The Streets Where We Live

Happy Thanksgiving & Happy One-Year Anniversary to The Streets Where We Live

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We spent the day surrounded by family and friends and are left feeling pretty grateful for all as we sit on the couch in our post turkey glow. 

One year ago today I decided to begin this blog as a way to report on what I saw and experienced in Northern Manhattan. I wanted an outlet for my writing, photography and general need to know everything that is going on. Much more than an outlet, this has turned out to be an amazing way for me to get to know so many of you and learn about the nuances of life above 155th Street. Thank you for that opportunity.

One year later, I hope to focus more on my writing and photography and keep learning more about Upper Manhattan, with the caveat that I will not be able to keep up on every turn and change in Inwood and Washington Heights

In the next weeks I will continue to try to find the right balance here and hope you will stick around and enjoy the ride. Thanks to all of you for coming to this site regularly and Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Walls Come Crumbling Down

Maybe it's age, the amount of rain and snow we've gotten in Inwood and Washington Heights this year, or just a wacky coincidence, but hot on the tails of the 1 Train subway wall collapse late Sunday night, comes what looks like the impending collapse of one of my favorite doorways in Inwood. The building belongs to The Northeastern Academy school, located on West 215th Street. Long ago boarded up, according to the New York Times, the building first belonged to William H. Hurst, a financial professional who moved to the area looking for more space from the Upper West Side (Sound familiar?). 

The house has a rich history. After Hurst died, the school became a convent with a school for girls, and was then purchased by Northeastern in 1974. Although it was once used as a guest house for the school, it was gutted by a fire set by vandals in 1988. Plans to do more with the building have not progressed since that time. 

A school representative reached via telephone said that she was not aware of a problem, but had seen someone working on the space yesterday. She said she would make sure to alert the school custodian and principal as to the damage. Neighbors should keep a close eye on this spot and perhaps make a habit of walking on the other side of the street. 

 

Easel holds up crumbling archway.

Every morning I see more and more of this facade crumble away. 

Fabulous Photos of Inwood from 1919 to 1968

Thanks to Jason Kendall, of the Inwood Astronomy Project, for passing along these fantastic photos of Inwood's history.

Broadway - 1968 Looking South from Isham Street

1968: Entrance to Inwood Hill Park

1940's: Harlem Savings Bank, 207th and Broadway

1935: Inwood Park - West of 218th Street

1934: Isham Mansion in Isham Park

1933: Isham & Broadway

1933: 213th & Broadway - This was the site of the Benedetto Farm and later the Phone Company

1930: Benedeto Farm

1926: Seaman Ave between 207th and Isham

1919: Seaman Avenue - looking North from Isham.

Jason Kendall and Inwood Astronomy in The New York Times

Image by Evan Abramson for The New York Times

Astronomer Jason Kendall and artist Katja Aglert lit up yesterday's City section with a feature story about their efforts to turn down the city lights and turn up the sky above. 

Jason Kendall, an amateur astronomer, and Katja Aglert, a Swedish installation artist, want to turn out the lights in different parts of Manhattan and, weather permitting, illuminate the night sky.
“How can you appreciate something you’ve never seen?” said Mr. Kendall, 41. “You’ll never get anyone to make the sky dark until you show them how beautiful it can be.”

The Hispanic Society of America, Zoe Leonard Show

The first portion of “Zoe Leonard: Derrotero” at The Hispanic Society of America documents the sights of Zoe Leonard's Lower East Side neighborhood during the early 1990s, right before the national and big box stores took the place of smaller mom and pop shops. With a 1940s Rolleiflex camera Leonard shot storefronts that look similar to many of the storefronts that line Broadway and the main streets in Washington Heights and Inwood today.

The exhibition is split into sections. Many of the images are head on shots of storefronts, but others detail quirky closeups of messages written in windows or handwritten advertisements. 

One of the more interesting collections of photos was the wall of hair salon advertisements. The overly-styled photos of models hanging in the windows of the rundown storefronts portends the demise of that neighborhood's previous way of life.

Although a large portion of the show could be characterized as a statement regarding gentrification, the artist's opinion on the matter is unclear. She takes a cool, documentary approach to the work, even with photos like the one below.

It's My Favorite bridge Too, A New Jersey Man Professes His Love for the GWB

George Washington Bridge
New York City 1933
Gelatin Silver
by Margaret Bourke-White 
© Time Inc.

Thought you might enjoy reading about this Rutger's professor's love for New Jersey and, by extension, the George Washington Bridge. Love his moxie. 

"I'm sick and tired of the abuse — no, the neglect — that The George has had," he says. Rockland tells of attending a Columbia University symposium on American icons.
"They keep going on, "Brooklyn this, Brooklyn that,' " Rockland says, referring to the Brooklyn Bridge. "I said, "Why all this talk about (the) Brooklyn? Why not attend to The George as an American icon?' And they all laughed. . . . A journalist who wrote for (The New York) Times . . . said, "Look where it goes.' "
Yes, look where it goes: Bergen County — or Washington Heights, depending on your perspective.

Lost Inwood -- Indian Road Cafe to Host Inwood History and Memorabilia Night

From the inbox...looks like Indian Road Cafe is adding a new evening for neighborhood history buffs like myself. Hope to see some of you there. 

COMING SOON ...on the first Monday of each month, starting March 2nd at 7:30PM, it's LOST INWOOD: Slides, photos & artifacts from our neighborhood's past...