Ritter Place house was home to jazz musicians
REPRINTED FROM 12-2-2010
I took this photograph of Nick DiBrino on the steps of 818 Ritter Place on
November 17. The beautiful home is located between Prospect and Union
avenues and was once the home of legendary jazz performer.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, A BTR UGUST 23-29, 2019 47
When Moses and Jane
Green left Lancashire, England
for America in 1849, they
would have no idea of the storied
personages who would
one day occupy the beautiful
Washington Avenue home
they built circa 1854. I did see
one record that indicated that
it was constructed in 1901 but I
believe that is simply from an
architect’s renovation fi ling.
The address has since been
altered to 818 Ritter Place but
the gorgeous detail within remains.
The fi replace, hardwood
fl oors, oak paneling and especially
the detailed hand
carved woodwork throughout
the house tell a story of oldworld
craftsmanship. It has
three large bedrooms, a spacious
attic and a decent sized
backyard.
There is an out-building
back there but when the abutting
lot was sold, rather than
tear the structure down, they
simply cut it in half at the new
property line.
When Moses and Jane immigrated
to America, they
brought along their threeyear
old son, John Henry, who
grew up in the lovely home
and later occupied it with his
wife, Henrietta. They had one
son, Morton M. Green, who
was born in that house on May
23, 1873. He married Anna E.
Hartung on September 6, 1896
and the couple raised their
three children there.
Morton and his children attended
the local public schools
and, as was the norm for working
families, when Morton
became a teenager he began
working at a variety of jobs
until 1897 when he opened his
real estate business. The family
became quite successful
and eventually moved.
Among the later owners of
this neoclassical home was Eddie
Mallory, Ethel Waters’ husband.
Mallory led the back-up
band for Waters for a number
of years and played both the
trumpet and saxophone but
ended his career as a booking
agent. Ethel Waters became a
major Broadway and recording
star performing at the Cotton
Club among other venues
and with such luminaries as
Duke Ellington.
Another popular entertainer,
Maxine Sullivan,
bought the home from Eddie
Mallory in 1945 and raised
her one daughter there. Maxine
was a major blues and jazz
singer for many years and was
inducted into the Big Band
and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1998.
Her parts in some important
fi lms and Broadway performances
showcased her
great talent. She placed her
career on hold for a while to
raise her daughter becoming
involved in the local PTA and
other neighborhood organizations.
She also owned a two-story
home on Stebbins Avenue
where she provided housing
for jazz musicians and later
turned it into “The House
That Jazz Built,” a museum of
sorts.
Her daughter, Paula Morris,
sold 818 Ritter Place to Ed
Poteat, a real estate mogul, in
2004 for $150,000. Poteat fi xed
it up a bit and re-sold it the
following year for twice that
price. One year later it went
up for sale again and brought
$350,000.
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