AND   BUILDERS'   GUIDE.





Vol. YII.





NE¥/ YORK, SATUEDAY, APRIL 15, 1871.





No. 161.





Published Weekly by

THE REAL ESTATE EECORD ASSOCIATION.





.§6 CO





TERMS.
Ono year, In advance............-.........

All communications should be addressed to

C.   ■\^^.   S"V^ETGX.
106 BROAu-\vAy, COK. Ol? Pike Street.





Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1S71, by

C. W. SWEET,            ^^

In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.





No receipt for rooney due the REAL ESTATE RECORD
will be acknowledged unless signed by one of our regular
collectors, Henry D. SaiiTii or Thomas h: Cdidiings.
All bills for collection will be sent from the office on a regu¬
larly printed form.





PATEajT binders for preserving the Record can be had
at the office, or will be sent to any address in the city upon
the receipt of one dollar.





NOTICE OF REMOVAL.

The Re.4.Ij Estate Record will remove its office on May
1st, to the building Nos. 7 and 9 Warren street.





ABOVE FIETY-KINTH.

That pait of the Island of Manhattan above
Fifty-ninth, street, bounded on the east and
west by the East and Hudson rivers, with the
Spuyten Duyvil creek and Harlem river on the
north, -with a high rolling surface over three-
fourths of it, is by nature every -vvay adapted
for picturesque ornamentation, and capable,
■with but little artificial aidj of being buUt up so
as to develop the highest effects of grand scen¬
ery, combined and blended with art.

The Grand Boulevard runs through it, and has
been in progress for about four years; a large
, force was put upon it last, year in sections, to
hasten the grading and paving. It is now open
for a drive for about two miles. It will be the
natural highway of all the western section. To
-understand the bearing it -wiU have upon prop¬
erty on the west side, it is essential to drive
over it.

What is usually termed the east side of the
-city is being btdlt up more rapidly than the
west side. They do not conflict, as the topog¬
raphy is so differesht. The east side being flat
and lo-w, it was an easy matter to grade the
avenues and. cross staeets. The steam railroad
on the Fourth avenue aided in building up the
villages of Yorkville and Harlem. The steam
Tailroad took the population there; and when
these settlements grew rapidly, the' Third and
Second avenues were occupied by horse railroads
in competition; and these roads were opposed,
agaiia, by.a, line ofsteamers about;hourly from
Harlena to Peck Slip, fornine months of the
year. - Theearly-improvements on the east side





■were of a cheap class, as a rule. Latterly,
buildings of large cost are being erected. The
west side will be sought for by the wealthier
classes. One side will represent elegance, far
surpassing the city below Fifty-ninth street; the
other side, thrift and industry.

The -west side is not yet prepared for build¬
ing. We have not space to state the reasons
■why the leading avenues have not been opened,
graded, sevvered, and paved. Y/e are now un¬
der a ne^w administration;. and ne^w brooms
proverbially sweep clean. We are disposed to
give our rulers a fair trial. They have issued a
neat pattern card of samples, and are soliciting
the public to examine the new beauty of the
little parks.

It is e-vident thalt if the necessary work for
the preparation of the west side for building
be pursued -with diligence, and accomplished,
as it might easily be, within from three to five
years, the results would be most advantageous
to the property owners, to the growth of the
city, to the real taxable value of its property,
and to the increase of its population and busi¬
ness.

With the exception of the work on the Boule¬
vard, and the giving out of three one-horse¬
power contractsj to grade the Eighth avenue
alongside the Central Park, no progress has
been made in preparing the west side for popu¬
lation during the past twelve months.

In September, 1868, the Supreme Court ap¬
pointed the three Commissioners for benefit and
damages for taking the lots for the River Side
Park. They were Messrs. James M. Sweeny,
Hugh Smith, and WiUiani M. Tweed, Jr. The
Comniissioners have only recently finished their
reportj arid it comes before the Court in May
for confirmation.

The Eiver Side Park is three miles in
length, and extends along the slope of a ridge
from Seventy-second to One Hundred and Thir¬
tieth street. Itds the most important park the
city will have, and, if ordinary Justice ig done
in the engineering and landscape gardening, it
■will exceed the Central. Park in attraction, and
bring millions of wealth to this city. The av¬
enue that bounds it on the east line will be
lined by residences as far surpassing the present
Fifth avenue as that sia-passes Bond street,
Le Eoy and Lafayette places, of former timies.





MECHANICS' LIEirS.
By referring to our issue of February 19,
1870, our readers wiU observe that, in reply to
an inquiry addressed to us by a subscriber, on the
subject of payments made to the contractor
before the same became due under the contract
entered into between the o^wner and the con¬
tractor, we were of the! opinion that such pay¬
ments, if miadein^ood'faith, niust be iUo'wed





the ©■wner; and that it •will be a good defence
if the owner in a proceeding instituted against
him by a sub-contractor or other claimant proves
that the contracter had been fully paid at the
time the claimant's notice to acquire a lien was
filed. Our construction of the statute ■was ques¬
tioned by several, but, by the favor of David
McAdam, Esq., we are furnished ■with a copy of
the opinion of Judge Loew of the New York
Common Pleas, just delivered at a General Term
of that Court, in the case of Scheder agaiasb
Hohein, in which the Court, reversing the de¬
cision of the Court below, hold that the owner
may pay the contractor in fuU before called
upon by the terms of the contract existing be¬
tween them, and that where the o^wner pays
his contractor, even in advance, for his work, the
sub-contractor or other claimant acquires no lien
unless his notice to acquire the lien is filed be¬
fore the payriient is made. The effect of this
decision is to defeat the Hen of every claimant
in cases where the contractor receives his pay
from the owner in advance of performance of
the work. If the contractor has be^n fully
paid, the filing of anptice of lien will be of no
avail. Claimants intending to rely on their lein
can, of course, protect themselves by going to
the owner and inquiring of him the particulars
in regard to the contract and the money due or
to become due thereunder.





MECHANICS' f LIENS   AGAINST    BUILDINGS
IN NEW YOSK CITY.

April.

10  ElGHTT-^OURTH   ST.,   N.   S. (No. 413

B.), about 200 e. Istav.   Nolen &

Steers agt. M. Schott.............     $105 45

7 Fifty-seventh ST., s. s., 75e. 1st
av., 5 houses. Joseph Schwab agt.
Mr. PurceU......................       123 00

11  PisTT-NiNTH ST. (No. 210W.).   An¬

thony Berger agt. James Wilson..,       233 83
11 Forty-eighth st., n. s., com. about
176 w. llth av., running 70.   John
F. Moore agt. Thomas WiUiamson      650 00

11  Fifty-seventh st., n. s., com: 50 e. -

10th av., running 40.   John Farrell

agt. John Totten-----......___...       190 00

12  Fifty-ninth st., s. s., and Fifty-

eighth Bu.i n. s., com. 375w. 5thav.-,
running 75. {Richard HiU agt. John
H. Quinn et al...-----.............    1,128 00

12_Same pkopebtv.    James Brooks

agt John-H. Quinn et al........;.       338 00

12 Fifty-ninth st., s. s., and Fifty-
eighth St., n.  s.,  com. 225 w. 5th
av., nmning' 50.     James  Brooks ,
agt. John H. Quinn et al..........       336 00

12  Fifteenth st., n.  s.  (No. 317 W.).

Francis Flanagan agt. —. Parker.         21 87

13  Fifty-ninth st., [s. s., 175 w. of

Plaza cor. -5th av.-, running 75 feet.
J. J. Yafces agt. P. Algier, J. J.
Quinn, and J. P. Martin..........       673 40

13 Fifty-^ninth ST., s. s.,175 w. 5th      •
av.   J. J. Boyle agt. Peter Alger
and J. J. Quin...___.....i.......         49 00

'7 Greene st.. b.  s: (Nos. 136 and    :.
138),'arid Mercer St., w. s. (N6s;ld7' /■:
and 139).   J. T. Conover agt-Mrs.-^    ■ _ ^,
Josephine Otard..:'........v.. 1... ^^iSOO^OO

7 Samephopebtt.- J. W. Mesekeatj-;-V

agt. same...... ...-----.......... \27;400 00