Category: Harlemscape
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Blues Singer
This photo from 1958 of “Sticks McGhee” ( a Blues Guitarist) was only described as being taken in Harlem NYC: What struck me was that the foreground figure had space. Space between the building where the photographer was, and the subject. Most Harlem streets have stoop stairs ending right at the property line, with no…
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Urban Garden Center’s Storage Area
If you recall the fire under the Metro North tracks at 118th Street a few years back, the fire was the result of material that the Urban Garden Center had been storing under the tracks, between 117 and 118th Streets. This photo shows the storage of everything from concrete block, to pallets, to soil, to…
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118/Park
Before (1980’s): And now: Um… We all know that Greenpoint is south-east of Harlem, not north…
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A Great Day
The 1958 Esquire Magazine photo that started it all: And with the rise of Hip Hop, XXL Magazine (in 1998) did this riff with Gordon Parks as the photographer: Unfortunately, an ill-timed shadow marred the photo. However, fewer people know that Gordon Parks’ also paid homage to the Art Kane 1958 original in 1995. Parks…
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Colonial Park 1930’s
A view of Colonial Park, now Jackie Robinson Park, from the 155th Street Viaduct. The photo was clearly taken on a wet day, though no one in the photo has an open umbrella. Note the ubiquitous window awnings to help with the summer sun/heat (pre-air conditioning). Below is a detail of the park where the…
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Harlem Foundry
A standard tenement entrance on Easts 125th Street: Notice the cast iron pillar on the right, and the foundry advertising on the pillar’s base: The address is not one we’d use today: 106 ST ER NY But the meaning is clear: 106th Street at the East River. Today the FDR has wiped out any waterside…
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New Loo Coming to Jefferson Park
The city has contracted to bring ‘Portland Toilets’ to parks with no facilities. The model they’ve gone with has extraordinary durability that can be chalked up to its defense-first design. “I think one thing we have ahead of other toilet designs is that we’ve learned people like to do nefarious things” So the Portland Loo…
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Uptown, 1842
In 1842, Manhattan (of course) showed settlement down at the tip of the island, and in a few locations northward. In this view, Harlem is the densest settlement north of 59th Street: Note how West Harlem (Manhattanville, mostly) and East Harlem (then known as just Harlem). were settled, whereas what we call Central Harlem was…
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Ballroom and Language
Harlem’s role in the 1970’s ballroom scene and many other earlier iterations of trans expression, is well known. What may not be as well known are the linguistic contributions that originated in this musical/fashion/identity/dance scene. Slang words like “shade” — to speak ill of something or someone –- or “werk,” as in “werk it,” or…
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Green Thumb Turns 45
Did you know this year is GreenThumb’s 45th Anniversary? GreenThumb is celebrating 45 years of support for the city’s robust network of community gardens. These gardens have come a long way in 45 years—from turning empty lots into open space in the midst of the city’s worst financial crisis to the thriving spaces New York sees today.…
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Harlem Church, At Night
A photo of the church at 127/5th Avenue at dusk.
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Sidewalk Sheds
The Department of Buildings keeps a record on sidewalk sheds and provides a great map to look at them. Central Harlem currently has 249 sidewalk sheds, whereas East Harlem has 202. Mapped, the data shows that they are, pretty much, everywhere: And, if you filter for 5 years or older! Here’s the map you get:…
