320 East 6th Street

East Village | built 1920

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.

1862
The heirs of Stephen Whitney build a five-story tenement at 320 East 6th Street and lease it at once to John Schappert
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Around 1862 the heirs of Stephen Whitney had a five-story brick tenement put up on this lot, part of the land their ancestor had bought on the block in 1825. Tax records show the building was leased right away to John Schappert.
“Tax records indicate the original building was constructed c. 1862 for the heirs of Stephen Whitney... It was immediately leased by John Schappert.”
Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission
1862
Fifteen matching Whitney tenements go up on East 6th Street, run by sublandlords who collect the rents
Between about 1862 and 1864 the heirs of cotton merchant Stephen Whitney had fifteen tenements built at 310 to 338 East 6th Street, a row that includes No. 320. They rose on open lots, singly or in twos and threes, yet all had similar size and detailing. Like the Astors, the Whitneys left daily operations to sublandlords, often recent immigrants, who earned a commission for collecting rent and keeping the buildings up. The report calls Stephen Whitney the second wealthiest man in New York after John Jacob Astor.
“The fifteen buildings at 310 to 338 East 6th Street were built on open lots, apparently individually or in groups of two or three…”
Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

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