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Neighborhood 3 of 4Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill
Hamilton Heights is the northern part of West Harlem, a hillside of row houses, parks and campus buildings. Sugar Hill is its best-known historic district.
A neighborhood named for Hamilton
The neighborhood takes its name from Alexander Hamilton. The Hamilton Grange National Memorial is the former home where Hamilton lived during the last two years of his life. Nearby, the Hamilton Grange branch of the New York Public Library at 503 West 145th Street is a Carnegie library listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sugar Hill is a sub-neighborhood and historic district within Hamilton Heights. The hillside setting gives the streets a different feel from the flat grid of Central Harlem.
Architecture and districts
Much of the housing dates from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with brownstones, row houses and spacious apartment buildings, especially on the leafy eastern streets. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Hamilton Heights Historic District in 1974 and the Hamilton Heights/Sugar Hill Historic District in 2000.
The Holy Fathers Russian Orthodox Church at 524 West 153rd Street is a reminder of the area's earlier Russian community, and the Audubon Mural Project paints neighborhood walls with birds from John James Audubon's The Birds of America.
Campus and culture
City College of New York is here, including its landmarked North Campus with Shepard Hall. Dance Theatre of Harlem, the Harlem School of the Arts and Aaron Davis Hall are in the neighborhood too.
For green space, Riverbank State Park sits within Riverside Park along the Hudson River, with Jackie Robinson Park and Saint Nicholas Park elsewhere in the neighborhood.
Getting here
The 1 train stops at 137th Street-City College and 145th Street. The A, B, C and D stop at 135th, 145th and 155th Streets, and the B and D also stop at 155th Street on the Concourse Line. Plan transfers with the MTA before you travel, since weekend and night service differs.
From the Hamilton Heights side of Sugar Hill
Harlem One Stop Cultural Tours has its address at 502 W 142nd St and offers walking, gospel, jazz and Harlem Renaissance tours of Harlem. Romanova Tours is at 511 W 151st St and offers sightseeing tours of New York City.
Questions about Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill
Where is Hamilton Heights?
Hamilton Heights sits in northern Manhattan, bounded by 135th Street on the south, Riverside Drive on the west, 155th Street on the north and Edgecombe and Saint Nicholas Avenues on the east.
What is Sugar Hill?
Sugar Hill is a sub-neighborhood and historic district within Hamilton Heights.
When were the historic districts designated?
The Hamilton Heights Historic District in 1974 and the Hamilton Heights/Sugar Hill Historic District in 2000.
What is Hamilton Grange?
Hamilton Grange National Memorial is the former home of Alexander Hamilton, who lived there during the last two years of his life.
Which subway lines serve the neighborhood?
The 1 at 137th Street and 145th Street, and the A, B, C and D at 135th, 145th and 155th Streets.
Other neighborhoods
To plan a visit, read how to choose a Harlem tour or browse the tour operators.