Life on Colonnade Row: The Hidden History Behind the Columns
For a particular New Yorker, the sort who rues having missed out on the city’s cobblestone past, Colonnade Row is a distinct architectural marvel . The Greek Revival rowhouses were completed in 1833 and are known for their imposing Corinthian columns . But they were also a stage on which the birth of Manhattan’s gilded era played out, a period when no one dared host a ball the same night as Alva Vanderbilt, and the city itself didn’t extend much past Great Jones Street . Photo Credit New- York Historical Society , via Getty Images They were built for families like the Vanderbilts and the Astors — indeed, John Jacob Astor was among the first residents — and the group was originally named La Grange Terrace , after an estate of the Marquis de Lafayette . What remained of the facade was among the first structures protected by the Landmarks Preservation Commission . In the landscape of contemporary New York, however, Colonnade Row offers other quirks. While crusty old bars and last-of-...