264 West 91st Street
264 West 91st Street
NB Number: NB 1039-1896
Type: Rowhouse
Architect: Welch, Alexander M.
Developer/Owner/Builder: James Frame
Row Configuration: ABCDCBA
NYC Landmarks Designation: Historic District
Landmark Designation Report: Riverside Drive- West End Historic District
National Register Designation: N/A
Primary Style: Renaissance Revival
Primary Facade: Limestone and Roman Brick
Stories: 4
Window Type/Material: See structure
Basement Type: Unknown
Stoop Type: Unknown
Structure:These seven four story houses were designed as a row, with the end houses (No. 258 and No. 270) projecting slightly to serve as pavilions to the five center houses (Nos. 260, 262, 264, 266 and 268). The houses are each eighteen feet wide, except No. 260 which is seventeen feet. Each house has a smooth ashlar limestone base, while the upper stories are of beige Roman brick. There are four different facade configurations in the row which form a symmetrical rhythm consisting of ABCDCBA. The two end building, Nos. 258 and 270, have squared projecting end pavilions with the main entrances within the projection. Nos. 260 and 268 have three story bow fronts while Nos. 262 and 266 have three sided oriels with limestone surrounds at the third story. No. 264 has a three story bow front east of the stoop. The original windows were one-over-one double-hung wood sash which remain in some of the windows. Original wrought iron grilles remain on most of the basement, cellar and first story windows, while several original wrought iron fences front the areaways.
The D type house, No. 264, is the only one of its kind in the row. It has a bowfront adjoining the stoop extending from the ground story through the third story. The double entrance doors of oak and beveled glass retain their original hardware. The windows in the bowfront have curved glass. The tripartite window at the fourth story is like those in the B type houses, Nos. 260 and 268. The metal cornice, with a swag design, matches those of Nos. 262 and 266.
Historic District: Riverside Drive- West End HD
Alterations: The limestone at the ground story has been painted cream. New wrought iron grilles are placed at the second story windows. New pipe rail and balusters run down to the recessed basement apartment area. Recent light fixtures are placed at the basement door and the main doors.
History: These houses were designed as a row of seven (and part of a through block development of fourteen houses) by architect Alexander M. Welch for the developer James A. Frame who had been in business in New York since 1868. Frame worked with his son William H. Frame beginning in 1890, and their firm, known as James A. Frame & Son, was “…regarded as one of the most substantial and of the best type.” These buildings, constructed in 1896-97, were built in conjunction with the row at 259-271 West 90th Street. Both rows were constructed on the same New Building permit. Selected References: History of Real Estate, Building and Architecture in New York City (1898, rpt. New York, 1967), 223. New York City Department of Taxes Photograph Collection, Municipal Archives and Record Collection, G 2031; G 2032.