Washington Irving House - New York City

The Washington Irving House is located at the intersection of East 17th Street and Irving Place in New York City.  The land upon which the house sits was first developed in the 1830's by Samuel B. Ruggles.  He was instrumental in forming Gramercy Park, Lexington Avenue, and Irving Place, which was named for his friend, author Washington Irving.  The house was originally built in 1844 by Peter Voorhis and would have a string of owners for the next several years, including members of the Macy family.  In 1892 literary agent Elizabeth Marbury and her partner, actress Elsie de Wolfe moved into the home.  They would live here until 1911 and during that time the legend that it had been the home of Washington Irving grew.  Rumors began to circulate about the famous former occupant, although there wasn't any evidence to confirm this, and through the years the story gained enough momentum that eventually a plaque was placed in front of the house, which reads: This House was once the home of Washington Irving.  No one can pinpoint the reason for this assumption, although its location on Irving Place, a few intentionally misleading newspaper stories, Elsie de Wolfe's self promoting and the fact that the writer's nephew, Edgar Irving, lived next door, and had a son named Washington, probably all added to the confusion.  Irving himself was in Spain, serving as Minister, at the time the house was constructed in 1844, and upon his return in 1846 he moved to his estate called Sunnyside in Tarrytown.  The house is part of the East 17th Street/Irving Place Historic District.    

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