Weehawken St, West Village

Weehawken Street is the shortest street in Manhattan and it is, in its entirety, a historical landmark. It was the last remaining street to be sold off from what was once New York's first prison; and, it was initially designated as a market. When the market closed in the mid-19th century, plots of land were purchased by private buyers and set up as homes, stables, and maritime related businesses. It is a really interesting mix of buildings (fourteen of them) ranging from brick row houses to wood front shops all constructed around 1830. It got a little bawdy around the early 19th century when a lot of the buildings housed bars for the "dark" crowd (i.e. gays and misfits). But, it is now right in fashion with the rest of the village: beautiful, tiny and incredibly expensive real estate.
It's an ideal street to live on because it is off of a major West Village street (Christopher) so proximity and access to restaurants, bars and transportation is great. But, it's also very quiet and tree-lined due to the fact that it's very far west and largely unknown to tourists and even residents. Most of the buildings on Weehawken are not for rent. Even the apartments are condos or coops. And, because they are all historical landmarks, the buildings can't be altered at all. So, the 19th century aesthetic will forever remain intact. I think this street is really cool. It's almost like living in a suburb. . . .but, a really old one. You walk down this tiny wisp of a street and actually feel like you got into a time machine. As far things to do, there aren't any. It is strictly residential and it's about the size of an alley. But the buildings are gorgeous and the energy is very calm.