Jumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
The southeast corner of Washington Heights, on the bluff above the Harlem River, where the Morris-Jumel Mansion and Sylvan Terrace sit and the area shades into Sugar Hill.
Roughly W 155th to W 162nd St between St. Nicholas Ave and Edgecombe Ave, with Jumel Terrace at the center. Sugar Hill, to the south in Harlem, blurs into the southern end.
The Morris-Jumel Mansion at 65 Jumel Terrace anchors this corner of Washington Heights. It is a short block that runs between W 160th and 162nd Sts, one block east of St. Nicholas Ave and one block west of Edgecombe Ave. Built around 1765, the mansion served as George Washington’s headquarters in 1776, and Wikipedia calls it Manhattan’s oldest surviving house. As of October 28, 2026, the museum’s website says the mansion is temporarily closed to tours, with Roger Morris Park open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and a guided Saturday walking tour offered during the closure.
Edgecombe Ave at W 160th St is also where 555 Edgecombe Avenue stands, an apartment building that became a home for prominent Black residents in the 1940s, including Paul Robeson, Count Basie, and Kenneth Clark, according to Wikipedia. Because of its concentration of Black professionals and artists, the building is often associated with Sugar Hill, the Harlem neighborhood just south, even though it is in Washington Heights.
The closest subway stop for the mansion is the 163rd St C station, per the museum.
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Places
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Beyond My Ken (opens in a new tab)CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) LandmarkJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
555 Edgecombe Avenue
A landmark for Harlem Renaissance and jazz-era history; it is a private apartment building, so see it from the sidewalk.
Edgecombe Ave at W 160th StJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Beyond My Ken (opens in a new tab)CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) LandmarkJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Morris-Jumel Mansion
Worth seeing for the history and the hilltop; the house is closed for roof replacement as of Oct 28, 2026, but the park and Saturday walks go on.
Mansion closed (roof work); Roger Morris Park daily 10am–5pm
Jumel Terrace between W 160th & W 162nd StsJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Beyond My Ken (opens in a new tab)CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) LandmarkJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Sylvan Terrace
A short, storybook block that is free to walk; the houses are private homes, so look from the street.
Between St. Nicholas Ave & Jumel TerraceJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
People and events
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James J. Kriegsmann (opens in a new tab)Public domain Count Basie
Basie lived at 555 Edgecombe Avenue, and the corner of Edgecombe Ave and W 160th St is co-named Count Basie Place for him.
555 Edgecombe AvenueJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Scan by NYPL (opens in a new tab)Public domain Former resident1810–1865
Eliza Jumel
Eliza Jumel and her husband Stephen bought the Morris-Jumel Mansion in 1810; she married Aaron Burr there in 1833 and made it her primary home until her death in 1865.
Morris-Jumel Mansion, 65 Jumel TerraceJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Gordon Parks, Office of War Information (cropped by Beyond My Ken) (opens in a new tab)Public domain Former resident1939–1941
Paul Robeson
Robeson and his family lived at 555 Edgecombe Avenue from 1939 to 1941, in a building that is now a National Historic Landmark.
555 Edgecombe AvenueJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave
Best of
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All productions
Beyond My Ken (opens in a new tab)CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab) Television2019
Broad City
Broad City filmed a scene at the Morris-Jumel Mansion for its final season.
Morris-Jumel Mansion, 65 Jumel TerraceJumel Terrace & Edgecombe Ave