Vines cling to the upper floor facade.
On June 14, 1872, the Adler family placed a notice in the New York Herald that read, "Wanted--A chambermaid; one who is capable of washing and ironing; city references required. Call at 116 East 60th st." The successful candidate would be working within a newly built, high-stooped house, one of a row of identical homes along the south side of the block between Lexington and Park Avenues. Twenty-feet wide and clad in brownstone, its openings sat within molded architrave frames. Its bracketed cornice was typical of the Italianate style.
Solomon Adler was born in Bohemia in 1816 and immigrated to New York in 1843. Five years later, the stalwart newcomer traveled to Milwaukee, a settlement with a population of a few thousand--mostly German immigrants--and established a men's store. In 1852 he partnered with his brother David to form A. & D. Adler Co., which would become one of the largest wholesale clothing firms in the country (the Adler Clothing Company). While in Milwaukee, Adler was secretary of the town's first Jewish congregation and secretary of its first Jewish cemetery organization.
After retiring, Solomon Adler brought his family back to New York. He and his wife, Charlotte, had five children--Caroline, I. Richard, Millard, William F., and Leon Nathan. The youngest, Leon Nathan, entered Columbia College in 1875 to study chemistry.
In the meantime, his brothers quickly established themselves in New York activities. On June 30, 1874, The Evening Telegram reported, "Quite a number of the most intelligent and influential young men in the Nineteenth ward congregated at the residence, No. 116 East Sixtieth street, for the purposes of organizing an association for the advancement of literature and learning." The Cicero Literary Association was established that evening and Millard F. Adler was selected its treasurer.
William F. Adler was listed as a "merchant" when he endorsed Civil Justice John B. McKean's reelection in November 1890; and I. Richard Adler was president of Cassidy & Adler, a plumbing supply firm. The New York Times described I. Richard Adler as being "fairly well known among racing men, having owned a stable of horses."
Solomon Adler died on March 14, 1890 at the age of 74 after what The Weekly Wisconsin described as "a lingering illness." His funeral was held in the 60th Street house on March 17.
Solomon Adler left, according to The New York Times, "a large property." His will left bequests to several Jewish causes, including the Hebrew Orphan Asylum, the Mt. Sinai Hospital, the Montefiore Home for Chronic Invalids, the Home for Aged and Infirm Hebrews and the Hebrew Sheltering Guardian Society of the New York Asylum. It also provided a trust estate for Charlotte, "and also remembered his children and other relatives."
I. Richard Adler was appointed executor, with Leon and Caroline (now married to Samuel M. Schwab, Jr.) as co-executors. Problems quickly developed and on May 25, 1895 I. Richard Adler was removed as executor by the courts. His siblings charged that "he had misappropriated and lost a large portion of the estate of their father" and that he "spent most of his time in poolrooms and at the race track." Charlotte accused her son of failing "to account to her for moneys which she was entitled to." The judge agreed, saying, " I am convinced [of] his unfitness to continue as trusted agent of the testator."
The Adler estate sold 116 East 60th Street in March 1901. By then, commerce had infiltrated the formerly refined residential district. The dwelling became a rooming house, home to respectable tenants like S. Meyenberg, who offered "expert individual instruction" in shorthand in 1901.
The high-stooped brownstone eventually relented to the changes to the neighborhood. On August 13, 1927, The New York Times reported that James F. Meehan had leased the house, saying, "The lessee will alter the building for stores and small apartments."
Meehan hired architect Arthur Weiser to design the renovations. He removed the stoop and installed a two-story, Art Deco storefront. The upper three floors were converted to "non-housekeeping apartments," meaning that they had no kitchens."
The house to the right, albeit sans stoop, was a match to the Adler house. via the NYC Dept of Records & Information Services.
The ground floor space was leased by automobile dealer A. J. Miranda, Jr., Inc. as its showroom. On September 2, 1928, the Dupont Motors, Inc. announced "a new eight-cylinder car." It was available as a "convertible sedan, five-passenger sport phaeton, seven-passenger limousine, five-passenger club sedan, seven-passenger touring, sport roadster, convertible coupe, [and] five-passenger victoria." The prices ranged from $4,500 to $5,900 (the most expensive equal to about $108,000 in 2025). The New York Times reported, "The cars will go on display next Wednesday at the show rooms of A. J. Miranda, Jr., Inc., 116 East Sixtieth Street."
The New Yorker, January 5, 1929
In 1929, E. A. Van Trump, Jr., Inc. took over the showroom. They continued to represent Dupont Motors, Inc.
In the meantime, the small apartments above were home to middle-class tenants. Among them in 1931 was 29-year-old Florence Brown. The actress was obviously deeply troubled, and when she visited her sister at the Hotel San Jacinto on October 22 that year, she decided to end her life. Mrs. William Trask-Clark told police that she struggled with Florence "to prevent her from jumping" from her rooms on the sixth floor. She was unsuccessful and Florence fell to her death.
In January 1932, Arthur H. Gauss leased the second floor of 116 East 60th Street. He converted it to a "physical culture studio"--essentially what today would be called a gym.
Around 1960, Robert H. Zessman opened Lloyds, a high-end antiques and accessories shop here. The New York Times described him as "an authority on 18th and 19th century antiques," and said he "sold unusual estate furniture, antiques and well-done copies." The shop would remain here into the 1970s.
Richard C. Kester was described by The New York Times as "the son of a Florida millionaire." His father was chairman of the board of the Pompano Beach Bank and Trust Company. The 28-year-old, who worked at the National Association of Broadcasters, occupied an apartment here in 1969 when he was the victim of a gruesome crime. On March 4, according to the newspaper, his body "was found bound and gagged and wrapped in a rug in his walkup apartment at 116 East 60th Street. He had apparently been dead for several days." It would not be until May 25, 1973 that two men were arrested and charged for the murder.
The Dumas Patisserie opened in the ground floor space in 1973. Operated by pastry chef Michel Dumas, it offered delicacies like French cheese cake with a bottom of raspberry puree and "something called fraisia (strawberry shortcake with a hint of kirsch)," according to New York Magazine on October 15 that year. The shop remained at least through 1979.
A renovation completed in 1986 converted the lower floors to a restaurant. In 2015, Blu on the Park occupied the space, followed by Jade Sixty in 2017, and Maison Vivienne the following year. Eateries continued to come and go. In 2019 Ivy Lane opened, replaced by T-Bar Steak & Lounge in 2022.
The Adler house is the last 19th century survivor on the block
In 2021, in anticipation of T-Bar's occupancy, Arthur Weiser's Art Deco storefront was replaced by flush panels and sleek, grouped windows. The upper floors, however, are virtually unchanged since the Adler family moved in around 1871. It is completely obscured in the summer months by years-old vines that cling to the facade.
photographs by the author
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