Constructed in 1931-1932, the Skinny House is significant its association with African-American carpenter and building contractor Nathan Thomas Seely.
Seely (1895-1962) built the Skinny House on an extremely narrow lot of donated land after he lost his home to foreclosure and his company to bankruptcy during the early years of the Great Depression. During the mid-1910s, Nathan and Lillian Seely moved to the Washingtonville neighborhood of Mamaroneck.
The Skinny House
175 Grand Street
Mamaroneck, N.Y.
The neighborhood, located near the railroad line on the edge of the Village, slowly developed over the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and was home to a community of first-generation immigrant, predominantly Italian, and African-American families. Westchester County’s African-American population grew dramatically as a result of the Great Migration during the early decades of the twentieth century.
In response to the demand for good housing within his community, Seely and his brother Willard founded Seely Brothers Inc., a construction company that aimed to build for African-American clients. Seely hired Italian masons from the Washingtonville neighborhood, as well as African-American laborers for the company’s projects.
Seely Bros. purchased lots within the Washingtonville neighborhood and built several homes, including Nathan Seely’s own house. The Great Depression devastated Westchester County’s economy, and especially its housing industry. After Nathan Seely lost both his house and his company, his neighbor Panfilo Santangelo, an Italian immigrant and stonemason, offered Seely a twelve-and-a-half-foot strip of land between the Santangelo home and the former Seely home for Seely to build upon.
Seely drew up blueprints for the ten-foot-wide Skinny House and built the house entirely from salvaged materials. Although owner-building was not uncommon among immigrant and African-American communities during the early twentieth century, the multi-gabled Skinny House is notable for its efficient and beautiful design, careful engineering, and effective interior plan.
Challenged by a narrow lot and minimal financial means, Seely created a house that demonstrated both his ingenuity and the desire to provide, above all else, housing for his family.