3. It Was Manhattan’s First Designated Landmark
On October 14th, 1965, just a few months after New York City’s landmarks law was enacted, the Merchant’s House became the first landmarked building in the borough of Manhattan (the very first was the Wyckoff House in Brooklyn). It was among the first twenty landmarks designated citywide. Just a year later it was designated a National Historic Landmark.
In 1981, the building received another rare distinction when it was designated as an interior landmark. There are only 120 interior landmarks in New York City, compared to the full list of more than 30,000 landmarks. Another title that sets the Merchant’s House apart is that it is the only historic house museum in the Greenwich Village/Soho/NoHo neighborhoods.
