History and architecture
Numbers 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22, Pomander Walk, 261, 263,265,267, West 94th Street, and 260,262,264,266,270,272,274, West 95th Street.
Pomander Walk extends through the middle of the square block bounded by Broadway and West End Avenue, 94th and 95th Streets, on Manhattan's Upper West Side. The complex is composed of sixteen two-story houses facing the private walk and nine three-story and two two-story buildings facing onto the street. Pomander Walk has a unique sense of place; secluded from the street, the walk is a delightful world of picturesque dwellings replete with half timbering, gables, and other vernacular Tudoresque embellishments. The almost magical atmosphere created by this small residential enclave was very much the intention of Thomas Healy, who in 1921, commissioned the architectural firm of King & Campbell to design a residential complex that would recreate the village atmosphere of Lewis Parker's then popular period comedy, Pomander Walk.
The area around the walk is now entirely built up, but the buildings of Pomander Walk, both interior and exterior , remain largely unchanged since "light housekeeping" flats were first rented there some 60 years ago. Pomander Walk has special interest not only for its unique sense of place and architectural merit but also for the story of its creation; it is a prototypically "American" tale combining a pragmatic entrepreneurial spirit with an unabashed romanticism.
Sources and further reading
This history comes from the Landmarks app’s historical catalog. Names and building uses may reflect the period described.