5. The Chatsworth, 1904

Exterior of The Chatsworth, Courtesy of March Made

Standing stately at 344 West 72nd Street at the base of Riverside Park, The Chatsworth is a landmarked Beaux-Arts apartment building completed in 1904. Designed by architect John E. Scharsmith, the building originally contained sixty-six “housekeeping apartments” which ranged in size from five rooms to fifteen rooms. It included all of the modern amenities of the time like a conservatory in the mansard story, a sun parlor, billiard parlor, a cafe, a first class barbershop, ladies hair dressing parlor, a valet and tailor service, not to mention amazing views of the park and the Hudson River.

Today those sixty-six units have been replaced by fifty-eight co-op units, also designed by the firm of Pembrooke & Ives. Just as in its early days, The Chatsworth continues to offer residents the best of modern amenities including a library, media screening room, wine tasting room and an outdoor garden. The interiors retain the elegance of the building’s exterior Gilded Age opulence with historic hand-carved walnut paneling, ornate plaster ceilings, and white-oak herringbone floors in the lobby, enhanced by revitalized skylights and new modern light fixtures. On a recent tour of The Chatsworth Untapped Cities Insiders got to see how the old world has blended with the new in these historic buildings, and of course enjoyed the views over Riverside Park.