Historic District's 50th Anniversary Of Designation

To mark the 50th anniversary of the landmark designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District on April 29, 1969, Village Preservation released an online map and tour of the Greenwich Village Historic District (here). The tour shows every one of the over 2,200 buildings in the district as they looked in 1969 and today, along with tours of the district showing:

• Immigration Landmarks
• Places Where the Course of History Changed
• Homes of Transformative Women
• Most Charming Spots
• Homes of Champions of Social Change
• Homes of Great Artists
• Homes of Great Writers
• Houses with Dormers
• Origins of Street Names
• Edward Hopper's Greenwich Village

and more. The Greenwich Village Historic District is one of the city's oldest landmark districts and still its largest, covering over one hundred blocks. Village Preservation, founded in 1980 as a caretaker for the district, is now working to preserve the architecture, culture, small businesses, and arts groups of all of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo. Village Preservation has been leading a year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary, with tours, lectures, performances, open houses, and a celebration in Washington Square (info at www.gvshp.org/GVHD50).

The interactive online mapping tool released today has over 1,000 entries on it, but will be added to with more images, tours, and information throughout the year.

"The Greenwich Village Historic District is one of the most historically, culturally, and architecturally rich places on earth, and we hope this new tool will allow native New Yorkers and people across the globe to engage with and appreciate the tremendous resource it provides. Few places in the world have been the home to so many great artists, writers, thinkers, and advocates for social change, have witnessed so many trailblazing events in history, and contain so much charming and historic architecture. We're so proud that our forebears fought hard fifty years ago to secure landmark designation of this area and ensure that this wealth of history and architecture is protected and preserved for all to appreciate. On this golden anniversary, we invite the world to share in the truly transformative history, culture, and architecture which remains embodied in this place, and to think what might have happened if we had not succeeded fifty years ago in protecting it," said Village Preservation Executive Director Andrew Berman.

Since its founding in 1980, Village Preservation has succeeded in securing landmark designation of more than 1,250 buildings, including 11 historic districts and historic district extensions, beyond the original Greenwich Village Historic District.