155 East 2nd Street | Block : 397 | Lot #11

Building Date : 1876
Original Use : Residential/Commercial

Original Owner : Peter Cook
Original Architect : Unknown

Description & Building Alterations

Built in 1876, this Italianate pre-law tenement retains its curved window lintels and bracketed cornice. Although the raised stoop entrance has been removed, the original door surround is still present on what is now the second floor.

In 1908, the building was owned by St. John the Baptist Foundation, an Episcopal order of sisters who provided a school for girls, a shelter for women, and outreach programs for German immigrants. At that time, the basement and ground floor were converted into residential use. The building was further altered in 1939 when a new entrance and fire escapes were installed.

Block : 397 / Lot : 11 / Building Date : 1876 / Original Owner : Peter Cook / Original Use : Residential/Commerical / Original Architect : Unknown

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What is the Building Blocks Project

What does a building mean to someone who lives there? A person who lives on the block? In the neighborhood? In the city? This site presents a wealth of historic information gained from GVSHP’s architectural research survey about the buildings located in the East Village.

The site explores the area generally considered today as the East Village: from a northern border of 14th Street to a southern border of Houston Street, Avenue D in the east to 4th Avenue/the Bowery to the west. You can explore the information about the blocks and buildings featured here in two ways.

Pick a block. Maybe it’s yours, or perhaps it is just your favorite place to shop, grab a bite, or just people watch. Then explore the buildings that make up that block. Or take one of the many guided tours on the site, curated by a collection of organizations and experts from the neighborhood. See how they experience the neighborhood. Then tell us what the neighborhood means to you. The site’s comments section allows you to open a dialogue with others who feel just as passionately as you do about the East Village.