543 East 12th Street; 543-545 East 12th Street | Block : 406 | Lot #42

Building Date : 1878
Original Use : Residential

Original Owner : Martin Butterfass
Original Architect : Frederick W. Klemt

Description & Building Alterations

Two pre-law tenements share this lot and are unified by one Neo-Grec style facade, though each has its own pedimented cornice. They were constructed in 1878 by architect Frederick W. Klemt for owner Martin Butterfass. The ground floor was once entirely commercial, as it appears to be in the 1980s tax photo. Regardless, it has been altered over the years from its original appearance.

Block : 406 / Lot : 042 / Building Date : 1878 / Original Owner : Martin Butterfass / Original Use : Residential/Commercial / Original Architect : Frederick W. Klemt

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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.