112 years ago today one of New York’s most venerable merchants Lord & Taylor moved into their new store on Fifth Avenue between 38th and 39th Street.
This advertisement in The New York Sun newspaper appeared a couple of days before the new store would open. Lord & Taylor’s first store on Catherine Street opened in 1826. Lord & Taylor moved many times before settling into their new 11-story building on February 24, 1914. Continue reading
Our photograph is from American Art Views, a view book published September 15, 1903 showing contemporary New York City.
To the right, with a flag on its roof is the six-story Fifth Avenue Hotel (1859-1908). The clock in front of the hotel remains standing today, though the hotel is long gone. On the corner of 24th Street we can glimpse the sign for for “Maillard’s.”
Maillard’s restaurant and confectionery shop was on the ground floor of The Fifth Avenue Hotel. Continue reading
Our photograph was taken around 1905 by the Byron Company (1888-1942), a partnership of Joseph Byron and his son Percy C. Byron. The Byron’s and their employees took thousands of photographs in and around New York City from the 1880s until the 1940s.
This view looking down Fifth Avenue from between 25th and 26th Street at the edge of Madison Square Park shows the Flatiron Building in the hazy background. Continue reading
The two illustrations seen here are excerpts from a full page ad. This advertisement comes from the April 27, 1919 New York Sun daily newspaper. Shown is an array of intimates of the late teens that a fashionable woman would wear beneath their clothes.
The uptown location of James McCreery & Co. at Fifth Avenue and 34th Street Continue reading
Here are two views of Fifth Avenue from the 1891 book History And Commerce Of New York (American Publishing and Engraving).
In our first illustration above we are looking north along Fifth Avenue towards The Hotel Brunswick (with flag on the roof) at the corner of 26th Street.
The second illustration below, Continue reading
From the Detroit Publishing Company comes this lightly trafficked view of Fifth Avenue. By 1915 horses were being phased out of daily street life and a large portion of the vehicular traffic is motorized. Continue reading
Looking at this postcard of New York’s finest on horses my first thought was: where is this?
The postcard itself holds few clues unless you are an expert in recognizing mundane landmarks from 120 years ago. The card shows some buildings and the mounted police.
But there was a way to find out by taking a closer look.
Because this postcard was put out by the Detroit Publishing Company in 1905, there might be an original photograph held by the Library of Congress where much of the company’s archive resides. A search provided a clear match. And from that photograph the location could be pinpointed.
The most important clues Continue reading
Greatest July 4th Parade In History of U.S., Held On Fifth Avenue
General view of the great parade proceeding up Fifth Avenue, New York City. photo: Underwood & Underwood July, 4, 1918
There was a time when July 4 did not mean merchandise sales, and a three or four day weekend with barbecues. Continue reading
This magic lantern slide shows Madison Square Park looking north and east from 23rd Street. All the vehicles seen in the photo are horse drawn and the surrounding buildings give us a clue to a date of 1900. Continue reading
This scene shows the cowcatcher intersection at 23rd Street where Fifth Avenue and Broadway intersect.
Our photograph is from about 1897, before the famous Flatiron Building was constructed in 1902. Continue reading
