Tharon Musser's house

21 Cornelia Street | West Village | built 1845

The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.

Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.

1845
William Stanley has two Greek Revival houses built at 21 Cornelia Street; Black families live there from 1880 to 1910
Tax assessors first recorded a house at 21 Cornelia Street in 1843 and a second one behind it in 1845, both built for William Stanley. By the end of the 19th century the front house was a tenement, and from 1880 to 1910 it was home to African American families. In 1925 the Madna Realty Co. renovated the interior and gave it a new entrance to appeal to middle-class tenants.
Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission
1959
Broadway lighting designer Tharon Musser moves into 21 Cornelia Street, her home for nearly five decades
Tharon Musser, born Kathleen Welland in Roanoke, Virginia, came to New York in 1950 and began her Broadway career with Long Day's Journey into Night in 1956. She moved into the Greek Revival rowhouse at 21 Cornelia Street in 1959, bought it in 1963 and stayed until 2007. Living here with her partner, lighting designer Marilyn Rennagel, she worked on more than 150 Broadway shows and won three Tony Awards.
Source: NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project

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