Gracie Mansion

About

Gracie Mansion (also known as Archibald Gracie Mansion) is the official residence of the mayor of New York City. Built in 1799, it is located in Carl Schurz Park, at East End Avenue and 88th Street in the Yorkville neighborhood of Manhattan. The federal-style mansion overlooks Hell Gate in the East River and consists of the original two-story house and an annex built in 1966. The original house is a New York City designated landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The house's site was previously occupied by Belview Mansion, built in 1770 for local merchant Jacob Walton and destroyed during the American Revolutionary War. In 1799, Archibald Gracie built a new house on the same site, which he used as his country home until 1823. The family of Joseph Foulke used the house from 1823 to 1857, and the family of builder Noah Wheaton used it from 1857 to 1896, when the municipal government made its grounds part of Carl Schurz Park. During the early 20th century, the mansion was used as public restrooms, an ice cream stand, and classrooms. Gracie Mansion housed the Museum of the City of New York from 1924 to 1936, and it was a historic house museum until 1942, when it became a mayoral residence. Since then, each mayor except for Michael Bloomberg has lived at Gracie Mansion at some point during their tenure; most mayors redecorated the house upon taking office. A reception wing, named for New York City first lady Susan Wagner, was completed in 1966. Further major renovations took place in 1983–1984 and in 2002.