You’ve probably walked right past it. If you’ve ever wandered down West 10th Street in Greenwich Village, maybe stopping to admire the ivy-covered brick or the expensive-looking planters, you’ve stood in front of the House of Death NYC. It’s located at 14 West 10th Street. It looks like any other high-end piece of Manhattan real estate. It’s elegant. It’s Greek Revival. It’s also reportedly home to no fewer than 22 ghosts.
New York has a lot of "haunted" spots, but this place is different. It’s not a gimmick. It’s not a seasonal pop-up. It is a legitimate piece of architectural history that has been stained by an incredible amount of documented tragedy. We aren't just talking about floorboards creaking. We are talking about a century of bizarre deaths, celebrity sightings from beyond the grave, and one of the most brutal criminal cases in New York City history.
People ask if it's actually scary. Honestly? It depends on who you talk to. To some, it’s just a beautiful building worth millions. To others, it’s a vortex of bad energy that should have been torn down decades ago.
The Mark Twain Connection
Most people call it the House of Death NYC because of the sheer volume of spirits, but its most famous "resident" is Samuel Clemens. You know him as Mark Twain. He lived there from 1900 to 1901. It was a short stay, but apparently, he never really left.
Twain wasn't exactly a happy man during his time on 10th Street. He was grieving. He was dealing with financial headaches. He was dressed in his signature white suits, wandering the halls. Decades after he died in Connecticut, residents of 14 West 10th started seeing a man in a white suit. One famous account from the 1930s claims a resident saw an elderly man sitting by the window. When she approached him, he allegedly said, "My name is Clemens and I has a problem here I gotta settle," before vanishing.
Is it true? Who knows. But the stories persisted. Twain’s presence is usually described as more of a melancholy haunting than a malicious one. He’s just... there.
🔗 Read more: Madison WI to Denver: How to Actually Pull Off the Trip Without Losing Your Mind
The Night Everything Changed: Joel Steinberg
While the ghost stories are fun for a walking tour, the real horror of the House of Death NYC happened in 1987. This isn't folklore. This is police records and court transcripts. This is why the building has such a heavy, dark reputation today.
Joel Steinberg, a disbarred attorney, lived in the second-floor apartment. He lived there with Hedda Nussbaum and a six-year-old girl named Elizabeth—"Lisa"—who they had illegally adopted. On a cold November night, the reality of what was happening inside that apartment hit the headlines. Lisa was beaten into a coma and later died.
The trial was a circus. It exposed a level of domestic depravity that shocked the city. The details were stomach-turning. It changed the way people looked at the building. Before 1987, it was a "spooky" house with some cool history. After 1987, it became a site of genuine, modern evil.
You can feel that shift when you read about it. The "22 ghosts" might be a mix of legend and exaggeration, but the tragedy of Lisa Steinberg is a permanent mark. It’s the reason many paranormal investigators claim the building’s energy is "clogged."
Jan Bryant Bartell and the Spindrift
If you want to understand the psychological toll of living at 14 West 10th Street, you have to read Spindrift: Spray from a Prophetic Sea. It was written by Jan Bryant Bartell, an actress and poet who lived in the house in the 1950s. She didn't just see ghosts; she felt them.
💡 You might also like: Food in Kerala India: What Most People Get Wrong About God's Own Kitchen
She described a "monstrous" presence. She talked about a "gray shadow" that followed her. Her writing is frantic and terrified. She became obsessed with the history of the house, convinced it was feeding on its inhabitants.
Bartell died under mysterious circumstances shortly after finishing her book. Some say it was a heart attack; others suggest she was so driven to the brink by the house that she couldn't go on. Her account is basically the blueprint for the "House of Death" moniker. She was the one who really put the 22-ghost number out into the world.
Why 14 West 10th Street is Different
New York is old. There are bones under Washington Square Park. There are spirits in the Chelsea Hotel. So why does this one brownstone get all the attention?
- The Architecture: It’s a "double-width" brownstone. It’s imposing. It feels larger than its neighbors.
- The Location: It’s on one of the most beautiful blocks in the world. The contrast between the wealth outside and the darkness inside is jarring.
- The Consistency: People don't just report things once every twenty years. The stories have been consistent since the late 1800s.
Living there now? It's divided into apartments. People pay thousands of dollars a month to live in the House of Death NYC. Most of them say they’ve never seen a thing. Or maybe they just don't want to admit it because they don't want their property value to tank.
How to See It Safely
Look, don't be that person who lingers on the stoop. People live there. It’s a private residence. If you want to experience it, do it from the sidewalk.
📖 Related: Taking the Ferry to Williamsburg Brooklyn: What Most People Get Wrong
- Go at Dusk: The streetlights on 10th Street are those old-school glowing globes. It sets the mood perfectly.
- Check the Second Floor: That’s where the Steinberg tragedy happened and where Twain’s ghost is most often "seen."
- Read the History First: Don't just go for the "vibes." Understand the timeline. Know the difference between the legend of the 22 ghosts and the documented history of the residents.
The House of Death NYC isn't going anywhere. It’s survived the gentrification of the Village, the rise of the skyscraper, and the changing face of Manhattan. Whether it's truly haunted or just a victim of a very long run of bad luck, it remains the city's most unsettling address.
If you're planning a visit, pair it with a walk through Washington Square Park. It’s only a few blocks away. Just remember that the Village is built on layers of history—some of it is just a lot heavier than the rest.
To really dig into the history, you should look up the original New York Times archives from the 1980s regarding the Steinberg case. It provides a sobering counterpoint to the more whimsical ghost stories. It reminds you that sometimes, the real monsters aren't the ones walking through walls; they're the ones behind closed doors.
Next Steps for Your Visit
- Visit the New York Historical Society: They often have records on 19th-century brownstone architecture and the development of West 10th Street.
- Walk the "Gold Coast": This section of the Village (between 5th and 6th Avenues) is full of similar homes. Compare the "feeling" of 14 West 10th to its neighbors.
- Pick up a copy of Spindrift: It’s out of print but usually available through used book sellers. It is the definitive (and haunting) primary source on the building's interior life.
Stop looking for shadows and start looking at the facts. The house doesn't need to jump out at you to be terrifying; its history does all the work for it.