Matt Umanov Guitars
273 Bleecker Street | West Village | built 1921
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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.
- 1921
Banfi Company builds 273 Bleecker with stores below and clubs above
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George J. Cavalieri of DeRose & Cavalieri designed this three-story building around 1921 for the Banfi Company. The ground floor held a series of shops, while the upper floors went to associations, among them the Piemont Social Club, the Communist Party's 2nd Assembly District branch and the Greenwich Village Athletic Club.
“…the upper floors were occupied by a variety of associations such as the Piemont Social Club, the Communist Party of the USA for the 2nd Assembly District…”
- 1982
Matt Umanov Guitars settles at 273 Bleecker after moving twice in the Village
Matt Umanov began as a guitar repairer and opened his first shop on Bedford Street in 1969. In 1977 he relocated to 276 Bleecker Street, a space that is now the little room of John's Pizzeria across the street. In 1982 the business came to 273 Bleecker, where it stayed for decades. At eighteen he was already fixing guitars for players such as Eric Clapton, and the shop grew into a well-respected stop for famous musicians and novices alike.
Source: Village Preservation
- 2017
Matt Umanov Guitars announces it will close after 53 years in business
In autumn 2017 Matt Umanov announced he would close his guitar shop, ending 53 years in the business and 48 of them in the Village. It was not forced out by a lease or a rent hike, since he had owned the 273 Bleecker Street building for about 25 years. At 70, he said it was time for a change. He had also campaigned for landmarking of the South Village, and the stretch of the South Village where his shop stands was landmarked in 2010.
Source: Village Preservation
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