History and architecture
No. 354 West 11th Street is a relatively rare surviving residential building of the early period of the mixed-use development that came to characterize the far western section of Greenwich Village, which was built up with residences for the middle and professional classes, industry, and transportation-and maritime-related commerce. It is also one of the best extant examples of the Greek Revival style rowhouses of the 1830s-40s located in the Hudson River waterfront section of Manhattan, specifically the area west of the Greenwich Village Historic District between West 14th Street and Lower Manhattan. The Greek Revival style characteristics of the house are its 3story height; machine-pressed red brickwork laid in stretcher bond; stoop and areaway with wrought-ironwork; entrance with pilasters, entablature, sidelights, and transom; molded brownstone lintels; and flat roofline.
The building was constructed c.1841-42, apparently for William B. Fash, a carver and “composition ornament” manufacturer, and his wife, Frances, who were foreclosed in 1843. It was next owned, until 1852, by attorney Edwin L.B. Brooks and his wife, Catherine. They never resided here, but leased it to merchant-class tenants, as did subsequent owners. The first long-term owners of the property, from 1866 to 1923, were the family of Friedrich C. Knubel, a German-born grocer.
The Knubels lived in No. 354 in 1870-75, and in 1871 extended the house in the rear; it is likely the pressed metal cornice on the front facade dates from this period. A son, Frederick Hermann Knubel, born the year they moved into the house, went on to study for the ministry and became the first president of the United Lutheran Church in America (1918-45). In the 20th and 21st centuries, the building has housed single-family and multiple residents.
Sources and further reading
This history comes from the Landmarks app’s historical catalog. Names and building uses may reflect the period described.