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How French Flats Changed the Way We Live
Join us this Bastille Day for a fun and enlightening talk about “French Flats,” which first began to appear in New York not long after the Civil War, and by the end of the 19th century had completely changed the way New Yorkers lived.
Until the late 19th century, no New Yorker of means lived in what we would now call an apartment, other than as a temporary measure. Private homes were the only appropriate place of residence for those well off enough to choose where and how they lived. But a new concept slowly entered bloodstream of our city, very consciously pegged to Parisian models, as an acceptable and later even a desirable way for middle- and upper-class New Yorkers to live. By the beginning of the 20th century, apartment living had become the height of chicness in New York, and no longer needed to allude to European models to achieve a veneer of respectability and acceptance.
We’ll take a look at how and why this revolution in housing took place in our city, examining the very first examples, and then honing in on how, where, and why French Flats spread throughout Greenwich Village and the East Village. While many of these groundbreaking first-generation early models of affluent apartment living are long gone, a surprising number survive all around us in our midst. While a few may be obvious to spot, many more hide in plain sight, providing only the faintest of clues to their original function and profound significance.
Zoom Webinar
Pre-registration required
Free
This event is co-sponsored by Village Preservation.
Lecturers:
Andrew Berman has been Executive Director of Village Preservation since 2002. Andrew is an architectural historian and lifelong New Yorker who worked on development and preservation issues in Greenwich Village, Lower Manhattan, and the West Side for more than three decades.
Dena Tasse-Winter is a historic preservationist, writer, and Village Preservation’s own Director of Research and Preservation. A native New Yorker and Greenwich Village resident, she holds an MA in Historic Preservation and Cultural Heritage Management from the University of York, U.K., and a BA in Music History from the University of Rochester.
