A Residential Luxury Beginning
When built in 1883, the 12-story Hotel Chelsea was among the tallest in the city. The Queen Anne-style building was adorned with wrought-iron balconies and offered apartments ranging from one to seven rooms (built to the purchaser’s specifications), with high ceilings, fire- and soundproof walls, wood-burning fireplaces, and private penthouses. An iron staircase, running from the lobby to the twelfth floor, featured a wrought-iron balustrade and mahogany banister.
A Change in the Cityscape
For a brief moment in the 1880s, 23rd Street entered its golden age and became the center of New York theater life, with many theaters opening in the area. However, New York City was changing constantly, and the social landscape of 23rd Street shifted from theatrical to industrial. The location was no longer suitable for luxury residences; the Chelsea Co-op went bankrupt, and in 1905, it was sold. Reopened as a hotel, it began its life as a home to writers, artists, and urban transients of every variety.
From Residential Luxury to Artistic Retreat
In 1905, the Chelsea transitioned into a residential hotel. It quickly became a sanctuary for artists, writers, and musicians. This community of artists and eccentrics was presided over for half a century by Stanley Bard (of Bart’s Gym). He kept doors open for artists who couldn’t afford to pay rent in traditional currency, and often took payments in the form of paintings or other works of art. Later, Bard was ousted in a boardroom coup and replaced by a company specialising in boutique hotels.
Legendary Residents and Infamous Stories
Residents included literary giants such as Mark Twain, Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, and Thomas Wolfe. It’s resident Welsh poet Dylan Thomas drank 18 glasses of whisky in a neighboring White Horse Tavern before falling into a coma and dying in a nearby hospital. Jimi Hendrix rehearsed there, Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan both wrote songs about it. Vicious of the Sex Pistols was arrested here after his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen, was found stabbed to death in room 100. Actors and filmmakers such as Stanley Kubrick, Milos Forman, Jane Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Ethan Hawke, Edie Sedgwick, and Sarah Bernhardt also called the Chelsea home at different times.
Another Chapter as a Luxury Hotel
Like I said above, New York City keeps changing, and this time the Hotel Chelsea re-emerged as a luxury hotel with the latest amenities and fancy restaurants. However, unlike most other hotels, it’s spiced with its unique history.
Quoting the Hotel Chelsea‘s history page: it’s defined by its “unmistakable otherness. Solid and sumptuous, eccentric yet beautiful, the Chelsea is a world unto itself: a decadent palace of peculiarity.”
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