Chelsea Flats

 apartment building  Add category

4-story Greek-revival residential building originally completed in 1842 as a 3-story rental townhouse. From 1845 until the early 1850s it was occupied by the family of John Jacobus Van Buren Westervelt, after which it was shared by two families, that of David Morris, and Charles S. Oakley. By 1861 Mary Leamy, the widow of Edward Leamy, leased the house from Antoinette Camp and operated it as a boarding house. In 1869 it was purchased by Thomas M. Graves, who leased part of the house to other families. It was sold to Thomas H. Cook in 1882. he house received an updating in the summer of 1884 when architect A. Templer was hired to raise the height to four full floors. Rather remarkably Templer perfectly matched the brick color and recreated the original lintels.

Cook would retain ownership of the house into the 20th century, however he did not live here. It was again operated as a boarding house. Michael and Italia Mareaca purchased No. 235 in 1924. They lived in the house, but as had been the case for decades, leased rooms. The house was officially converted to apartments in 1986, with a brick stoop replacing the original brownstone one.

The 3-bay facade is clad in red brick above a brownstone raised basement and stoop. There is a stone enframement around the doorway, which has a paneled red wooden door. The windows all have brownstone sills and metal cornices, and those on the parlor floor have black wooden exterior shutters. The facade is crowned by a black metal roof cornice with brackets and ornamented panels in between.