Hotel Chelsea (original) (raw)

A well-known residence for artists, musicians and writers, the Hotel Chelsea is located in the neighborhood of Chelsea in New York City. The hotel welcomes guests, but is primarily known for its long-term residents, past and present.

The building that now houses the Hotel Chelsea was built in 1883 as a private apartment cooperative and opened in 1884. It was the tallest building in New York until 1902.

At the time Chelsea, and particularly 23rd Street, on which the hotel is located, was the center of New York's Theatre District. Within a few years, a combination of economic worries and the theatres' relocation, had driven the Chelsea cooperative bankrupt. In 1905, the building was purchased and opened as a hotel.

The famous people who have resided there over the years include: Mark Twain, O. Henry, Dylan Thomas, William S. Burroughs, Stanley Kubrick, Andy Warhol, Christo, and many more besides. Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols stabbed his girlfriend Nancy Spungen to death in the hotel.