2300 block Delancey Place
Kaighn Development
c. 1876, Attributed to Frank Furness
Many of the blocks west of Broad Street were constructed by speculative developers, most of whom were content with rows of identical houses. This block is a notable exception. Twelve townhouses on each side form an integrated, symmetrical composition. Each row is framed by brick and brownstone houses at the corners. From the next group of three, the rooflines rise in three steps in an architectural crescendo to the tallest pair at the center. The choice of materials introduces variety and color. On the north side, brownstone predominates; on the south side stippled Pennsylvania blue marble. Unifying elements are the steeply pitched mansard roofs with hexagonal slates and shallow dormers trimmed with wooden cross bracing as well as courses of turned brick and semi-hexagonal bays on the three-story houses. Many of the doors are original.