West Hill in Albany in Albany County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
29 Lexington Avenue
Photographed by Trudi Jacobson, October 24, 2026
1. 29 Lexington Avenue Marker
Built by William Kelly
Home of
Jane & Caroline Reeves
dressmakers
1883
Preservation
Merit
Award
Erected by Historic Albany Foundation.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Industry & Commerce • Women. In addition, it is included in the Historic Albany Foundation series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1883.
Location. 42° 39.775′ N, 73° 45.833′ W. Marker is in Albany, New York, in Albany County. It is in West Hill. It is on Lexington Avenue 0.4 miles north of Clinton Avenue, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 29 Lexington Avenue, Albany NY 12206, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Upstate New York and in the Capital District. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Netherland and also one of the original Thirteen
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Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Chapman House (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Matthews House (approx. 0.2 miles away); Henry Johnson (approx. 0.3 miles away); Spanish-American War Memorial (approx. 0.3 miles away); Townsend Park (approx. 0.3 miles away); 10th Ward War Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); 439 State Street (approx. 0.4 miles away); 405 State Street (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Albany.
Regarding 29 Lexington Avenue. The house at 29 Lexington Avenue was built in 1883 by William Kelly, who was also responsible for other buildings in Albany's Arbor Hill neighborhood. His work included a row of houses at 425437 Clinton Avenue, constructed in the 1880s, and Saint Luke's Methodist Church, built in 1888. These projects illustrate his involvement in both residential and institutional construction during a period of substantial neighborhood development.
The 1891 Albany City Directory identifies Caroline Reeves and Jane A. Reeves as dressmakers residing at 29 Lexington Avenue. Caroline was listed with a home address at the property, while Jane was recorded as boarding there. Both women were therefore individually identified with the dressmaking trade, although the directory does not establish whether they operated a business together or conducted their work at the house.
Dressmaking was an important occupation for women in nineteenth-century Albany. In Unexceptional Women: Female Proprietors in Mid-Nineteenth-Century Albany, New York, 18301885, historian Susan Ingalls Lewis identifies dressmakers as the largest single occupational group among Albany's businesswomen during the decade from 1875 to 1885. Dressmaking provided women with opportunities to earn an income and sometimes to establish independent businesses. Such enterprises could involve several members of a household working in the same trade.
Jane and Caroline Reeves were both born in England, making them particularly interesting in the context of Lewis's research. Although a majority of Albany's businesswomen during the period studied were foreign-born, most dressmakers were native-born. The Reeves women thus represent a part of the city's immigrant participation in this important occupation.
The Historic Albany Foundation plaque preserves the names and occupation of two working women whose contributions formed part of Albany's nineteenth-century economic and social history. The building also received a Historic Albany Foundation Preservation Merit Award in 1985.
Sources
Albany City Directory. 1891, p. 265. Entries for Caroline Reeves and Jane A. Reeves.
Lewis, Susan Ingalls. Unexceptional Women: Female Proprietors in Mid-Nineteenth-Century Albany, New York, 18301885. Columbus: The Ohio State University Press, 2009, pp. 4142. https://muse.jhu.edu/book/27817.
Waite, Diana S., ed. Albany Architecture: A Guide to the City. Albany: Mount Ida Press, 1993, p. 198.
Credits. This page was last revised on November 3, 2026. It was originally submitted on November 2, 2026, by Trudi Jacobson of Slingerlands, New York. This page has been viewed 16 times since then. Photo 1. submitted on November 2, 2026, by Trudi Jacobson of Slingerlands, New York. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
