Tag Archives: New York

A History of New York City in 50 Objects

Today, the New York Times highlights a history of New York City in 50 objects. The objects range from extravagant to mundane.

  1. Mastodon Tusk, About 11,000 B.C.
  2. Munsee Arrowhead, Pre-1700
  3. The Schaghenbrief, 1626
  4. The Flushing Remonstrance, 1657
  5. Painting of New Amsterdam, 1665
  6. The Oyster, Late 1600s
  7. English-Dutch Dictionary, 1730
  8. Beads From the African Burial Ground, 1700s
  9. A Horse’s Tail, 1776
  10. Washington’s Balcony, 1789
  11. Wooden Water Pipes, About 1800
  12. Randel’s Map, 1811
  13. Lake Erie Keg, 1825
  14. Singer Sewing Machine, 1851
  15. Patent for Otis Elevator Brake, 1861
  16. The Lefferts’ Cookbook, 1800s
  17. Checks of Boss Tweed, 1866-1870
  18. Edison’s Dynamo, 1882
  19. Brooklyn Bridge Toll Ticket, About 1883-1898
  20. Manuscript of ‘The New Colossus,’ 1883
  21. Sculpture of the 1898 Consolidation
  22. Child’s Shoes From the General Slocum, 1904
  23. Tiffany Subway Throttle, 1904
  24. Battle’s Badge, 1911
  25. The Automat Machine, 1912
  26. The Bagel, Early 1900s
  27. 1913 Armory Show Stamp
  28. First Yankee Stadium Program, 1923
  29. Rivoli Air Conditioning Advertisement, 1925
  30. Ticker Tape, 1929
  31. The Artichoke, 1933
  32. Tree of Hope, 1934
  33. Time Capsule From 1939 World’s Fair
  34. Levittown House, 1947
  35. 1955 World Series Banner
  36. Checker Taxicab, 1952-1986
  37. Diplomatic Plates, 1960s Onward
  38. ‘Tonight Show’ Audio Track, 1962
  39. Greek Coffee Cup, 1960s
  40. Bernstein’s Baton, 1969
  41. Saturday Night Special, 1960s Onward
  42. ‘FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD’ Headline, 1975
  43. AIDS Button, 1980s
  44. Loisaida Avenue Sign, 1987
  45. The Boom Box, 1980s
  46. The Phantom’s Mask, 1988
  47. The MetroCard, 1994
  48. 9/11 Dust, 2001
  49. Mast Brothers Chocolate Bar, 2007 Onward
  50. Meng Political Sign, 2012

To learn more about the objects and their relevance to the history of Gotham, see the article: “A History of New in 50 Objects” at the New York Times.

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Gilder Lehrman/NEH Institute: The Empire City (Day 2)

So, at the end of a rather full Day 2, I have to admit that I’m a bit on “information overload,” so I’m a little… frazzled. As such, don’t be surprised to see some revisions on this over the next couple of days. It’s been a while since the sheer volume of information has left me felt… exhausted, yet it happened today (and I’m only in Day 1)!

This Seminar Focuses on the Empire City: New York City 1877-2001. It is hosted by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and cosponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. There is no way that I can summarize the entirety of the day, I will just try to relate on some of the experiences that I had.

The first session focused on the resources available via the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. They house thousands of primary source documents related to American History and readily make these resources available to the public. If you have not done so, check out their Affiliate School Program (entirely free), their digital collection, and resources for educators. Their focus is on the importance and practical application of primary sources – they provide documents, resources, and lesson plans for educators (incorporated into common core standards).

The morning, we focused on “The RIse of New York to National Dominance,” in which Professor Kenneth Jackson brought forth the question (and possible answers to) “Why New York? Why did New York become the most prominent and important city in the United States over others like Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, etc.” New York City has a unique history that has led to its (seemingly permanent) position as the economic and cultural capital of the United States. We discussed issues such as geography, economy, culture, and even ‘pure damn luck.’

The next hour we discussed the “Changing Role of Women in Post-Civil War America,” hostd by Professor Karen Markoe. She was quick to point out that investigating the role and position of 50% of the population in a century and a half period is an impossible task – yet feminist scholars always like to pigeon hole the role of women. She highlighted some common and well-recognized names: Margaret Sanger and Hetty Green (the Witch of Wall Street), but was quick to point out that we had only scratched the surface of prominent New York women.

The afternoon, we began to investigate the experience of literature in Gotham, specifically the work of Edith Wharton and her work The Age of Innocence as highlgihted by Professor John Rocco. We discussed the changing atmosphere of New York’s elite from the late 19th century through the “Jazz Age” (as higlighted by Hemmingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald) – by the way, if you have not seen the preview of the new 2012 film “The Great Gatsby” it is a highly recommend! Even if the film is terrible, the preview is amazing!

The rest of the afternoon we spent at the New York Historical Society, examining primary source documents and learning about the many, many resources available at Giler Lehrman. It was a vastly stimulating and thoroughly exhausting day… and I’m only 20% through the experience!

First Day of Gilder Lehrman Institute’s: Empire City

I recetly posted that I have been honored this summer with the amazing opportunity to participate in the Gilder Lerhman Institute of American History’s “Empire City: New York from 1877-2001.” Today I arrived in New York City ready to begin my intellectual adventures.

I have been to New York many times, but not in more than a decade. In fact, the last time I was here was the summer of 2001. I have not been back since the tragedy of September 11, 2001 – at first I was unable to face head on the tragedy, but then I simply did not have the opportunity. I was excited to be back in the city although I’ll admit, as a lifelong resident of the West Coast and Southern United states, the lack of urban sprawl makes me a bit… claustrophobic.

Photo by Roger Wollstadt

For the first time I flew into New York’s La Guardia airport (I’ve always flown into Kennedy or Newark), named for former (and deceased) mayor Fiorello La Guardia (a rather vibrant subject of our preparatory research for this seminar). The most striking feature of the decent into the airport was the stunning view of the New York Skyline and the Statue of Liberty. It seemed a fitting introducing to the urban culture I would be studying for the next week.

Upon arriving at Columbia University, I met the esteemed Anthony Napoli, the Director of Education at the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. He handed me several thick packets, a free flash drive (yay free stuff), and the key to my dorm room – yes, dorm room. For the next week I’ll get to channel my inner 19 year old college student! At dinner, I met my esteemed colleagues from a variety of institutions all over the country. Tomorrow, we begin with “New York City and the Transformation of Post-Civil War America.” We will listen to a series of lectures on the transformation of the Empire City after 1865!

A History of New York City, in 870,000 Photographs

Over 870,000 photographs of the municipal operations of New York City have been made public and tell the history of the city through a unique medium. Some of the photographs date back to the mid 1800s and highlight the unique physical and cultural evolution of the city – highlighting the construction of various important buildings and structures, the rise and fall of celebrities, and even grisly gang-land murders.

The publication and availability of these photographs is a move by the Department of Records to make these records more readily accessible via the internet.

“We all knew that we had fantastic photograph collections that no one would even guess that we had,” Kenneth Cobb.

The database, while impressively large, still has some prominent gaps that the city is consistently working to fill – and it is growing daily.

To learn more about the project, read the article at MSNBC (or the Photoblog here) or search the archives yourself at the NYC Department of Records.

1914 - Painters Suspended from the Brooklyn Bridge

1936 Babe Ruth and his Second Wife Signing Autographs for the Crowd

1918 Police Investigate the Homicide of Gaspare Candella

A Little Self-Congratulations – Attending the NEH Gilder Lehrman Institute: “Empire City: New York 1877 – 2001″

I just learned that I will have the privilege of attending a National Endowment of the Humanities Summer Seminar, hosted by the prestigious Gilder Lehrman Institute. The seminar is entitled: “Empire City: New York from 1877 – 2001.”  It was an honor and a privilege to be chosen. Today, I booked my (way overpriced) flight to NYC.

I get to spend a week at Columbia University attending lectures and hiking around the city learning about urbanization. I’m so excited! Of course, I’ll be blogging the whole thing.

35th Anniversary of the ‘Son of Sam’ Murders

Friday, July 29, marked the 35th anniversary of the infamous ‘Son of Sam’ Murders in New York. In July of 1976 (during one of the most painful heat-waves New York City had ever seen) an unidentified man approached a vehicle with two young women and inexplicably opened fire – one was killed instantly the other, though wounded, survived. The crime was a mystery to law enforcement – with practically no physical evidence and no apparent motive, the case quickly grew stale. In October of that year a similar crime, where the victims were two lovers shot and wounded (with no casualties) in their parked vehicle in Queens, prompted both law enforcement and the press to identify the behavior with a “Serial Killer,” terrifying the inhabitants of New York City. For more than a year, the city watched helplessly as the death toll climbed to six people.

The infamous “Son of Sam” letter, written to then NYPD Captain Borelli, was ultimately leaked to press, replete with spelling errors and odd ramblings, serving only to further stoked the fires of fear that gripped New York.

I am deeply hurt by your calling me a wemon hater. I am not. But I am a monster. I am the “Son of Sam.” I am a little “brat”. When father Sam gets drunk he gets mean. He beats his family. Sometimes he ties me up to the back of the house. Other times he locks me in the garage. Sam loves to drink blood. “Go out and kill” commands father Sam. Behind our house some rest. Mostly young — raped and slaughtered — their blood drained — just bones now. Papa Sam keeps me locked in the attic, too. I can’t get out but I look out the attic window and watch the world go by. I feel like an outsider. I am on a different wave length then everybody else — programmed too kill. However, to stop me you must kill me. Attention all police: Shoot me first — shoot to kill or else. Keep out of my way or you will die! Papa Sam is old now. He needs some blood to preserve his youth. He has had too many heart attacks. Too many heart attacks. “Ugh, me hoot it urts sonny boy.” I miss my pretty princess most of all. She’s resting in our ladies house but I’ll see her soon. I am the “Monster” — “Beelzebub” — the “Chubby Behemouth.” I love to hunt. Prowling the streets looking for fair game — tasty meat. The wemon of Queens are z prettyist of all. I must be the water they drink. I live for the hunt — my life. Blood for papa. Mr. Borrelli, sir, I dont want to kill anymore no sir, no more but I must, “honour thy father.” I want to make love to the world. I love people. I don’t belong on Earth. Return me to yahoos. To the people of Queens, I love you. And I wa want to wish all of you a happy Easter. May God bless you in this life and in the next and for now I say goodbye and goodnight. Police — Let me haunt you with these words; I’ll be back! I’ll be back! To be interrpretedas — bang, bang, bang, bank, bang — ugh!! Yours in murder Mr. Monster — Courtesy of Wikipedia

It wasn’t until August of 1977 that New York City Law Enforcement announced the arrest of 24 year old postal worker, David Berkowitz for the ‘Son of Sam’ crimes. The case was an international sensation and David became a household name. He claimed that he committed the murders at the prompting of his neighbor’s Black Labrador Retriever (whom he claimed was possessed by the devil). He even attempted to kill the beast a few times – once shooting it with the same .44 calibre gun he used to commit the murders.

Berkowitz confessed to the crimes and was sentenced to multiple life sentences (he still sits in prison in the state of New York). Due to the sensationalized nature of the case and multiple attempts to purchase David’s story, many states (including New York) passed “Son of Sam Laws” that prohibits criminals from profiting from their crimes – such as selling their story to a publisher or a journalist.

To commemorate the Son of Sam Murders, MSNBC has posted a video clip with some original footage and interviews – including with the lead detective of the case. If you’re interested in Serial Killer Lore or Social History in American, it’s a great view.

 

New York City & Egypt Tussle over Cleopatra’s Needle

Most visitors of Central Park do not realize that they have a piece of Ancient History in the midst. In the 19th century, Egypt made a gift of Cleopatra’s Needle, one of three identical obelisks, to the Cities of New York, Paris, and London. The obelisks themselves are not related to the famed Queen, but rather were inscribed during the reign of Thutmose III.

Recently, Zahi Hawass, head of Egypt’s Council of Antiquities (and a controversial figure in his own right) condemned the city of New York for ill-keeping of the artifact – arguing that the heavy pollution and acid rain of the city has eroded the inscriptions and even suggesting that Egypt should confiscate the monument. New York has responded by pointing out the instability of Egypt and recent lootings of its museums and monuments as well as denying the accusation that New York City’s pollution is having any negative effect on the monument.

To learn more about this debate, you can read the article in the New York Times.