The first plans for a building named for Hendrik Hudson on Riverside Drive were announced in October 1897 by Eugene Kirby, a former manager of the Marie Antoinette Hotel.
[2] In order to take advantage of the New York City Subway's newly opened line in the area, developers George F Johnson and Aleck Kahn purchased three-quarters of the block defined by Riverside Drive, Broadway, West 110th Street and 111th Street in order to build an apartment complex.
The project was led by William L Rouse, and the result was an eight story building modeled after a Tuscan Villa, containing 72 apartment units.
[3] The apartment building continued to enjoy success for several decades, until the aftermath of the 1943 rent-control law caused it to rapidly deteriorate.
This, along with the investigation of the accidental death of a small child in the building, prompted renovations to be carried out in 1959.