The West 135th Street Branch YMCA, at 181 West 135th Street, was built in 1919 at a cost of $375,000, with funding from Julius Rosenwald, president of Sears, Roebuck and Company.
The 226 room building was designed by architect John Jackson in a style suggesting an Italian palazzo.
 The West 135th Street Branch established itself as a major institution in the community and in the Harlem Renaissance, serving everyone from writers to Pullman porters and black youth seeking work in New York City.
Before long the West 135th Street Branch was overcrowded, and more space was needed for counseling and program spaces.
The West 135th Street YMCA was a temporary home for many visiting African American visitors and performers to New York who were denied lodging in New York's midtown hotels because of racial discrimination.
These include renowned writers such as Richard Wright, Claude McKay, Ralph Ellison, Langston Hughes; artists Jacob Lawrence and Aaron Douglas; actors Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Cicely Tyson and Paul Robeson.

In 1933, the current Harlem YMCA was built in 135th street, directly across from the 135th Street Branch.
By 1938, the original building was remodeled as the Harlem annex and in 1996 it became the Harlem YMCA Jackie Robinson Youth Center.
The building received New York City landmark status in 2016.
By 2015, news reports indicated that the building was being operated as a private apartment building operated by the Abyssinian Baptist Church.
The building owners owed over $620,000 in property taxes and were cited "nearly 200 times for roach and mouse infestation, broken window guards, water leaks and busted carbon monoxide detectors."
The West 135th Street Branch YMCA, at 181 West 135th Street, was built in 1919 at a cost of $375,000, with funding from Julius Rosenwald, president of Sears, Roebuck and Company. The 226 room building was designed by architect John Jackson in a style suggesting an Italian palazzo.  The West 135th Street Branch established itself as a major institution in the community and in the Harlem Renaissance, serving everyone from writers to Pullman porters and black youth seeking work in New York City. Before long the West 135th Street Branch was overcrowded, and more space was needed for counseling and program spaces. The West 135th Street YMCA was a temporary home for many visiting African American visitors and performers to New York who were denied lodging in New York's midtown hotels because of racial discrimination. These include renowned writers such as Richard Wright, Claude McKay, Ralph Ellison, Langston Hughes; artists Jacob Lawrence and Aaron Douglas; actors Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Cicely Tyson and Paul Robeson.
In 1933, the current Harlem YMCA was built in 135th street, directly across from the 135th Street Branch. By 1938, the original building was remodeled as the Harlem annex and in 1996 it became the Harlem YMCA Jackie Robinson Youth Center. The building received New York City landmark status in 2016. By 2015, news reports indicated that the building was being operated as a private apartment building operated by the Abyssinian Baptist Church. The building owners owed over $620,000 in property taxes and were cited "nearly 200 times for roach and mouse infestation, broken window guards, water leaks and busted carbon monoxide detectors."
Harlem YMCA