Vintage New York

Many of you lovely readers know that I’m a New Yorker, born and bred. But it wasn’t until I fell in love with all things vintage that I’ve realized how special being a New Yorker is. I used to be able to pass by the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building without giving them a second glance. Times Square was just some flashy tourist attraction. Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s were just some other places to shop. Now, I’m still kinda jaded to it all (I see it all the time!) but knowing how important New York was in classic film (most films took place there) and how it was the most important city in the entire world then and now, I kinda get the shivers (as a matter of fact, I’m going to the city tomorrow, so it’s time for me to get those chills again, despite the prediction of 100 degree weather!). It was so cool then, and it definitely is still cool now. Although many new glass structures have been built, look around and you can still see why New York was (and still is) the Art Deco capital of the world. New York is still very much proud of its vintage culture. (photos from timefreezephotos.com)

14th street and Union Square, 1930s. Very different today…

 

Inside of a general store, 1950s. Pretty much the same today, with the cigarettes in the back and all

 

Elevated subway train on 3rd Ave, and 146th st. 1809

This one’s a total timewarp…5th Ave, ca. 1900. The large building in the back is the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, which was torn down in 1929 to build the Empire State Building. The spire in the back was Brick Presbyterian Church, which was torn down in 1938

 

The 9th Regiment Armory on 14th street ca. 1900

 

The Astor House Hotel, located on Broadway between Vesey and Barclay streets. Long considered to be the one of the classiest hotels to stay in New York, it has long since been demolished. Ca. 1913

 

Battery Park, ca. 1900

 

Greely Square, ca. 1910

 

Oh my Lord. Broadway and 73rd street, in front of the Ansonia Hotel, ca. 1903

 

Broadway at Battery Place, ca. 1920. The Woolworth Building is in the background.

 

Hooray for Brooklyn pride! The Brooklyn bridge with the Union Ferry underneath it, ca. 1910s

 

View of Brooklyn from the Brooklyn bridge, ca. 1950s

 

Burlesk Theatre, located on 118-120 East 15th street, ca. 1930s. In the 1930s, this was where stripper Gypsy Rose Lee got her start. This theater was torn down in 1985.

 

Central Park, the Great Lawn, ca. 1950s

 

Central Park at dusk, ca. 1950s

 

Central Park benches, ca. 1950s

 

Central Park lake, ca. 1910s

 

View of Chambers St. from the Municipal Building, 1938

 

City Hall subway station on the year it opened, 1904

 

Coney Island girl, 1953

 

Coney Island lifeguard, ca. 1912

 

Coney Island ball toss, 1953

 

Coney Island Boomerang ride, 1953

 

Coney Island Fun House, 1953

 

Coney Island jet ride and Ferris Wheel, 1953

 

A couple taking a stroll on the George washington bridge, ca. 1930s

 

The Dewey Arch, ca. 1900. It stood in Madison Square for only one year.

 

Tugboats at a dock, ca. 1940s

 

This is a photo I love. It’s a view of the Empire State Building (and the famed city skyline) ca. 1940s. The city is shrouded in its characteristic fog/smog.

 

The Empire State Building observation deck, 1950s

 

The ferry terminal in lower Manhattan, 1940s

 

Ahaha I LOVE this one! A hot dog shop, ca. 1950s. Everyone secretly loves these things, but I’m not so sure many would dare eat from them. I know I won’t!

 

The George Washington bridge, 1930s

 

Here’s another favorite of mine: New York in a snowstorm, ca. 1940s. The building across the street is the now-gone Gimbels department store.

 

Grand Central Station, 1940s

 

The Graybar Building, still located at 43rd street and Lexington ave, is a beautiful example of New York Art Deco (and get a load of those trolleys! My how we have changed).

 

Now HERE’S the most surprising of all: Herald Square in the 1920s!

 

 

The Long Island Railroad passing the Louis Sherry Plant and the Fuller Brush Building

 

Another favorite: the New York Life Building in the 1940s. I love the snow on the branches.

 

Broadway and White Street, ca. 1913

 

The 14th street Theatre, which was located between 6th and 7th avenues

 

15th street and 7th avenue, 1913. Looks like there was a rainstorm when the picture was taken.

 

The 1939 World’s Fair in Flushing Meadow Park

 

The entrance to 19th street Hudson and Manhattan Railroad, now the PATH, ca. 1913

 

The corner of 6th ave and 42nd street, 1936

 

Snow! Broadway and 105th street, ca. 1915. But as, you can see, the snow in New York turns disgusting after a day or so. On the sidewalk, it turns into enormous piles of shit, and the roads…fuhgettaboutit!

 

Here’s a fun one: Broadway and 47th street, 1951

 

Broadway and 56th street, 1906

 

A really awesome photo of the Brooklyn Bridge, late 1800s

 

The Central Cafe, which was located on 7th ave and 15th street

 

Central Park skating, 1916. There’s a guy falling on the right lol

 

 

Central park Biddle Walk, 1916. How romantic

 

This is another side of New York: the tenements. Christopher street between Bedford and Bleeker, 1906

 

The INCREDIBLY EMPTY Columbus Circle in 1914. Now it’s crowded as hell, and has a huge mall there.

 

 

The New York City Diner, 1916. This restaurant was razed to make way for the World Trade Center.

 

AHAHA the fire hydrant in the 1930s!

 

The famous Fraunces Tavern, 1918

 

New York in a snowstorm, 1940s. Look how deserted!

 

New street, looking towards Wall Street, 1916. Kinda looks the same today

 

Park Ave. and 69th street, 1920s

 

Getting a shoeshine at 3rd ave and 42nd street

 

The New York skyline from New Jersey, 1950s

 

6th ave an 31st street, 1911

 

Another street hot dog vendor, ca. 1950s

 

The Woolworth Building and the old Post Office Building, ca. 1920

 

The graveyard of the Trinity Church, early 1900s

 

The old New York Times Building, ca. 1900

 

The Coney Island Parachute Jump, 1958. The tower was declared a landmark in 1977 and is jokingly referred to as “The Eiffel Tower of Brooklyn”

 

An almost divine moment in Penn Station

 

 

Playing baseball on Wall Street

 

The Plaza Hotel, 1950s

 

The Queensboro Bridge at sunset, 1936

 

The view of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island from New Jersey, 1950s

 

The Chrysler Building under construction, ca. 1929. Notice the older buildings against the modern, sleek Art Deco skyscraper

 

My all time favorite: Times Square in 1939. You can look at this photo for the rest of your life and constantly find new things in it.

 

Grand Central Station, 1941

 

The Chrysler Building, which stands at Lexington Ave. and 42nd street. It’s the second-tallest building in NYC

This one is FREAKY. The Woolworth Building peeking over the clouds, 1923

 

The Flatiron Building after a snow, 1905

 

Times Square after a snow, 1948

 

Mulberry Street in Little Italy, 1910

 

The New York Stock Exchange, 1925

 

Inside the Stock Exchange, 1910

 

Aerial view of Coney Island, 1950

 

There’s plenty more photos out there, but I’d be sitting here all year trying to put them all! It’s no wonder why New York is the center of everything: finance, politics, art, fashion, theater, and culture. I’m proud to be a New York girl!

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