Stuyvesant Square Historic District
Borough and State: Manhattan, New York
Listed: 1980
Type of district: National Register historic district, local historic district
Main Intersection: Rutherford Place and East 17th Street
Report: National Register Nomination Report
Stuyvesant Square Historic District
The Stuyvesant Square Historic District takes its name from the park at its center. The land for the square was donated to the City of New York by Peter Gerard Stuyvesant, an heir of one of the original families to receive a land grant in New York, then named New Amsterdam. Stuyvesant gave the land to the City in 1836 with the stipulation that it be used for a public square. It was one of New York’s first parks.
By 1850, New York’s population was moving northward and building had begun in the area around the square. Most of the homes are row houses built in the Greek Revival style, although there are a few examples of the Gothic Revival style in the historic district as well. In the 20th century, many of the houses in the district, which also features several religious and medical institutions, were converted to multi-family dwellings and apartment buildings.