236 East 19th Street

If you're a lover of timelessly elegant Manhattan living and you're lucky enough to live in Gramercy, you probably love your home just that much more. And if your Gramercy spot is anything like this classically lovely townhouse at 236 East 19th Street, on the market for $7.5 million, we'd say that's a bit like hitting the jackpot. Built in 1848, the four-story Anglo-Italianate home was owned by the Baer family from the 1860s until the current owner, Nancy Bass Wyden, co-owner of the famous Strand bookstore, purchased it for $4,700,000 in 2011. We're guessing Mrs. Wyden—she co-owns the store with her father, Fred Bass, whose father, Ben, founded the Strand in 1927—may be selling the house to spend more time in Oregon with her husband, Senator Ron Wyden, who is that state's senior U.S. senator. The couple have several small children, and if the house looks this good we'd say it must be child-proof. There's a luxurious wood-paneled library–fitting for the first family of one of the city's most iconic bookstores–and though there's plenty of play space and five bedrooms, the home's intricate historic details have been restored beautifully with added finishes (like walls of glass and several private outdoor spaces) for modern-day livability.
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