Two blocks of row houses built in 1891-93 by David H. King Jr. as the 'King Model Houses', designed by three firms (the 139th Street north side by Stanford White of McKim, Mead & White). Left empty until 1919-20, the houses were finally sold to African Americans, and the Black professionals, the 'strivers', who moved in gave the district its name. W.C. Handy, Fletcher Henderson, Eubie Blake and Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson all lived here; look for the gated rear alleys, a Manhattan rarity, where the gateposts still read 'Private Road, Walk Your Horses'.
- Address
- W 138th and W 139th Sts between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd and Frederick Douglass Blvd, New York, NY 10030
- Hours
- Open 24 hours (public streets; houses are private)
- Best time to go
- Morning, Afternoon · About 30 min
- Price
- Free (street)
- Price level
- $
Details can change. Check hours and prices before you go.
Good to know
- Walk both sides of 138th and 139th Streets; the alley signs are on the gate posts between the rows.
- Abyssinian Baptist Church is on the same 138th Street block to the east.