255 East 10th Street | Block : 438 | Lot #50

Building Date : 1887
Original Use : Residential/Commercial

Original Owner : Mathew Sonneberg
Original Architect : George Frederick Pelham

Description & Building Alterations

This six-story old-law tenement was constructed in 1887 by architect George Frederick Pelham for two stores and 22 families. During an alteration in 1938, the historical stoop was removed, and the entrance was moved to ground level. At an unknown date, a seventh story with a stepped parapet was constructed at the top of the building with no windows.

The present facade features round-arched window openings at sixth story, splayed lintels with keystones at third to fifth stories, simple rectangular sills, molded lintels on second floor, and fluted pilasters flanking the ground story.

Block : 438 / Lot : 050 / Building Date : 1887 / Original Owner : Mathew Sonneberg / Original Use : Residential/Commercial / Original Architect : George Frederick Pelham

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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.