63 Charles Street

also 63 Gharles Street | West Village | built 1866

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.

1864
Abraham Van Nest dies in the last rural block of the Village, where 63 Charles Street now stands
An earlier house stood on this block, which is the site of No. 63. Abraham Van Nest, a saddlery and carriage-goods merchant, bought the block in 1821 and lived in a two-story clapboard mansion with a widow's walk, a garden, a stable on Perry Street and a cow. He died there in 1864, and the house was razed in 1865 to make way for the rows of town houses that include No. 63. The Charles Street side was called Van Nest Place until 1936.
“Van Nest property, the last rural block remaining in The Village... finally razed in 1865, giving way to the solid block of City residences…”
Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission
1867
Mary Ann and Charles W. Link move into 63 Charles Street, one of three houses built by Bartlett Smith
Bartlett Smith, a builder, put up Nos. 63, 65 and 67 Charles Street, which were first assessed in 1867. Two of his buyers became residents, and the one at No. 63 was Mary Ann and Charles W. Link. The row's upper-story window lintels were later cut back to rectangles.
“Nos. 63-67 built by Bartlett Smith... at No. 63 Mary Ann and Charles W. Link.”
Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

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