Thurgood Marshall’s former Hamilton Heights co-op hits the market for $550K

Thurgood Marshall, the Supreme Court’s first African-American justice, lived in Harlem as a young adult, even serving as a vestryman at St. Philip’s Protestant Episcopal Church at 134th Street and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard. His home was a bit farther north in Hamilton Heights, at 409 Edgecombe Avenue near 154th Street. Notably, the building was also home to prominent African American figures such as W. E. B. Du Bois, painter Aaron Douglas, civil rights activist Roy Wilkins, and artist Elizabeth Catlett. Justice Marshall’s former co-op, a spacious two-bedroom, is now owned by actress Erica Ash, known for her work on MadTV and The Big Gay Sketch Show. She’s just put it on the market for $550,000.

The co-op has a foyer, king- and queen-sized bedrooms, a formal dining room with glass French doors, a very large living room, and a washer/dryer in the kitchen. There are six large closets, two of which are walk-ins, exposed brick, nine-foot ceilings, crown moldings, and views of the Upper Manhattan skyline and Harlem River. The bathroom was recently renovated.

The building has a part-time doorman, outdoor patio, and a laundry room. This is an HDFC unit; the income restrictions are 120 percent of the Area Median Income. The maximum gross incomes are as follows:

• 1 person: $89,640
• 2 people: $102,480
• 3 people: $115,320
• 4 people: $128,040
• 5 people: $138,360
• 6 people: $148,560

409 Edgecombe Avenue was built in 1917 by the architects Schwartz & Gross. It’s located right on Jackie Robinson Park and is close to the C, B, and D trains at 155th Street. The building became known as a place for the city’s “black elite” in the 20s through 50s because it provided a luxury lifestyle in burgeoning Harlem. Many building owners in “white” neighborhoods also would not rent to black tenants. In addition to Justice Marshall, the building has been home to W. E. B. Du Bois, painter Aaron Douglas, civil rights activist Roy Wilkins, NAACP head Walter Francis White, writer William Stanley Braithwaite, musician Clarence Cameron White, and artist Elizabeth Catlett.

[Listing: 409 Edgecombe Avenue, 9B by Emily Ackerman, Beth Gittleman, Daoud Heidami of Compass]

[At CityRealty]

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Photo credit: Rise Media, Courtesy of Compass