A mysterious triangular mosaic is set in the sidewalk in front of Village Cigars in the West Village at 110 Seventh Avenue South at Christopher Street. It reads: “Property of the Hess Estate Which Has Never Been Dedicated for Public Purpose.” This tiny piece of land is the result of a dispute between a former owner, the David Hess estate, of Philadelphia and NYC. Hess owned the Voorhis apartment building at that corner which had been condemned to build a subway line. The estate refused to surrender a remaining triangle, 500 square inches, the smallest piece of private property in the city. In 1938 they sold the plot to Village Cigars for $1,000. Cracked and worn, it remains a testimony to one small triumph over the city of New York…

[via New York Daily Photo]