75 1/2 Bedford Street - the narrow 'spite' house

The small, narrow residence at 75 1/2 Bedford Street in Greenwich Village is widely described as one of Manhattan's narrowest houses and is a long-standing subject of local curiosity. Its slim facade has appeared in guidebooks, walking tours, and neighborhood histories as a distinctive architectural oddity. Stories about its origin-sometimes framed as a 'spite house'-are part of local lore, though accounts of how and why it was built vary.