New-York tribune., 1922-12-24
Had $1,000 Tene-
" ''.n,s in 1884; Gotham
r.nrI. Erected in 3O's
:" Cherry Street, First
:. S.,,d in the Records
B,lhtubs Brought
To village in 1850
p.ri. "Flat" Plans Used
% I,'I Early Builders; Span
y Houses the Begin
III Dine Of Apartment Era

Wien aau ,.,.t,rily house erected In
N,s -, ~ ip re nusty records OF
. S'as'a' ,.' AZ information may be had
m 'ns .,s '.,.s n.ds By real estate his
l... '1' 80. 4. !. far failed to bring to
Ia q, spot where tenement life in
yorl got It's start Neither has
thing been discovered that would
-s,..,, ,ss year New Workers began
i -. ~. above the other like the
~. n',.sts OF eongested sections of
,.l.,s; s'ss;rv cities Of the Old World.
y '' 80 ear supply the location Of
49, easement erected In New York
IN, Sale Of this event, for II was
,rsnt now that We are the gIeatest
..,.sst house city in the world.
n. ,sr,uent house has long been
M a. ~ life OF New York. Rec
~. .tov that in 1894 there we're
"a tsn,ment houses on Manhattan.
- rsports Of the time contain
80 tha. are revoltlng when viewed
=, sves Of to-day. Il is hard 20 be-
tsst sueh conditions we're allowed
I. ,,ist Congested tenements we're
-, AZ BY Gerrett Forbes, inspector
tI,sitb. IN bis reports Of 1884, end
, John H. Griseom. who headed a
--rl,,ion organized to suggest ways
IA resns for improving living con-
e.j.,, IN the city, said in his report
Z iSl2 that 7,iq6 persons were living
ilss cellars and that 6,6lS families
~, living IN rear tenements and In
yssf courts.
fs,,s reports establish the fact that
- Yofk was we'll dotted with tene-
rss fully half a century before Juan
Nsv.rrc gave New York the Span
4 Ts,s or Fifty-ninth Street. The
sssi,h Flats. so called because they
suc erected by Mr.. Navarro, who had
uved for many years as Spanish
csssul IN this city. and bore names OF
,s5ing rites Of Spain. were completed
,bost isiess q cost Of 81 7,000,0 900. They
nsrtd he Ueat turning point in the
eonstrvctioa Of multi-family houses.
Ttsy pointed the way toward the
,,srlmsas kouses which now line the
" residential sections OF the city and
vi for from $1,000 20 $4,000 a year.
4 Navarro gave 20 New York the
pltnent idea, that is, a house IN
rish many families live with the
rug Of a single family house but
Va comforts and eonveniences su-
gisf 10 those Of private homes.
Navarro Breaks Prejudice
hose who have measured every
iix Of New York's growth agree
Id Navarro broke down the preju--
.s toward the apartment house and
,rrrd the wonderful apartment
siFngs 20 be found all around the
ywish examples of architecture
4. he erected facing Central PARK.
4 vas a long step from the multi
s-gy houses which DR.. GriscOm spoke
fh his report Of 1892 and the houses
lsA Mr.. Navarro built. The fact is
4, the Navarro development was the
nj. Of efforts made by others as a
l,st Of the reports OF civic boards
rS he passage of the Tenement House
i,il, TIE FIRST Of which was enacted In
ilS
urtl the Navarro fats were erected,
,sfkaps the finest multi-family house
(, New York was that built by Ruth
srfurd Stuyvesant az 140 and 142 East
Eighteenth Street from plans by Rich
ui n. Hunt. Another house Of tae
itnt type and character was the west
noftlEnd. al the southeast corner OF
Seventeenth Street and Fourth Ave.
aos. Bo.A houses are still standing and
are substantial dwelling places. They
Eete spoken Of as tenements on the
French pan "becauss the plans which
Esfe used N the construction OF these
pioneer apartments were an adaptation
Of iayouts Of Paris fats
a number Of Southeruers made their
.enes 10 tse westmoreland and the
siuyYesant houses following the Civil
Nar ior he negroes, urged on by the
aipetesggers, wer- running things
Ns,e o. the Mason Dixon Line.
me nzt tenement Of wi leh anything
( kaosn was erected on Cherry Street
hs early '3Os. IL was known as
s''han Court. The buildings were
,rtts.
i,e impression prevails that II was
a.i section Of New York that the
y lshement house was built, or the
''es. Of renting separate quarters
~, Building TO several families was
fizaced.
Dwellings Altered Into Flats
einhux Of immigrants due to de-
ag economical and political con
49, IN Europe taxed the housing
7aes Of the city. Something hao
= done TO provide for these new
-asls Dwellings were turned into
.5asats and the attractive oteTS
ior housing accommodations in
- warehouse owners 10 turn their
'N into fats. In a short time
- house districts in the lower
sefe turned into tenement house
.s.'ors, occupied by people who had
or no knowledge Of the simple
pes Of hygiene.
h50 anecdotes Of the time tell
Baptist church in Mott Street
Z sold and Immediately used for
-snt purposes. They tell Of the
Siormaiion Of that neighborhood,
.nall dwellings and warehouses
,g into the hands Of real estate
-.ssors who wanted them for the
as " immigrants at the extra.
10y high" rent Of IS and 50
- Tor three r~omrl
- ~ effort 10 relieve the lot OF the
.e.hie and others Who desired better
,1lp than the section afforded a
r Of well known citizens, for
-. - Daniel Lord. served as attorney.
:, N 1857 a model apartment on
~ street, extending through the
~. % Elizabeth Street, for eighty
" ,ismilies. II was six stories high,
,'1saIee feet wide ard 80 feet deem
.o1er walls sthe building were
,.-..sh inches THE. nd those Of the
-. stories twels inches. The
'.ses were iron, tie halls Of blue
~. -na the arches Of brick. The
~, .soat soat $4,000 70 build from plans
s-s RON a number offered in
- ssSin,ion. The apartments con
I,sss y = iogr rooms and a closet and