Our History
The history of 90 North is the history of Nyack. Of a tight community shifting with the times. Its story intertwines with that of the neighboring Edward Hopper House and the families that have called Nyack home over the years. We are proud to continue this lineage with our boutique offices, art spaces, and community programming
90 North was built in 1859. At that time the population of Nyack was booming thanks to the growing quarrying and shipbuilding business driven by the wealth of red sandstone in the area. “Nyack grew exponentially, from seven houses in 1814 to more than 2,000 people in 1860,” writes Win Perry of the Historical Society of the Nyacks.
One of the first owners was Edward C. Harris, who was deeply involved in the Nyack community. For a year beginning in 1848, he was the principal of the Nyack School. Later he was a bookkeeper for the D.D. & T Smith steamboat line, and worked for Francis John Newton Tallman’s organ company across the street.
90 North passed into the hands of Henry Kessler in 1893, who owned a meat market on Main Street throughout the 1890s. Kessler was responsible for adding the turret, a wraparound porch, gables, and an addition at the back of the house.
More recently, the building was owned by the late civil rights lawyer Robert P. Kassel, who maintained law offices on the first floor. He frequently took on pro bono cases and was instrumental in saving the neighboring Edward Hopper House from demolition. As a founding member of the Hopper House, he was deeply involved in the organization’s programming. He curated a show of prison art to highlight the voices of incarcerated people and started a weekly figure sketch class on Tuesdays — he never missed a single session. Today, his family continues their support for the historic institution.
From the Kassels, the house passed to Elfrida and Isaac Malkin. Elfrida is a pediatric neurologist who kept offices on the first floor, and Isaac is a noteworthy Russian-trained violinist who frequently held classical ensemble rehearsals on the second floor. Isaac has taught around the world and founded the Academy of Music Summer Festival. Currently, he is on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music.
The house has grown with its occupants over the years. Kessler wasn’t the last to make his mark on the building — a stucco facade was added in the 1950s and in 1959 it was approved as a 4 family dwelling. Through the last 150 years, it has housed families, lawyers, medical offices, music, and dance classes. The next era of 90 North will draw on that lineage and continue to deepen those connections to the community; 90 North is where art and business meet.
