South Fifth Avenue Laboratory

Nikola Tesla established his laboratory on the fourth floor of a six-story building at 33-35 South Fifth Avenue in Manhattan's Greenwich Village in August 1892. This was a highly productive period where he advanced high-frequency currents, developed early versions of the Tesla coil, and conducted wireless lighting experiments. The site attracted notable visitors like Mark Twain. The original building was completely destroyed by a devastating fire on March 13, 1895, which consumed his equipment, models, notes, and much of his research data (with no insurance coverage). Tesla described it as the loss of half his lifetime's work but quickly rebuilt at a new location on East Houston Street.

The street was renamed West Broadway in 1896 and later LaGuardia Place in 1970. The former address (corresponding to roughly 537-539 West Broadway) now lies within the Washington Square Village apartment complex on the east side of LaGuardia Place, between Bleecker Street and West 3rd Street. The original structure no longer exists, and the site has been fully redeveloped into modern residential and retail buildings with no specific historical marker for the lab.