The bathhouse was the first commercial tenant of the Lohengrin apartment building. The building itself is a stately late 19th Century structure with well preserved architectural details on the façade. The Baths, located on the basement level, featured Turkish and Russian style facilities.

Continuously in use from 1893-2003, Mt. Morris was the only bathhouse in New York City that specifically catered to Black men. The Baths started serving a predominantly gay clientele, probably sometime during the Harlem Renaissance. Those frequenting the baths during that period included Countee Cullen, Harold Jackman, Carl Van Vechten, and Lincoln Kirstein. Up until the 1960s, it was the only gay bathhouse in the city to admit Black customers.

Learn more about the history of the baths and it's important social service work during the HIV/AIDs crisis from the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project at https://www.nyclgbtsites.org/site/mt-morris-baths