Steck Hall was opened in 1865 on Clinton Place by Steck as a wareroom where musicians could perform on his piano. He moved into a larger building on East 14th Street, also known as Steck Hall, in 1871. Walt Whitman delivered his first lecture on Abraham Lincoln in the hall on April 14, 1879. José Martí spoke at the hall on January 24, 1880, his first speech in the United States.