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- Brooklyn Pin Boys: 1910
- ... is still a public manual alley in Shohola, PA at Rohman's Hotel, It is cheap (1$ per frame) if you set your own pins or bring you own pin ... Posted by Dave - 09/08/2011 - 6:37pm -
![April 1910. "1 a.m. Pin boys working in Subway Bowling Alleys, 65 South Street, Brooklyn, N.Y., every night. Three smaller boys were kept out of the photo by Boss." View full size. Photograph and caption by Lewis Wickes Hine.
notice the gas lightsnotice the gas lights
Slave DriverNot only did he hide all the nine year old kids when he saw the photographer, but I'll bet he also made sure his whip wasn't visible either.
muralI like the hint of the sailing mural on the back wall.Touch of class.
Bogotá 2006Reminds me of a bowling hall I visited in downtown Bogotá last year - pin boys and a musty basement smell
my dad was a pin boy. :]my dad was a pin boy. :]
Is that.......the dude from "Deadwood"?
The boss looks like......Al Swearengen from Deadwood
Pin Boy (Retired)I'm 78 now. I used to be a pin boy, part time nights in Hartford, Ct. from 1944 to 1947. The pay was much better than working on the tobacco farms after school.
man that job must haveman that job must have sucked did anyone ever throw the ball b4 u were done setting them??
Patrons intentionally bowling before pins were set.It happened routinely, especially later at night when the patrons were inebriated. However, you could usually expect a better tip from the drunk bowlers, especially if you would "help them along" by discreetly knocking over a few extra pins. We would occasionally taunt them and quickly jump over the safety wall as the ball was approaching.
One of only a handful remaining, there is still a public manual alley in Shohola, PA at Rohman's Hotel, It is cheap (1$ per frame) if you set your own pins or bring you own pin boy, (or girl).
http://www.riverreporter.com/issues/05-07-14/LR-wanda.html
73,
Tom
Good ole daysI worked lanes like these in the basement of a school attached to our church in Illinois. First time I ever saw a cork ball. And yes, they have thrown the ball down the lane before you had all pins set up, you just had to be quick enough to jump out of the way.
Then & NowPeople think they have it ruff now. Nice photo.
Got paid a nickel a line.I was a pinboy at age 12 in New Jersey in the fifties. Eight alleys no air conditioning, no breaks, no dental plan. But with tips you made a couple of bucks a night. Enough for a movie, comic books, a coke, and a pack of smokes. Today most folks have to work 8 hours to get all that stuff.
My First JobMy first job was as a pinboy at our local country club in New Jersey. Seven cents a game plus tips. I lasted about 4 hours.
ChicagoStill have pinboys in Chicago at Southports Lanes on the northside.
Former Pin BoyMy husband was a pin boy in 1953 at the Yonkers Jewish Center. He said your picture is exactly the way it was.
(The Gallery, Kids, Lewis Hine, NYC, Sports)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/04636u.thumbnail.jpg "Brooklyn Pin Boys: 1910")
- Sixteen Sweethearts: 1932
- ... full size.
El Capitan is still around. Now a hotel.
A review of the show From the pages of "Inside Facts ... Posted by Dave - 01/09/2016 - 4:37pm -
- Christmas Story: 1953
- ... "Turn off some of these lights, this place looks like a hotel!"
American Flyer, no Lionel Great picture ... we all laid our ... Posted by der_bingle - 12/09/2008 - 6:58pm -
![Christmas 1953. Oak Park, Illinois. My cousin Tom experiencing the thrill of his first Lionel electric train. My Uncle Bill is manning the transformer, and my dad, who was a real-life railroad engineer, is on the right. 35mm slide. View full size.
There's a tree somewhereUnder all that tinsel!
SparksWow! I can practically smell the ozone. This could have been me, except we didn't have sense enough to take pictures of anybody with our electric train, only pictures of it, like this one from December 1954. I think it's Lionel, I forget.
This was the time of my life.I might as well be in this picture. The timeline and all that is going on is perfect. Wonderful family shot. WOW! what great memories. Thank you and Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Tinsel HazardsHere's a question for you Boomers -- I see that tinsel was big in your growing up years (understatement). Did people keep their pets outside then, or did they all just die horrible, tinsel-blockage induced deaths? (I know that it doesn't always cause serious problems for them -- but with the sheer amount of tinsel on these trees, it seems like the chances for intestinal problems would be good.)
tterrace, I really like the attractively arranged couch pillows behind your train. What were you hiding back there? Or are they simulated mountains?
Who's having the most funI was so glad when our son was old enough (1957)for me to buy the thing I'd always wanted for Christmas but, because I was a girl, never got. Unfortunately, he was still at the push-toy stage so it didn't work for him but I had a ball.
Re: Tinsel hazardsWhy would pets be eating tinsel in the first place? None of ours ever touched the stuff. I grew up in the tinsel-lovin' Fifties. Dogs and cats eating tinsel was not anything people ever talked about happening. Sounds like some sort of 21st century consumer worrywart issue.
TinselitisI don't know ... because it's shiny and stringy and fun to play with? My cat would go crazy for the stuff, as would most cats I've owned. Maybe even the pets were perfect in the 50s. It was just a question.
[It was an excellent tinsel question. Speaking of which: Garlands or icicles? We were always a garland family. Not that there's anything wrong with icicles. - Dave]
Simulated mountainsVery good, Catherine. I usually have to explain to people what the pillows are doing behind my toys in a number of my photos from back then. These we had retained from our old chesterfield which had been relegated to a slow, moldering death in the basement a couple years back. If you could look above them, you'd see my mother's renowned curtains and drapes.
We never used tinsel ourselves, but I remember enjoying it when we'd visit friends or relatives who did. Those were the days when tinsel was made of, or mostly of, lead. I liked to slip strands off and ball them up into little wads or, better yet, if there were lighted candles around and nobody was watching, dangle them in the flame and watch them melt. Don't tell anybody.
Twin tops?It appears that someone improvised and used some of the TinkerToy pieces to make stands for the 'billboard' signs.
It also looks like the Tinkertoy was also a present that may have been wrapped in aluminum foil. And, there appear to be two identical toys in the picture, possibly spinning tops.
Great picture!
TransformerLooks like the transformer is a Lionel model 1033 (made from 1948-'56). I have one of these units, still in perfect working condition. As far as I know, the only maintenance it ever had was the replacement of the power cord, due to the insulation drying out and cracking (a common problem). I never cease to be amazed at how durable those old Lionels are. Great picture!
LionelI agree, it's probably a Lionel in tterrace's photo. I had an American Flyer I received for Christmas in 1948. American Flyer did not have the middle rail in the track.
A way of lifeAs they say, a way of life gone with the wind.
I love this blog . . .It is threads like this that keep me hooked on this blog. It's comforting to know I'm not the only whack job walking around unattended.
Foy
Las Vegas
Cat TinselWithout the prompting of previous posters I wouldn't have mentioned that during the Christmas season at our house our Siamese cat Tabetha would walk around with a piece of what she usually left in her litter box instead dangling from a piece of tinsel she had once presumably eaten. That's the most tasteful way I can explain it.
Now That's Christmas!Real Tinker Toys, the "real" old-school Lionel train sets, and not those modern knockoffs made by a company that simply owns the name. What do kids get today? Lead lined Chinese plastic "toys" from Wal-Mart.
Boy, give me that old fashioned Christmas anytime.
Thanks, and Merry Christmas to you. My Dad and Uncle have passed on, but Tom - who's now in his sixties - still has that Lionel train set. Last time I was at his house he had it set up in his basement, along with several accessories he's accumulated over the years.
[We're all glad he finally got to play with it! And thanks for this wonderful photo. - Dave]
Chestnuts roasting on an open plasmaThis picture just radiates warmth and good cheer. We're leaving it up all night on our plasma display. It's better than a fireplace!
California TinselI have to think our state banned tinsel production due to environmental concerns, because it's virtually nowhere to be found.
I say "virtually," because Michael's has it. No tinsel at the dollar stores and such. At Michael's it is in packages that need to be cut. The tinsel comes attached at the top. Same stuff.
Thanks to Michael's, our tree looks like this one.
[I think its scarcity might be due more to child-safety concerns. - Dave]
Nothing to add.I have nothing to add. Just love this picture and reading all your comments -- the wallpaper is killer. Shorpy forever.
How we tinseledAround our house, we would always begin with laboriously stringing one strand of tinsel at a time on a barren branch until it was somewhat filled. Yet invariably, we two boys would get rambunctious and throw a handful up where we couldn't reach. And Mom, patient Mom, would sigh and give us permission to begin the fusillade of tinsel throwing that produced a Christmas tree neatly stranded with tinsel about 3 feet up, but above that utter disorder that only little boys could love. But I hasten to add the "tidy line" rose as we grew. Making a much happier mom.
The Train Don't Stop Here No MoreMy Dad had a huge 60's-70's Lionel train set, with all the accessories: the lighted passenger cars, the little signal box with the trainman who would come out, holding his lantern when a train went by, and even the Giraffe Car. Anyone remember the Giraffe Car?
Several locos too, both steam and diesel, and that big control transformer with the power supply handles on both ends. The whole setup ran on a plywood table, about 6 x 8, which he built himself. Sadly, when he died, my mother sold the whole outfit for a hundred bucks, and today it would probably be worth ten times that much. I wish I still had it!
Tinsel informationTo RoverDaddy who is looking for tinsel, try the cheap, cheap, cheap stores. I found it at Dollar General Store but also Family Dollar Store, Dollar Tree and other bargain centers are most likely to have it. You can see I am the last of the big spenders and I have to add that one time when my mother was removing tinsel to save it for the next year, my father asked her, with a straight face, if she was going to make tinsel soup, as she always stretched the life out of a dollar by making lots of soups and stews.
Voices from the kitchenLove this photo! While the menfolk are intent on the train, I can hear Grandma and the aunts in the kitchen talking over each other while getting Christmas dinner ready. Is the turkey done? Did you hear about Great Aunt Stella? She's already wrecked that brand new beautiful car. Mom, that's enough gravy for an army! Did Bill get you that brooch you've been wanting, Madge? And, naturally they're all wearing dresses, heels and festive aprons. This photo is CLASSIC.
Lead-foil tinselThe tinsel on a tree of this vintage is probably made of lead foil. The good news is that it was reusable year after year. The bad news is that you could get lead poisoning from ingesting it!
Lead foil tinsel has long since been removed from the market, along with several other dangerous items from Christmases past!
See: http://www.familychristmasonline.com/trees/ornaments/dangerous/dangerous...
Kids AgainI love this photo because the uncle and the dad are suddenly about 9 years old too.
Windows 53Love those window blinds.
All our cats have eaten tinsel. It makes the litter box more festive. We use both kinds -- short hunks of garland and the stringy silver "icicle" stuff. I too heave the stuff at the tree rather than place it carefully.
Dave, I think Anonymous at 11:25 was talking about the train in tterrace's photo.
[You are so smart. Thank you! - Dave]
Wow.Well this brings along even more memories. I was born in '65 and I remember playing with a train like this in '68 or '69. I do not remember what brand (Lionel or American Flyer), but I do remember putting in a pill pushing a button or something and it would smoke when I pushed it. I remember pissing Daddy off because every time the train would go in front of the TV while he was watching it, I would push that button! Talk about pushing Daddy's button!!! I also remember throwing tinsel on the tree, Daddy helping, and Mom getting upset with both of us. In addition, we also had those bubble lights. After they warmed up they would start bubbling. I need to go lie down and look at Shorpy some more and see what else I can remember.
Too much tinsel...My mother would always complain that my father and I put too much tinsel on our trees. And our beloved Cocker Spaniel, Sherman loved the taste of tinsel.
Xmas ExpressOur house had a very similar Christmas morning about 25 years later. My dad found a second train in a garage he was tearing down. I got them out last Christmas and they still run. I put a video on our site.
RetinselingYup, we did the tinsel thing too, but we were thrifty New Englanders, and my mother took at least some of the stuff OFF the tree every year and carefully put it on cardboard to use it again the following year. My grandmother, bless her, had the job of untangling the resulting mess and handing each of us little handfuls to drape over the branches one by one. Needless to say, we weren't allowed to throw it because then it couldn't be taken off.
All That to be an Engineer????I can't tell you how envious I am of your father.
When I was in the ninth grade one of my teachers decided to play guidance counselor and advise me on what courses to take in high school. She asked what I wanted to be and I told her I would like to be an engineer. She told me I should take Algebra II, Calculus, Physics, etc etc etc.
I sat there in stunned amazement thinking, "All that just to drive a train????" When it dawned on me that we were talking about two entirely different things I was too embarrassed to correct her.
Where can I find tinsel?This year I'd love to introduce my kids to the fun of cheap old shiny plastic tinsel (yes I'm a masochist for wanting to clean up the mess later). Unfortunately, I can't seem to find the stuff anywhere! Does anybody still make plastic 'icicles' as the package often called them, or have they been made extinct by concerns over fire hazards and unfortunate pets?
Retinseling 2And I thought my family was the only one who did this, except we didn't put it on cardboard. All the tinsel went into a cardboard shoe box, year after year. We would add maybe one package of new tinsel every couple of years. The new tinsel would hang straight while the old would be more and more crinkly over the years. My sister & I had to put it on one strand at a time (except when Mom wasn't looking). Being from the Depression era as my mother was, I'm sure that box of tinsel is still up in the attic to this day. Our cat also loved the taste of tinsel, with predicable results.
Lionel 027It's 027, the less expensive Lionel product compared to big heavy "O". Same gauge, lower rail, slightly sharper curves, simpler switches. We had a mixture of both, purchased used from various sources, and we figured out ways to use the 2 sizes together.
That switch is a manual 027 one, with no lighted position indicator, we had a pair of them. Didn't make the satisfying "clack" sound that the "O" manual switches did when you threw the lever. We never had remote control switches, since you could buy more manual ones for the same money.
Some "O" gauge equipment couldn't operate on 027, the curves were too sharp.
Made a serious mistake about 30 years ago, sold all of it except a couple special cars.
Smokin'!My own American Flyer set of that era had tablets that, when dropped into the locomotive's smokestack, would emit little puffs of real smoke.
Gift itI gave my 1948 3/16 model American Flyer to my grandson last Christmas. Much better than selling.
Alas ...In 1954, just after we moved into our spiffy suburban ranch house, my uncle started a large 8 x 16 Lionel O-gauge layout in the basement. Presumably for me, or so he said.
After everyone died off, I inherited the six large boxes of trains and all the fixin's. Fifteen years ago I sold the lot for $450 to a dealer. Dumb move.
But revenge is sweet as I have just started construction on a huge (roughly 100 x 150) garden train layout behind the house.
The RugWhat really caught my eye is that rug -- a dead ringer for one we had for many years! My dad got it at Barker Brothers in 1943. The hopper car and caboose also look exactly like the ones from my Lionel train set from the late '50s, though the rest is different.
I just wanted you to knowI just wanted you to know that you brought a tear to the eye of this grumpy old man, remembering the exact same scene from his childhood.
Thank you.
You made my day, GrumpyGlad this evoked a fond memory for you, as well as for so many others.
Another tinsel commentGrowing up in the later 50s and 60s, we also did tinsel every year. Like many others, we would save it from year to year until it was too crinkled to hang right. Then we'd have to get one or two new packages, probably from Woolworth's or "the drugstore" since Target and Walmart were not born yet. We kids also tossed it up to the top of the tree. These days, I want to get some but my wife says no - you can't recycle it with the tree, she says. Too messy. Too bad. I did see some this year at Target, except the 'new' tinsel has that prismatic glimmer to it where it reflects like a rainbow, not like regular silver stuff. I'll kep trying.
Tinsel and SnowLike Older than Yoda, I can remember taking the (metal foil) tinsel, which we always called icicles, off the tree and saving it. As soon as the plasticky stuff came out, that was the end of that. Another long-gone Christmas memory was a box of mica chips of that Mama would sprinkle on the cotton batting at the base of the tree. That box lasted years and years. When you had parents that came up during the Depression, you learned about saving. My dad: "Turn off some of these lights, this place looks like a hotel!"
American Flyer, no LionelGreat picture ... we all laid our heads on the track and watched the train coming right at us. This is actually an American Flyer 3 rail O gauge train. It was made before WWII. After the war American Flyer went to 3/16" to the foot S-gauge two rail track.
[If it's not a Lionel, why does it say LIONEL LINES on the tender? - Dave]
We used tinsel alsoThat brings back memories. We would go to the woods and cut the "cedar" tree. My family had a flocking machine, and several households on the street would put their tree up the same day, so the flocking machine would only have to be used once per year. We also used to take a strand of tinsel, wedge it in between our front teeth, and blow. I don't know why that was so much fun but it was.
A (real) Christmas storyMy brothers (who were 18 and 9 years older than me) made me a train set for my 5th or 6th Christmas -- I walked into the garage while they were painting the board and I asked if I could help and they told me they were painting a sign and I could help paint it green. When I got it Christmas morning I was the most surprised boy in the world. It was a great gift that I helped make without knowing!
Disney train setWhen I was 5 (back in 1970), my parents bought me a Disneyland Monorail train set. My father had it already assembled for me on a large piece of plywood that had been covered in green fake grass, and had miniature buildings to go with it. Considering what that original set would be worth today, I almost wish he had just left it sealed in the box. All that I have remaining from the original set is the 12v-18v transformer.
Maker of lead foil tinselI'm not sure if anyone is still looking for lead foil tinsel - the stuff some of us fondly remember from our childhood.
It's available from Riffelmacher and Weinberger in Germany. Or rather it's shown in their wholesale catalogue. See p 50 of their 2010 Christmas catalogue, Item 91152 is silver ... exactly what we all remember!
Now your only challenge may be ordering in bulk from Germany.
I can smell the coal smoke from the furnaceGreat picture. I love how the kid's old man gets to run the locomotive, his Uncle is playing Conductor and the kid gets to be Switchman! Gotta pay your dues kid! Looks like they just setout the hopper and tank car and are about to back the engine to re-couple onto the NYC gondola and caboose. A very similar scene played out in many households of the era. I like the Hamilton or Gruen wristwatches that the guys are wearing too.
My cousin Tom, the boy in the photo...turned 68 this year. Sobering perspective on just how long ago this was!
Your photo and story for magazine articleHi, I am senior editor at Classic Toy Trains. We would be interested in publishing this vintage color photo and learning more about the background .
Please contact me at:
Roger Carp
262-796-8776 ext. 253
rcarp@classictoytrains.com
Thanks,
Roger
(ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Christmas, Kids)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/Christmas-Story-1953_0.thumbnail.jpg "Christmas Story: 1953")
- Manhattan Skyline: 1915
- ... to the Seven Sisters."
We spent a night in the Hotel Ukraina some years back. Lovely building, but very old, and to paraphrase ... Posted by Dave - 08/05/2012 - 4:25pm -
![New York circa 1915. "New York skyline from Manhattan Bridge." Another entry from Detroit Publishing's series of sooty cityscapes. View full size.
BuildingsOn the far right is the Municipal Building, and to its left is the Woolworth Building.
A modern viewHere's a shot from a nearby location 100 years later.
Merchants
Chambers Printing Company
S. Giuseppe
Uneeda Biscuit
And nowA view from the bridge.
Where it isThe cross street in the foreground is Market, in what used to be Little Italy, now Chinatown. What are the two streets heading downtown? There is no wedge-shaped block like this on Market today.
What a pole!As a straight razor guy and a collector of things tonsorial, my eye was immediately drawn to, what I believe is, that great barber pole at the bottom of the photo. It looks to be part barber pole and part flag pole. I'd give my brother's right arm to have one like that.
Pineapple TowersGreat skyline picture especially especially juxtaposed behind the everyday market street at the bottom. Can anyone supply names for all those massive buildings? -- especially the one that looks like it's wearing a pineapple on top.
[The pineapple is the Singer Building. - Dave]
Hey KidCareful on that fire escape!
Madison StreetThat's Madison Street with the Alfred E. Smith Houses on the left and Chatham Green apartments on the right.
Are you sure this photo is from 1910?because The Equitable Building wasn't completed until 1915 ... and construction of the Woolworth Building was just starting in 1910.
["Circa 1910" does not mean the picture was taken in 1910. If we knew what year the photo was taken, we'd give it. "Circa" means around -- in the general vicinity. It's a starting point. - Dave]
FluffyzillaIt's not a giant lizard, a flying turtle or even the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, but every time I look at this portion of the photo, I see a giant bunny between the buildings, peacefully nibbling its way through the city.
Today's ViewI used Google Earth 3D buildings to align the vantage point and then looked at Street View. The buildings match (look at the one the horse is headed toward, and also the building on the block closer to the camera with arched windows).
View Larger Map
Make that New York c. 1915This magnificent view contains several skyscrapers completed after 1910. On the left we see the Bankers Trust Building, with the pyramid on top (finished 1912) and immediately to its right, the wide bulk of the new Equitable Building (finished 1915); on the right we see the Woolworth Building, the tallest in the world at that time (finished 1913) and the Municipal Building, with its cute little round temple at the top (finished 1914).
TrystLove blooms above the city's streets. Nice
Monroe StreetThis is a view looking up Monroe Street with Market in the foreground. NYCer's image is nearby looking up Madison Street with Market in the foreground.
Here's One MoreThe very white building in the middle background with the American flag waving above it is the first section of the old AT&T Building at 195 Broadway, which was completed in 1916 (the second section - not seen here - was completed in 1922).
Still ThereIf I've got it right, these two buildings are still there but now surrounded by even bigger buildings. Amazing.
[These are the Bankers Trust and Equitable buildings. - Dave]
Where it isThe exact location is the intersection of Monroe and Market streets looking west. The first picture submitted by nycer as well as the one directly above is along Madison Street, which is one block north of Monroe. The wedge shaped block was created by Monroe and Hamilton streets. Hamilton was eliminated with the construction of the Knickerbocker Village housing project in 1934. I have a site devoted in large part to the history of this project:
http://knickerbockervillage.blogspot.com
Between Monroe and CherryI think the street to the left is Monroe. The street to the right is the unnamed street circled in the map below, in between Monroe and Cherry. That would mean S. Giuseppe's store is on Catherine Street.
Most of it is gone. It's all large apartment buildings on the south side of Monroe and the West side of Catherine. The buildings on the North side of Monroe are still there.
+99This is the same view west on Monroe Street from May of 2009. The building in the right foreground remains as do its chimneys which are now covered in graffiti or hidden by transmitters.
Laundry LadyI smiled when I saw the woman on the roof hanging her wet laundry out to dry! I'm afraid I would be scared to death!
Zero'th SisterI was going to mention the interesting similarity of the building below to Moscow's "Seven Sisters," a series of wedding-cake architectural extravagances from the Stalinist era. Then I read the Wikipedia article on Stalin's buildings!
"The Manhattan Municipal Building in New York City, completed in 1915, is reportedly an architectural precursor to the Seven Sisters."
We spent a night in the Hotel Ukraina some years back. Lovely building, but very old, and to paraphrase Mark Twain, "The hottest Summer I ever spent was a Winter's night in Moscow!" 15 degrees outside, 85 inside.
[That's the Woolworth Building below. - Dave]
High and DryThis gal is just merrily hanging out her laundry with nothing between her and a fast free-fall but a few live wires! At my place of work I couldn't go higher than a common step ladder without a climbing harness and a spotter. Seems to me they worried a lot less back then and didn't try to turn everything into a liability lawsuit.
Market, Monroe and HamiltonThe original photo shows the intersection of these three streets. Hamilton Street (the one with the bend in the middle) was demapped in the early 1930s when Knickerbocker Village was built (see first photo in comments). That development was opened in 1934. At the foot of Monroe Street in the original photo there is a building marked "S. Giuseppe." That was the original St. Joseph's Church. The current structure was built in 1923 at the corner of Monroe and Catherine Streets across from the original site.
First time I ever saw a photo of Hamilton Street, great find!
My Best ShotHere is another view of the skyline in a photo I took Oct 4, 2009 from the Manhattan Bridge. I was attending the celebration of the Bridge's 100th Anniversary.
So muchfor previous claims posted here on Shorpy that cities one hundred years ago were neat, clean and litter-free.
A hot dayDid anybody else notice how most of the people on the street are crowded into the shade?
This helicopter mom is nervousAbout that child on the fire escape, who looks to be about 3 or 4 years old. That's five storeys up. Such a different world. Or, perhaps, such a different economic perspective from my middle class complacency. Mom was probably overwhelmed with six or seven kids, the housework and cooking and, perhaps, piecework to help keep the family in food and tenement rent. No time for the luxury of worry. And those windows would have to be wide open in a stifling upper storey building.
Black MariaWhat's amazing is the ominous woman striding down the left-side street dressed literally head to toe in black on this seemingly warm spring or summer day. Complete with black hat. We will never know her tragic mission; what dark news she's about to deliver to some poor soul in one of those buildings.
Biggest ChangeMy father was born in Manhattan in 1918, and died in January 2009 at the age of 90. He was raised in Greenwich Village and except for 10 years spent in Europe, he lived his entire life in Manhattan. He saw almost all of the evolution of New York during the 20th Century.
Shortly before his death I asked him what he thought was the greatest general change in New York since he was a kid. Immediately he said "The greenery ! New York is so green now! There are so many trees! When I was a kid New York was a dirty and grimy place with almost no greenery, and very few of the side streets had any trees in them. Certainly not in working class neighborhoods. If you wanted trees you went to the park. That's definitely the biggest change."
This is borne out by all these comparative pictures; not a tree in sight in 1915.
(The Gallery, DPC, NYC)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/4a24884a.thumbnail.jpg "Manhattan Skyline: 1915")
- Tales of the City: 1924
- ... is still startling.
Frederic Auguste Bartholdi Hotel Bartholdi appeared in the Metropolitan Life 1908 Shorpy photo. In this ... more of such cars to our rolling stock."
Bartholdi Hotel My family owned the Bartholdi Hotel. My great-grandmother was Theresa ... Posted by Dave - 07/17/2012 - 10:15pm -
![Today we're leaving the office and taking the streetcar downtown for some shopping. From 1924, "F Street N.W. from 14th Street." View full size.
Swastika Truck IIPossibly made by Detroit's K.R.I.T. Motor Co.
[Looks more like an electric truck. Maybe a Walker Electric. There's no radiator. - Dave]
Arthur Burt Co.I found these three early 1920 ads for the Arthur Burt Co., in the Washington Post.
Lisle ribbed hose, of fine texture, for women and juniors: black, white, brown, elk, gray and navy blue. Just right.
Shoes and hose of today, Arthur Burt Co., 1343 F. Dependable military footwear, "Nature-Shape" school shoes.
The "Tuiriwun," a slipper in black satin or patent leather that is correct for both evening and street wear and, consequently, much in demand. $9.00. Arthur Burt Co.
The BartholdiHey, it's the Bartholdi Cafe, offering seafood and shore dinners, inviting ladies and gentlemen, and open Sundays. I learned this stuff from a billboard next to the Texaco station.
I wondered what the "ladies and gentlemen" on the sign meant - no rowdies and ruffians, no wenches of questionable virtue? A 2005 Washingtonian article mentioned the Bartholdi (it was characterized as "early 20th century" seafood, apparently not the best).
Truck SwastikaThat truck pulling out near the guy crossing the trolley tracks has a swastika on it. Was there an automotive company that used that emblem before it was abused by the Nazis?
[Use of the swastika as a decorative motif or commercial insignia goes back long before the National Socialist Party adopted it as an emblem. - Dave]
Health Week starts April 28 1343 F St.: Arthur Burt Co.
Footwear for "society affairs," afternoon or evening.
1341 F St.: Bartholdi Cafe
Washington Post, May 30, 1923: Advertisement
This if the first holiday since we've extended our service to include the ladies. Bring them in and let them enjoy the Bartholdi famous shore dinner or a selection of the Sea Food delicacies served our way.
1339 F St.: H.W. Topham
Trunks, suitcases, traveling bags, hot boxes, etc.
1337 F St.: Watters Sterling Boot Shops
"The kind of shoes you want at the price you want to pay"
1333 F St.: Adams Building
Washington Post, Apr 27, 1924
Health Week Campaign Gets Start Tomorrow
"Health Week" starts tomorrow. Agencies participating took possession of the old Y.W.C.A. home, at 1333 F street northwest, to install free exhibits and motion pictures, which will run through the entire week. A large sign advising "Keep the Well Person Well" and "Get the Sick Person Well" placards the building, which is open from 10 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
1331 F St.: Meyer's Shop
"Everything for well dressed Man and Boy" - Rogers Peet Clothing
1329 F St.: Franklin & Co. Opticians
1319-1321 F St.: Interstate Building
The Young Men's Shop on ground floor
Washington Post, Jan 9, 1912
Plans for the construction of a ten-story office building on F street ... When completed the new building will have cost approximately $600,000. The Interstate Commerce Commission, it is expected, will lease quarters in the new structure.
1315-1317 F St.: Baltimore Sun Building
Contemporary Photo
Washington Post, Apr 9, 1903
The Baltimore Sun building, 1315 and 1317 F street was sold yesterday afternoon at public auction to Walter Abell.....The Sun building is perhaps one of the best known office buildings in Washington and one of the most substantial in the country. ... It was built in 1887, the jubilee year of the Baltimore Sun by the founder of the paper, Mr. A. S. Abell, ...
Washington Post, Jul 12, 1987
The oldest standing skyscraper in America - maybe the first --an exquisite nine-story example of eclectic Victorian architecture, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. Although New York and Chicago are normally associated with skyscrapers, the oldest example is in neither city but rather in Washington -- the Sun Building at 1317 F St. NW.
...
Now restored to its original elegance, the Sun Building gives a hint of what Washington was like before the homogenizing influence of post-World War II architecture began erasing the city's history. Built by A.S. Abell, publisher of The Baltimore Sun, it originally served as a home for the newspaper's Washington bureau. Upon its completion in 1887, The Baltimore Sun Hershel Shanks, a lawyer and part owner of the Sun Building, is editor and publisher of the Biblical Archaeology Review. declared the building "the most imposing private structure in the national capital."
Safety LastDig the scaffolding set up with no safety barrier or safety roof, only a few paper signs stuck to it that probably say "Watch out for stuff falling on your head," or possibly something more appropriate for the period, like "Mind the head."
Hey, there was a cop standing on the corner in the Patent Office photo too. At least this street is safe from horse thieves.
It looks like a breezy day.It looks like a breezy day. See how the coats and awnings are billowed?
WowGreat shot. The crispness and detail in these old photos is still startling.
Frederic Auguste BartholdiHotel Bartholdi appeared in the Metropolitan Life 1908 Shorpy photo. In this one he's a Cafe for Ladies & Gentlemen. He was the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty. It's 1924 and there are no horses in this picture. Were they banned from these streets?
Checker CabsBoth of the two-tone taxis are Checkers, made by the Checker Cab Manufacturing Co. of Kalamazoo, as is the taxi in the extreme lower left hand corner. By 1924 Checker was building 4,000 40 hp cars a year at an average selling price of about $2350.
The bus's power polesThe bus's power poles are down. It must convert to gas power when overhead power lines aren't available.
[That's a streetcar, not a bus. Downtown, where there were no overhead power lines, the electrical supply was under the street. More info in the comments here and here. - Dave]
TrolleyI notice there are no overhead wires for the streetcar. Apparently it was powered from a third rail on the ground. Seems pretty risky on a public street.
[The power supply is underground. Not a rail, and not risky. - Dave]
Third rail again?Oh Dave, you have the patience of a saint. How many times must one answer the same questions regarding streetcar power. I think its overly due time for some default link to background information regarding streetcar engineering in the District of Columbia.
A few of the previous explanatory postings on Shorpy: [1,2,3]
StreetcarFor those interested, the streetcar pictured in this scene is Washington Railway and Electric Company car number 602. Built in 1912 by J.G. Brill Company of Philadelphia it was delivered on September 21 of that year. In 1912 this streetcar cost $6016.17.
In 1933 the Capital Traction Company took over streetcar operations in Washington DC and WRECo 602 became Capital Traction Co. car 836. In 1935, 836 was assigned to the Brightwood Division. By 1939, it was assigned to the Navy Yard Division, and in 1942 to the Benning Division.
The centre door meant that 836 required two-man operation - a driver, and a conductor - and by the 1940s these older, slower cars were also creating bottlenecks as the newer, faster cars lined up behind them. 836 along with the remaining centre door cars were retired in 1944 and scrapped the following year. With the retirement of these cars retired the last of Washington DC streetcar conductors, as now all the cars were one-man operation. Not only were the cars faster, they were now cheaper to operate.
One centre door streetcar, CTC 884 former WRECo. 650, is currently held by the National Capital Trolley Museum in Wheaton MD. It is currently unrestored as far as I know. See it soon for the museum is closing December 1 due to construction of the Intercounty Connector, and it is not scheduled to reopen until next summer.
Sources cited:
Peter C. Kohler, "Capital Transit, Washington's Street Cars The Final Era: 1933-1962" Bonifant MD: National Capital Trolley Museum, 2001.
National Capital Trolley Museum: http://www.dctrolley.org/
Streetcars & Hobble SkirtsThanks James for all the information about car #602. In the photo, it appears that the lower step folds up while the car is in motion.
Washington Post, Mar 20, 1923
Order Low-Step Cars
W.R.&E. Officials Accede to Demand of Women
Fifty are Now Being Built
The women of Washington have won a victory in their demand for street cars with lower steps. The Washington Railway and Electric Company has placed an order for 50 new cars with the J.C. Brill Company, of Philadelphia, specifying particularly that the cars be constructed with low steps.
The operation of the new style cars throughout the city undoubtedly will meet with the hearty approval of the women, who have been making a strenuous fight for more than two years to abolish the high steps.
The new cars are being built as rapidly as possible, and the first shipment is expected to arrive here about April 15. The cars are what are known as the Narragansett type, being semi-convertible from closed to open, of double truck, and capable of comfortably seating 80 passengers. The seats will run crosswise, and the exterior will be painted yellow.
It is announced by an official of the company that the cars will be constructed with two steps, affording easy ingress and exit from the vehicle. Upon just what lines the new cars will be operated the officials have not decided yet. A number of the cars, it is understood, will be placed on the Georgetown and Mt. Pleasant lines to replace those recently destroyed in the fire at the car barn at Thirteenth and D streets northeast, in which 80 cars were burned.
"We have ordered that the new cars be constructed with unusually low steps," said an official of the Washington Railway and Electric Company, yesterday, "as we realize that the plea of women patrons, who ask for lower car steps, is justifiable. The new cars will be constructed, in so far as the steps are concerned, to meet the approval of the women. Later in the year we will either order additional cars of the low step type, or remodel the cars now in service to comply with the request of our women patrons."
Washington Post, Apr 26, 1923
New Car Tested Here
Hobble Skirts No Barrier to Improved W.R.&E. Vehicle
"Wearers of the hobble skirts," said W.F. Ham, vice president of the Washington Railway and Electric Company, "will have no difficulty in boarding our new car, which we have just tried out for the first time. It has so many features that are new that we are delighted with it. During its trial trip yesterday afternoon, it carried no one but the officials of the company, but within a few days, we will run it in with our regular service, and then ask the passengers for their opinions. If they are favorable, undoubtedly we shall add a great many more of such cars to our rolling stock."
Bartholdi HotelMy family owned the Bartholdi Hotel. My great-grandmother was Theresa Bartholdi. There is an old family tale that Vincent Sardi of Sardi's Steak House was a cook for the Bartholdi and met his wife who was a maid there.
(The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, D.C., Natl Photo, Streetcars)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/11376u1.thumbnail.jpg "Tales of the City: 1924")
- Flatiron Rising: 1902
- ... wonderful.
Is the plan to convert it into a luxury hotel still in place? How are they going to deal with the historic elevators? ... Posted by Dave - 08/02/2012 - 3:16pm -
!["Flatiron Building, New York." The Manhattan landmark under construction circa 1902. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Co. View full size.
StreetcarsAs noted elsewhere, by this time most of the streetcars in New York were running on electricity, with the electric supply on almost all the lines being underground. The same plow-and-shoe system as used in Washington, D.C.
IconicOne of my favourite buildings and, speaking as a Brit, a real iconic image of New York. Stunning photo.
The facadeIs limestone and glazed terra cotta. I looked it up in Wikipedia.
23Skidoo! The building that coined the phrase due to the updrafts.
Times are a ChangingThe lone auto is I believe a curved dash Oldsmobile. Note the tiller steering. Probably scared the horses half to death.
Gotham Gem!The Flatiron Building and the Chrysler Building in NYC are two of the most beautiful structures in the United States. To see them in person and to tour them is an education in itself!
With my little eyeI love shots like this -- it's like "I Spy."
AstoundingThis is absolutely one of the best early shots of the Flatiron I have seen. The detail is amazing, and there are so many of the surrounding buildings still there today. Thanks for posting!
AwesomeFlatiron is my favorite building in Manhattan. This is a super shot.
They knew what they were doingBut I still can't understand why the stonework was interrupted between the 4th and 5th floors and continued above. One would think they'd start at the bottom and continue up. There must be a reason.
[Only the lower part of the facade is stonework. The top part is terra cotta tiles. They're still working on the bottom (limestone) section. - Dave]
HorselessNote one horseless carriage lower right. Right smart fellows I reckon.
Dear George ReadI'll take footage on the 18th Floor facing north, please!
This picture shocked meSomehow it seems like this icon has always been. To think of it as being constructed is, well, kind of freaky. What a visionary design.
What powers the streetcars?Is there voltage under that third rail? It would short out all the time in rain, so it's doubtful.
No overhead wires though.
[The underground power supply is accessed through a slot running between the tracks. There is no third rail. - Dave]
George A Fuller Co.The contractor was a major player in the field of early skyscraper construction. Fuller built many buildings that are still around today and was credited with many innovative techniques for this type of construction. The company was liquidated in the 1970s.
Spectacular!Everyone should stand at this intersection someday: Fifth Avenue on the right; Broadway receding into the distance on the left; 22nd Street running behind the building (where the buggy sits at the corner under the "Slosson" sign); 23rd Street just below the bottom edge of the photo. Stand on the sidewalk right at the rounded (northern) corner of the building, where today there is a Sprint cell phone store, of all things, and contemplate a city street scene from a century ago, filled with horse-drawn buggies, street cars, and Victorian finery. It will take your breath away.
Egad!How thin!
NervousApplying the skin stones looks like a job for the non-timid. Those scaffolds are hung from ropes!
It's interesting to see how things were done before the invention of the tower crane. That boom on the right and the one on the roof did all the heavy lifting of stones and beams, I'm guessing.
TransitionWhat I find fascinating about this photo is it shows the transitional nature of tall construction at the turn of the century. The steel frame here is clearly very sturdy and over-engineered, and yet they're wrapping it in brick and massive stone blocks, and not curtain-wall hung panels as would become the norm in 20 years or so.
AmazingI think it's an amazing building. A work of art indeed!
Super InsightAn icon in the making and the photo shows what we can't see today: the skeleton of this wonderful building before the "skin" was installed! Great find! Thanks, Dave.
Water Wagon?I wondered where all the water was coming from & then I spotted it, maybe: up the street you can see a wagon with a rounded tank and what looks like water spraying from the back. Looks deliberate, unless the wagon got up enough speed for the wheels to do that. What could it be? Dust Control?
[Poop control. See all those horses? The Department of Sanitation cleaned up after them. - Dave]
One of these daysGorgeous building and the longtime object of my faraway architectural dreams. It's on my so-called bucket list to see this beauty in person some day.
Flatiron TodayThe detail on this building is really mind-boggling. Definitely my favorite building in Manhattan. Click to enlarge.
Fuller BuildingThe Fuller Company made sure their next HQ didn't get renamed by popular fancy: they set the name in stone over the door, and there it remains to this day.
http://www.nyc-architecture.com/UES/UES107.htm
Another Flatiron FanLike most of you, I've always loved this building. I've also had the privilege of working in it, on the 14th Floor (for Tor Books, a company I now consult for, so I'm still there periodically).
There are lots of interesting facts about it, such as that the Flatiron name predates Fuller's construction of this icon, being applied to the block itself in those days.
I first visited the building in the 70s, when I applied (unsuccessfully) for a job at St. Martin's Press, which is still there. Back then, the building still had its original painfully-slow hydraulic elevators. Those were replaced before I began working there in 2000.
What I was most surprised to learn after I began working there is that almost all photos taken of it are misleading.
That's because they're usually framed to emphasize the structure's thinness, as in the 1902 image here, or to make it look symmetrical (like an isosceles triangle), as in Seinberg's lovely color shot. (Great lighting, btw. What time of day was it?)
So what was the surprise? Its footprint (or floorplan, if you prefer) is actually a right triangle, with the long side on Broadway.
As you'd expect, the view from "the point," as occupants call it, is fabulous, looking straight uptown toward the Empire State Building, and down on Madison Square Park.
An architectural tidbitGenerally speaking nowadays when buildings of this era are renovated, damaged or missing pieces of decorative masonry are replaced with fiberglass replicas. These cost much less than stone and are easier to install. The exterior of Shepard Hall at CCNY, for example, would probably blow away in a strong breeze.
A few years ago, when the Flatiron building underwent a significant cleaning, tons (literally) of the decorative stonework was discarded in favor of replicas. Friends of mine who lived nearby dug through dumpsters and collected pieces they could cart home as souvenirs.
Thanks to Team Shorpy for these excellent New York images.
Love it!I love this building. I've visited Tor in their offices there (hi, Moshe!) and got to look out, as well as seeing the place from the outside. It's wonderful.
Is the plan to convert it into a luxury hotel still in place? How are they going to deal with the historic elevators? (This building has hydraulic column elevators, and is really too tall for them, so they require constant maintenance. Plus they're fairly old by now. But it's a historic landmark, which strongly limits what can be changed.)
[Another commenter (below) tells us the elevators have been replaced. - Dave]
(The Gallery, DPC, Flatiron Building, NYC)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/4a09478a-flatiron.thumbnail.jpg "Flatiron Rising: 1902")
- Red, White & Brew: 1943
- ... Fourth of July in Palacios at a ramshackle beach hotel that ought to have fallen down years ago, but somehow still goes on.
... Posted by Dave - 04/02/2014 - 6:48pm -
- Out for a Spin: 1904
- ... lost? If memory serves, there was a Manhasset Hotel on Shelter Island (on the north shore of Shelter Island, near the ... them.
I believe there were even some old photos of the hotel posted here a while back.
[You are perhaps thinking of Manhanset ... Posted by Dave - 02/23/2019 - 12:06pm -
![Circa 1904. "Patchogue Avenue, Manhanset Manor, Shelter Island, N.Y." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Photographic Company. View full size.
If you don't like my drivingkeep off the grass.
A Country Song Comes to Mind"Jesus take the Tiller!"
Wondering1902 Flint Roadster, maybe?
One of 149?The vehicle in view appears to be a 1903 Pierce Stanhope, of which 149 were made.
The carThat looks like a Studebaker Electric.
Not an electricThere's a radiator under the front valence (which is hiding a folded-up seat).
LimericksThere once was a man from Nantucket
Who kept all his cash in a bucket.
His daughter, named Nan,
Ran away with a man
And as for the bucket, Nantucket
Pa followed the pair to Pawtucket,
The man and the girl with the bucket;
He said to the man,
"You're welcome to Nan",
But as for the bucket, Pawtucket.
The pair followed Pa to Manhasset,
Where he still held the cash as an asset,
But Nan and the man
Stole the money and ran,
And as for the bucket, Manhasset.
(Yes, there is another Man from Nantucket limerick, but we won't go there)
Maybe they're lost?I'm having some trouble making sense of the address given in the description here. In the present day, at least, Manhasset and Patchogue Avenue are in two very different parts of Long Island. And Shelter Island sits even farther away, out between the forks at the far eastern end of Long Island.
The carI found a photo of another example of the car, in a similar position, for comparison.
Tough Life?Oh, the poverty in this neighborhood!
8 Gardiner Way
This was somewhat difficult to find, as "Patchogue Avenue" has since been renamed and there is no town today called "Manhasset" on Shelter Island. Thank you to the Rumsey Historical Map Collection!
Where should I park, dear? "Park the car anywhere you like, honey!"
RE: 8 Gardiner Way | Maybe they're lost?If memory serves, there was a Manhasset Hotel on Shelter Island (on the north shore of Shelter Island, near the modern day Gardiner Way) that burned down in the early 1900s --named for the Manahasit Native American tribe local to the area; the town of Manhasset that is quite a bit west of Shelter Island on the north shore of Long Island was also named after them.
I believe there were even some old photos of the hotel posted here a while back.
[You are perhaps thinking of Manhanset (not "Manhasset") House, on Dering Harbor. - Dave]
Yup; Long Island I'm good at; spelling, not so much. Lots of locales on Long Island named with variations of the local Native American tribes of the area.
The house pictured can also be found at this address: 8 Gardiner Way, Dering Harbor, New York.
[Further research reveals that the village at the time was called Manhanset Manor (location of the Manhanset House and Cottages resort); in 1915 the name was changed to Dering Harbor. The Library of Congress errs in correcting the place name "Manhanset" to "Manhasset" in these Shelter Island captions; Manhasset is much farther west on Long Island, in Nassau County. The item below is from the Oct. 30, 1915, issue of Brooklyn Life. - Dave]
(The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, DPC)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-4a11427a.thumbnail.jpg "Out for a Spin: 1904")
- Tourist Auto Co.: 1910
- ... "Tourist Auto Co. (Tourist buses in front of church with Hotel Tuller at right)." Detroit Publishing glass negative. View full size. ... Posted by Dave - 08/21/2012 - 12:00pm -
- The New Willard: 1908
- ... Part of the Willard InterContinental Washington D. C. Hotel's website is a history of the hotel, from 1818 to present. I learned that, after years of declining revenue, ... Posted by Dave - 09/20/2022 - 2:48pm -
![Washington, D.C., circa 1908. "The New Willard, Pennsylvania Avenue and 14th Street N.W." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.
The Willard presents its own historyPart of the Willard InterContinental Washington D. C. Hotel's website is a history of the hotel, from 1818 to present. I learned that, after years of declining revenue, the Willard closed in 1968 and stayed closed until 1986, when it reopened following renovation, spearheaded by two developers.
The oculus windows in the original not-too-fussy ballroom support the ballroom was on the top floor, right under the roof. Today the ballroom has a more regal look and is most likely on a lower floor. This is the best original floorplan I could find. It appears each room had its own bath. In April 1907 the Ninth Annual Convention of the Architectural League of America was held at the new Willard Hotel. I'm pretty sure their banquet was held in the same room as the color photo on the left in the concierge brochure. That was an impressive banquet table.
Click to embiggen
Famous/Infamous HotelsWhenever I see or hear of the Blackhawk Hotel in Davenport, Iowa (Quad Cities), I am reminded that Cary Grant died there in 1986. Whenever I pass the Buckminster Hotel in Kenmore Square in Boston, I am reminded that the plot to throw the 1919 World Series was hatched there. When I walk past the Park Central Hotel on 7th Avenue in New York City, I always think, "This is where Fatty Arbuckle died and gangster Arnold Rothstein was murdered." Now, whenever I see or hear of the very stately Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, I will remind myself that this is where the "War Room" for the January 6, 2021 Insurrection was located.
Lincoln sneaked into the old WillardAbraham Lincoln arrived unexpectedly at the original Willards' hotel early on on February 23, 1861, having sneaked into the city early due to reported assassination plans in Baltimore. Henry Willard borrowed a pair of slippers for Lincoln, who stayed until his inauguration.
Lincoln knew Williards' from his single Congressional term: in 1849 he attended a meeting there to plan Zachary Taylor's inaugural ball.
Right hand driveFrom what I can see, today's, as well as yesterday's photo, show all of the vehicles with right hand drive. 1909 was the first year automakers switched to left, so I'd say your date estimates are spot on!
[As we noted in a comment you made a year ago, early American automobiles were a mix of right- and left-hand-drive vehicles. (Below, an 1896 Duryea.) The change to all-LHD was gradual and took decades (Ford introduced left-side steering with the 1908 Model T; Pierce-Arrow was still making RHD cars in the 1920s). - Dave]
Still MajesticStill there and in a city of impressive buildings it holds its own I think.
Gen. Grant at the WillardWhen U. S. Grant came to D.C. to meet the president and receive his Lieutenant General commission, he showed up at the (old) Willard with his son (Fred, I believe). He was an unprepossessing man to say the least, tended not to adorn himself with the trappings of high rank, and was dressed modestly in a travel worn Army uniform. The clerk, not recognizing him, told him they could only squeeze him in to a very small room. Grant, without complaint, signed the registration book "U. S. Grant & son, Galena, Illinois." When the clerk saw that, he immediately secured a much finer room. It's said that Grant never felt any resentment at the slight.
Top of The WillardTop floor of the Willard Hotel during restoration in the 1980's.
RenovationI worked on that renovation in 1985. They gutted the interior down to the exterior walls. You could see the original constuction materials and methods. The lobby floor and arched ceiling was done in tiny ornate tiles layed by tilesetters imported from Italy (or so I was told). Amazing to behold.
Seaboard Air Line RRI grew up in Jacksonville, Florida and was always curious about the name. Shorpy has stirred me to action and a moment with Google provided the answer. An air line was the shortest distance between two points and implied that the RR was shorter than its competitors.
Rooftop walkerWhen I first saw this photo, I thought the woman in white was walking on the roof of the Multi-copy Typewriting Company. But then I looked again.
(The Gallery, D.C., DPC, Streetcars)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-4a23090a.thumbnail.jpg "The New Willard: 1908")
- Amity Hall: 1937
- ... approaching 70-I've watched Amity Hall deteriorate from a hotel/restaurant (my dad liked the sandwiches) to a roadhouse tavern to an ...
Not Much Left Five vandals set fire to the hotel in May of 2009, but firefighters were able to stop the blaze before the ... Posted by Dave - 08/03/2017 - 1:15pm -
![August 1937. "Automobile convoys at Amity Hall, Pennsylvania. Truckers' facilities are, according to the drivers, model accommodations and of a kind not found elsewhere." Photo by Edwin Locke, Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Amity Hall MemoriesDuring the course of my lifetime-I'm approaching 70-I've watched Amity Hall deteriorate from a hotel/restaurant (my dad liked the sandwiches) to a roadhouse tavern to an abandoned hulk with a heartbreaking hole in its roof to a pointless exit. Economic evolution, I suppose, but it was still a good place in the '60s and '70s.
Lotta... Dodges.
[And Plymouths. -tterrace]
Not Much LeftFive vandals set fire to the hotel in May of 2009, but firefighters were able to stop the blaze before the building was entirely lost.
Here's a great drone flyover of the area done a few years ago:
The remains of the hall were bulldozed recently as seen in Google Maps with only the land scars remaining near the Amity Hall exit of US 22/322, East of River Rd South of the it's intersection with Bass Ln.
(The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Edwin Locke)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-8b30923a.thumbnail.jpg "Amity Hall: 1937")
- Great Northern: 1900
- Chicago circa 1900. "Great Northern Hotel and office building, Dearborn and Jackson Streets." Along with perhaps ... I believe this building covers the entire block where the hotel stood.
Similar buildings I am struck by the similarities between ... Posted by Dave - 06/14/2022 - 10:29am -
![Chicago circa 1900. "Great Northern Hotel and office building, Dearborn and Jackson Streets." Along with perhaps the earliest appearance on these pages of Coca-Cola signage. Also: a "Lady Barber Shop." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Photographic Company. View full size.
Urban TotemsIf the colorful carved pole is in front of the barber shop and a perched spigot is at the entrance to the bath-house, I would think the next place would be a locksmith?
[The sign says Chicago Bronze. - Dave]
Lady barbers!?Women cutting men's hair, ladies smoking cigars, or Lady as a last name?
Unfortunately the Great Northern building was demolished. Also, there is no Google street view of this block (Dearborn and Jackson) for some reason.
Knot a typoIf you wore Ruppert's shoes then you "knew" the feeling of dry socks…I guess. Otherwise, big multiple typo! Elsewhere, great fire escape where the tall buildings join!
Nice!"Chicago School" architecture. It was designed by Daniel Burnham, who also did the Flatiron Building. It was demolished in 1940 and has since been replaced by the Dirksen Federal Building.
WowI can actually see the characters come to life from "Sister Carrie." One of my favorite novels from 1900.
What in the world ......does "Slaunch and true, thru and thru" mean? Besides "knew/new," "slaunch" struck me as odd. Possibly a word that's out of usage?
[The word is "staunch," not "slaunch." - Dave]
At the sign of the spigotI've seen plenty of giant eyeglasses outside opticians' offices on Shorpy, but never a spigot outside a bathhouse. What a great idea.
And a great picture--keep the Chicago pictures coming.
Someone doesn't wear Ruppert shoesAny idea who the guy in the drink in the Ruppert shoe sign would be?
[A lost sole. - Dave]
Did I miss it?Where's the milk bottle?
Tennis anyone?Is roof fenced off for athletics, possibly tennis on the building behind the Great Northern at the top far right?
Southern Serves the SouthBehind the Great Northern there is an office for the Southern Railway. My Pop was a designated Southern Railway railroad doctor, and when I was a kid I had a bright red billed cap that had the SR with the arrow logo as seen on here. It was my favorite cap. . . .
The railroad liked having doctors in the various towns through which its lines passed, so that local workers, if injured, had a local doc to go to. Incidentally, Dad is still a railroad doc, though for Norfolk Southern now. Southern merged with I guess the Norfolk and Western line about 1985 & was later renamed Norfolk Southern.
Ye Olde Old GloryWe can narrow the date range a little bit thanks to the American flag flapping on the left side of the photo. That flag design was used starting July 4, 1896, when Utah became a state.
Too bad JJ Astor IVdidn't wear a pair of Ruppert's Dry Sox on his 1912 crossing!
View from The MonadnockEvery building in this photo is gone. Although the photographer's vantage, Burnham & Root's 1893 Monadnock building, still stands.
Chicago Federal Centerhttp://www.panoramio.com/photo/1307733
I believe this building covers the entire block where the hotel stood.
Similar buildingsI am struck by the similarities between these buildings and the Old Colony (where I worked in the mid 1980s) and the Manhattan, which still stand in the block between Van Buren and Congress and Dearborn and Plymouth Court. The Old Colony has the round corners, but the windows are very different.
Cigars vs. CigarettesIt's hard to imagine now that long ago cigar smokers far outnumbered cigarette users, as evidenced by the many advertising signs in all these photos. When I was a kid in the 1960's the drug stores still had large glass-front humidor cases with open cigar boxes so you could purchase individual cigars, but this practice died out before the decade ended. Then we had to find another way to light our firecrackers.
Coke advert?Where is it in the pic? I can't find one.
Political unbuildingas noted below - way below - the hotel itself, and the Bedford Building at the far left of the picture (whose spectacular corner spire has unfortunately been cut off), were among a large number of buildings in Chi-town demolished around 1940. The Tribune tried to turn their demise into a partisan issue, illustrating their removal in a 02/17/40 article headlined "Some of the Chicago Buildings Wrecked During New Deal Depression," but it failed to note the reason for their demolition: construction of the Dearborn Street Subway (there was concern the digging would undermine their foundations).
Catarrh cureAs a longtime sufferer from catarrh--the name sounds both ridiculous and ominous--I am wondering how to get my hands on some of that Blue Gum Compound. Surely a more pleasant treatment than pseudoephedrine, phenylephrine, or guaifenesin.
In fact, blue gum honey (eucalyptus globulus) is sold today as a treatment for various effects of "phlegmatic deposition." Australian brands are widely available.
But alas, even 122 years later, there is no cure for catarrh.
The Gunning SystemGunning was a big player in the world of giant urban advertising billboards. The City of Chicago fought them tooth and nail: https://chicagology.com/advertising/chicagobillboards/
The photo appears to have been taken during the transition from "Every sign must begin with a capital letter and end with a period. Period." to "If there's no period, the letters can be a little larger"
[Mighty internal struggle to avoid using "period of transition" above.]
Eyes goin' badI'm gonna have to go and get a free eye exam at Sweet, Wallach & Co. People are gettin' kinda fuzzy.
Haven't we met somewhere before?I know -- it was at one of Gatsby's parties.
Whither Lady Barbers?I can't understand why this didn't catch on. I'd rather have my hair cut by a woman, but for most of my life, lady barbers were not an option.
Chicago School "bay window" style at its best.You can still see some around town.
Cable Car TrackChicago had a large cable car system that lasted until 1906. The far track had a centre slot for the grip to clamp onto the cable. Many of the lines turned downtown in loops, which may be the source of the term Loop in Chicago. More details here.
(The Gallery, Chicago, DPC, Railroads)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-4a08064a.thumbnail.jpg "Great Northern: 1900")
- Made for Walkin': 1937
- ... will make their Washington headquarters at the Roosevelt Hotel. This morning they will be received formally at the Pan American Union ... Posted by Dave - 08/27/2012 - 7:10pm -
![June 16, 1937. "Walk 800 miles to attend Boy Scout Jamboree. Two Venezuelan Boy Scouts, Rafael Angel Petit, left, and Juan Carmona, examining their boots after tramping 25 miles a day for two years in order to attend the Boy Scout Jamboree in Washington. They left Caracas Jan. 11, 1935, arriving in Washington today." Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative. View full size.
A math problem800 divided by 25 is only 32 days. Either they walked 8,000 miles, or they only walked one day every three weeks or so.
[A news item in the Washington Post (which gave Rafael's last name as Betit) didn't say anything about mileage, although it noted that the boys planned to make the trip home by air in two and a half days. - Dave]
I want those boots!Does anyone know where to find boots like these? I've been wanting a pair like that for as long as I can remember.
Back in the dayI had lace-up boots like Rafael is wearing. It's just that I wore them with miniskirts, and the farthest I walked in those boots was from the bus stop to my junior high.
Try 800 daysDistance from Caracas to DC is a little over 2000 miles. At 25 miles a day it would take 800 days to travel. Also Jan, 1935 to Jun, 1937 is a little over 800 days.
[Hm. Might want to check your math, Levi. Next! - Dave]
Wow!I bet they had some amazing stories.
DescansarA few numbers: Jan 11, 1935 to Jun 16, 1937 is 886 days which works out to an average of about 9 miles per day for a 8,000 mile trip. That seems reasonable given the following description of hacking through jungles for part of the trip.
Washington Post, Jun 17, 1937
2 Boy Scouts End Long Hike,
Ready to Rest
Pair Finish 8,000-Mile Hegira From
Venezuela to Washington.
Descansar.
In Spanish that means rest, which is what Rafael Angel Petit and Juan Carmona are going to get plenty of, now that they've completed their hike from Caracas, Venezuela, to Washington.
The two Rover Boy Scouts, who had been en route since January 11, 1925, puffed across the Key Bridge a few minutes before noon yesterday to reach the end of a trail that led through snake and malaria-infested jungles, head hunters' camps and brigands' hideouts.
They were greeted near the city's entrance by a reception party of Boy Scout officials, legation attaches and motorcycle police but politely declined an invitation to ride.
"No, thank you," said Juan, 26, and quite handsome with Valentino sideburns, "we've walked every step of the way to this point, except when we crossed rivers on handmade rafts. We want to walk all the way to the Capitol."
At the Capitol were waiting the Venezuelan Minister, Dr. Diogenes Escalante, and Director General Leo S. Rowe, of the Pan-American Union. Much handshaking, newsreel and photograph shooting, more handshaking and South American gesticulating followed.
A few hours later the boys were telling a radio audience what it's like to hoof some 8,000 miles apiece without ennui. (The actual distance may be far less but Rafael and Juan often had to take the long way around, not the crow's route.)
Hardships were plentiful on the trip but the boys arrived fit and sound, save for a few vanishing malaria symptoms. Carmona was hit the worst and, through an interpreter, said he is going to look up a doctor here.
At times the heat was so bad the hikers nearly despaired of continuing. The tropical sun killed a dog companion and another perished of snakebite.
Two thousand miles, or about one-fourth, of their journey was through dense jungles. One of them, the Choco Colombiano separating Panama and Columbia, had never before been traversed by civilized man.
"We had to cut our way through this territory," the scouts said, "with machetes, not being able to take one step forward through unbelievably luxuriant vines, trees, grasses, without first clearing our path.
"We were forced for many miles to lay a constant bridge before us of tree trunks in order to avoid quicksand and quaking marshland. For nearly six months we were wet constantly, as the normally difficult crossing of this jungle was further complicated by our striking it at the rainy season."
Malaria, dampness, snakes, insects and heat plagued them. Often they slept in hammocks swung high about the ground for safety. Usually, however, they made their beds on the earth.
In Panama they were feted by the San Blas Indians who, more often than not, are hostile to strangers. A few of them spoke a Spanish dialect, which helped. The natives gave a banquet in their honor, featured by a beverage called chucula.
"This drink was bad enough by itself," the adventurers said, "but we had to watch the women prepare it, and that nearly finished us. It is made of green plantains, grain and coconut, all chewed up personally by the women, mixed well with saliva and left to ferment."
Juan and Rafael said they had a hard time explaining their way out of the clutches of Honduran bandits, then when they were liberated the police placed them under arrest, until their credentials were verified with the Venezuelan government.
It was pretty discouraging, too, when they arrived at Laredo, Tex., only to be halted because of passport difficulties. The scouts had to walk all the way back to Mexico City to get their entrance papers in order.
The sojourners averaged 25 miles a day, wore out 24 pairs of shoes, and passed through Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico.
Carmona and Petit will make their Washington headquarters at the Roosevelt Hotel. This morning they will be received formally at the Pan American Union Building by Dr. Rowe.
Alternate Alliterative Appellation:Sole Searching Scouts?
Big BoysOkay, I get Boy Scouts staring at them. But where the heck did they find the sailor!?
I wonder what these guys did when they grew up. Although they look quite manly already.
Bootsl have a pair that are the same made by Harley Davidson. but if you go on ebay and look up logger boots lm sure you will find what your looking for.
Amazing in any ageThat trek would be no less amazing if it was executed today. The regions through which these men walked are still rife with dangers of the same sort, from isolated tribes to snakes to drug lords to marsh and impenetrable jungle. Very cool! I had to wonder though, how is it they didn't have anything better to do than walk all day? Scouts indeed! Try that on your privileged suburbanite boys today!
Susan >> I had lace-up boots like Rafael is wearing. It's just that I wore them with miniskirts ...
Photos, please!
Musical MomentThis is just before everyone launches into a chorus of "Y.M.C.A.," right?
The Return TripAnybody know how they got home?
Can't imagine the end of the Jamboree a week or so later. Everyone says so long and adios, these fellows look at each other, look southward down the road, then both start crying uncontrollably.
[As noted below, they flew back. - Dave]
What a story!What a story! Thanks to Stanton Square for finding the article. Imagine backtracking from Laredo to Mexico City to fix your passports!
And the sailor looks like he popped right off of a box of Cracker Jack.
Jaguars & BanditsAnother accounting of our young amigos adventure comes to us from the student newspaper of the State Teachers College, La Crosse, Wisconsin.
The Racquet, Dec 5, 1937: Vol 30, No. 8
Venezuela Scout-Head Writes Exciting Letter
Several days ago I received an interesting letter from a young man I met at Washington, D. C., while attending the National Scout Jamboree. This man was Juan Carmona, a scout-master from Caracas, Venezuela, South America, who had hiked with a companion, Rafael Petit of Maracaibo, Venezuela, from Caracas through South America, Central America, Mexico and the Southern part of the United States to Washington. The trip took them two years; they covered over ten thousand miles and each wore out twelve pairs of hiking boots. Three started originally but one turned back.
They went through jungle territory never before seen extensively by white man, some days they were able to make good progress; on others the dense jungle growth and swamp bogs limited them to three miles a day. Poisonous snakes and wild animals forced them to be constantly on guard. At night they had to sleep in trees to escape prowling animals.
Once they were awakened by a scratching sound. As the scratching came closer they both aimed and fired their rifles in the direction of the sound. It was so dark that they were unable to distinguish a thing about them. At the sound of the shots the scratching ceased and something crashed to the ground beneath the tree. Unable to sleep further they waited for daylight, which revealed a large jaguar lying dead at the base of the tree. For three days the dead beast's mate stalked and followed them; one was required to keep guard against attack while the other cut and broke the trail. Finally the animal left and they were free to advance more rapidly.
In the southern part of So. America they were taken captive by savages, the chief of which treated them royally but would not permit them to leave. Finally, he was persuaded to allow them to continue their journey. As they traveled through Central America they were made prisoners of revolutionists (it seems there is always a revolution down there). None of the soldiers could read their letters or credentials and they were kept in prison until the revolutionary general returned, read their identification papers and set them free. In Mexico they were robbed of their rifles and money by bandits but finally after many other interesting and exciting adventures, they crossed the U.S. border and reached Washington, D.C.
They have many valuable stamps, seals, letters, pictures and papers from notables of the various places through which they passed. It took them two days to fly by plane back to Caracas. They crossed territory through which they had passed on their two-year journey.
The letter I received was written in Spanish as Juan does not wish to attempt a letter in English even though he understands, and speaks it. Mr. Lairx helped me to translate the letter.
At the present time Mr. Carmona is writing a book of the experiences and adventures of the trip he made with his companion Petit. Our friendship began at Washington and will be continued through our correspondence. I hope to visit Mr. Carmona some time, and he, in turn, has promised to visit me the next time he comes to the United States. Several scouts of the troop of which I am scoutmaster are establishing correspondence with boys of his troop.
Cracker JackThe sailor standing on the right is actually a Sea Scout, as the Scout badge on his cap testifies. For one so young he certainly does have the air of an old salt.
Mapquest por favor"In the southern part of So. America they were taken captive by savages"... They made a serious wrong turn if they left Venezuela headed to the USA and ended up in the southern part of South America!
[They seem to have roamed a bit before heading north. One news item noted that the Scout Jamboree "was not their original objective." - Dave]
A little more of this storyMy name is Carlos Uzcategui Petit, am a member of the Petit family, the history of this pair of young to mid-30 is worthy of pride and admiration of many generations, but to me that for years was a member of the Scouts Venezuela, I am happy to know that today there are those who somehow remembered this story.
The ThirtiesThey went when the going was good, a better time than now. I once thought the 'thirties were a dull, dishonest decade, but have since come to think better of it. It was a fine time to be young, a world full of wonders and adventures and you could get there on foot. The law was becoming a bother, but not the villain it has since become. And when they went in wild places they were able to go armed: Heaven forfend. And how nice that some of their descendants remain to remember their excellent adventure.
(The Gallery, Boy Scouts, D.C., Harris + Ewing)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/22868a.thumbnail.jpg "Made for Walkin': 1937")
- The Old Shoreham: 1917
- Washington, D.C., circa 1917. "Shoreham Hotel, 15th and H Streets N.W." This smorgasbord of architectural styles was ... Posted by Dave - 12/16/2017 - 11:58am -
- Los Angeles: 1899
- ... partly levelled for development of the music center and hotel district. The large house to the right is the Bradbury mansion of 1887. ... 1882 and established his blacksmith shop near the present Hotel Broadway. He liked the friendly little town where passersby called each ... Posted by Dave - 07/26/2012 - 4:58pm -
![Circa 1899. "General view, Los Angeles." The righthand section of a three-part panoramic series. Detroit Publishing Company glass negative. View full size.
Shorpy Does It Again!Just a spectacular view that's reaching back over a hundred years. The architecture has so much character. The topography can clearly be seen as a force to reckon with.
LA localeThis looks like the general area I lived in for years. Any chance we can see more of the panorama? Would love to get some street names. Since LA tends to raze everything and build anew, longstanding architectural landmarks are few and far between.
WOWGreat house at the right side of the picture, wonderful details. It's probably gone now. This photo helps keep it alive!
The stairs to Los AngelesI can almost see Arturo Bandini climb those stairs, eating oranges and smoking. Although that would have been some 30 years later.
BSBefore Smog -- this shows a totally different L.A. from what we all know and I, who was born there and lived there for many years, can hardly believe my eyes. We think of L.A. as flat but it is really surrounded by hills on three sides! What a shame there is no trace of those gorgeous Victorian-era buildings. Can anyone place the location?
Look out below! Check out the outhouse perched halfway up the hill. I don't think I'd care to live in one of those houses directly downslope from it!
ModernThe most amazing building to me is the one exactly halfway up the left side of the photo, the one whose side is covered with large triple windows. It looks totally modern. Nice flat wall with no adornment. The windows are simply punched into place and have dark frames to blend with the dark glass. The top floor's simple Cupid's bow dormers. A very clean look without all the frilliness of the other buildings.
My hometownI can't say how pleased I was to see this on Shorpy this morning. I'm a Los Angeles lifer and love it, but L.A., as has been noted by other commenters, is not what you'd call a history-conscious town.
I watch old Dragnets on Hulu just to see the shots of L.A. in the '60s, so a pic like this, peeking back into the 19th century, is just a delight.
Stair mastersWithout the caption I would've guessed this was San Francisco. I had no idea Angelenos had so many stairs to climb.
That great house on the rightis the Bradbury mansion.
The blacksmith shop at the bottom is on Hill Street.
The grand house on the leftThe Crocker Mansion.
Broadway and Franklin.We are looking at Bunker Hill from the Old Courthouse. The Hall of Records is yet be be constructed. The intersection in the foreground is Broadway and Franklin Street. Franklin, which no longer exists, would be where the parking west of the Criminal Courts Building is.
The Court Flight, a funicular railway, would be built in 1904 connecting the intersection of Court Street and Hill Street (visible up on Bunker Hill) with Broadway below. So clearly this dates the photos as before 1904. Its sister, Angel's Flight, would be built down the way at 3rd and Hill (off the left edge of the photo) in 1901.
Here is my source. It is an excellent site with parsed post card views of the area:
Start here for background (including a colorized version of our photo!):
http://www.csulb.edu/~odinthor/socal5.html
Then continue here:
http://www.csulb.edu/~odinthor/socal6.html
Bunker HillThis is Bunker Hill on the NW edge of current downtown LA. The last standing Victorian houses were razed in the 60s and the hill partly levelled for development of the music center and hotel district. The large house to the right is the Bradbury mansion of 1887.
The Music Box Isn't that Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy, right after they delivered the piano?
Just mindblowingWhat an amazing image!
So I'm guessing that we're looking west/southwest and the ridges in the distance are Baldwin Hills (extending in from the left of the frame) and the Santa Monicas (from the right)? Just WOW.
Watch your stepDowntown LA is perched on the edge of some very hilly terrain. The driveways deliver you right up to the front doors today.
Since I was not alive to see these homes, it's jarring to see the long and meandering stairways leading from the street to these banker-lawyer type homes. It's quite a journey from porch to horse and carriage.
Nobody Walks In LA. Now. Not so then.
Very early cellphone tower?Up on the left horizon. Either a cellphone tower, or the worlds largest lightning rod!
[It's an arc lamp. - Dave]
Pneumonia HallThe Lewis Bradbury house of 1887 (on the right) was at Court and Hill Streets. Bradbury was a property developer who died in 1892, before the completion of the building he is known best for, the Bradbury Building on Broadway.
Later the house was converted to apartments. Harold Lloyd, who lived there when he was starting out, dubbed it "Pneumonia Hall." It was torn down in 1929 for a parking lot.
SuspectThis can't be L.A. There are people out walking.
Los Angeles, 1880How about this photograph by Carleton Watkins from the J. Paul Getty Museum of the Plaza in Los Angeles from 1880? The Plaza church is still there today.
The Village BlacksmithAt bottom is the workshop of A.L. Nies:
A.L. Nies came into Los Angeles in 1882 and established his blacksmith shop near the present Hotel Broadway. He liked the friendly little town where passersby called each other by name and spoke of personal affairs to man, woman and child. For sixteen years he was content. Then the devil of Progress began to alter landmarks and inundate the streets with "foreigners." More here.
East Coast InfluenceTo see Los Angeles back then is like looking at an East Coast city.
Regarding "Modern" commentThe "modern" looking building is the north non-street-facing side of the Tajo Building, built in 1897 on the northwest corner of 1st and Broadway. Since this side was not meant to be seen from the street, it was kept as simple as possible. The smaller image is taken from a colorized postcard circa 1905. The large view of the front and side dates from about 1942.
Bunker HillThis is Bunker Hill in Los Angeles where I grew up in the 1940's through the 1960's, long after this photo was taken. Many of these buildings survived into my era, though, so I remember them. Many more had been replaced by larger apartment houses and residential hotels as the area changed from the refuge of wealthy Angelenos, as it was when this photo was taken, to become home to lower income working families, artists, writers and the elderly. I know all the streets visible here. It is wonderful to see the Hill in its youth when everything seems so new. You can almost smell the newly cut lumber and fresh paint. I love the Hi-def detail of the photos in the Archive because it enabled me to identify the Castle which is one of the Victorian buildings my family owned. It is the light colored building with the dark roof in the background just to the right of the northern slope of the Baldwin Hills in the distance. It sat on S. Bunker Hill Ave. What a thrill to see it. None of the buildings in this photo survives. It was all razed in the 1960's in the name of urban renewal. What an irreplaceable loss.
the hillBunker Hill in L.A. was once a neighborhood of the wealthy. In the 20th century it went into decline as more multi-unit apartments were built and it became a cheap neighborhood for transients, drug addicts and working poor. It served as a backdrop of many American noir films and of one excellent docudrama about the Native American population of Los Angeles called "THE EXILES". This semi-ghetto was razed in the 1960's to make room for the Music Center and more steel and glass towers. L.A. author John Fante moved there in 1929 and his first and last novels ASK THE DUST and DREAMS FROM BUNKER HILL both come out of his experience there.
Angels FlightAm I right in assuming that the slope in the center would be the site of the Angels Flight funicular railway?
[See this comment below. -tterrace]
(The Gallery, DPC, Los Angeles)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/4a05813a.thumbnail.jpg "Los Angeles: 1899")
- S.S. Rotterdam: 1910
- ... shocked: only three prominent towers, which are the Plaza Hotel (1907), the Times Building (1901), and the Metropolitan Life Tower ...
Former HAL headquarters in Rotterdam is now called Hotel New York .
"Trolley" Tracks The tracks in ... Posted by Dave - 07/28/2012 - 7:28pm -
![Hoboken, New Jersey, circa 1910. "S.S. Rotterdam at Holland America docks." The full panorama made from three 8x10 inch glass negatives. Landmarks of the Manhattan skyline include the Metropolitan Life tower. View full size.
This Pano Blows My Mind!And with 8x10 glass plates you say?! I do not have the best eyesight in the world be I tried unsuccessfully to find any hint of joining or places slightly out of register. This is fantastic to me because I can't imagine how it was done.
[They're combined using Photoshop's Photomerge tool, which does most of the heavy lifting. But there are discontinuities and rips in the fabric of spacetime that must be repaired with something called Puppet Warp. With tweaking, it took me about an hour. - Dave]
Before FrankieThis pier was at the foot of 5th Street, northeast of Hudson Park. Today, instead of a pier, you would see Frank Sinatra Park and (on the far left) Frank Sinatra Drive.
This particular SS Rotterdam sailed between 1908-1916, and 1919-1940, with a self-preservation break to avoid mines and u-boats during WWI.
Rotterdam IVRotterdam IV was built by Harland & Wolff Ltd for the "Holland-Amerika Lijn," as the Dutch company is called in the Netherlands. Completed in 1908, she made her maiden voyage in 1909 from Rotterdam to New York.
During World War I the ship carried soldiers and weapons from the US to France. Because of the Dutch being neutral, Germany did not suspect.
She was scrapped in 1940 in Rotterdam.
Coaling ShipAt first I suspected those men dangling over the side on platforms were painting the topsides -- they could definitely use a fresh coat. However, more careful scrutiny revealed the barges alongside are piled high with the period's favorite fuel. In fact, the crew is getting the stuff into the ship's bunkers, by all accounts a laborious, dirty process. Even zoomed in as far as my equipment allows I'm not able to see the details of how they get the coal into the scuttles on the ship's side, but my guess is from there it just tumbles down a chute into the bunkers.
The white superstructure, high above the waterline, is being painted with the mop-like devices I remember from my time as a frequent passenger on the last of the ocean liners from 1963 to 1972. The painting crew is doubtless waiting for the coaling to be over so they can start applying the darker color to the topsides without having the black dust settle on their work and ruin it. Ocean liners were the queens of the ocean. Their brass was always polished and their brightwork always flawless. This photo reminds us why they needed such big crews.
Where to BeginWhat a great image this is. Add color within the mind and actually be there, in 1910. What's astounding is how much the Rotterdam resembles much more contemporary vessels. Then look over to Manhattan and see -- shocked: only three prominent towers, which are the Plaza Hotel (1907), the Times Building (1901), and the Metropolitan Life Tower (1909).
You'd have to wonder how the Dressed Meat Company delivered fresh meat in that wagon to the passenger shipping lanes, from its "model abattoir". And how did the wagon get to Hoboken from 11th Avenue in Manhattan -- ferry boat?
Berwind's Eureka Coal
King's Handbook of New York City, 1892.
The Berwind-White Coal Mining Company was incorporated in 1886. … The company own and operate extensive coal-mines in the Clearfield and Jefferson County [Pennsylvania] regions, and are mining what is known as the Eureka Bituminous Steam Coal.
The Berwind-White Company own 3,000 coal cars and a fleet of 60 coal barges, used exclusively for the delivery of coal to ocean steamships in New York harbor. The coal is of the highest grade of steam coal, and is supplied under yearly contract to nearly all transatlantic and coasting lines running from New York, Philadelphia and Boston, among these steamship lines being the Inman, the North German Lloyd, the Cunard, the Hamburg, and the French lines, whose gigantic and palatial ocean greyhounds have a world-wide reputation.
What a Great Picture!The Pennsylvania RR tug, the sidewheeler in the river, the coaling operation -- stuff, stuff and more stuff. Could study this picture for days and keep finding interesting tidbits. Great find.
Good Job Dave!Ok, I got it now. What "blew my mind" was I thought printed this way a the time! Whew, what a relief, you really had me going. Again, nice job!!!
[A century ago, the people at Detroit Publishing combined these images into panoramas the old-fashioned way. I wonder what they would think of Photoshop. - Dave]
Former HAL headquarters in Rotterdamis now called Hotel New York.
"Trolley" TracksThe tracks in the street and the box car sidings with overhead wires are not for passenger trolley cars, but for the Hoboken Manufacturers' Railway, later the Hoboken Shore RR, which hauled freight until about 1976, using electric locomotives until about 1947.
(Panoramas, Boats & Bridges, DPC, Railroads)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/Holland_America.thumbnail.jpg "S.S. Rotterdam: 1910")
- Churchotel: 1930
- San Francisco circa 1930. "William Taylor Hotel, McAllister and Leavenworth streets." This 28-story agglomeration of ... and new, plus very new Since 1981, the William Taylor Hotel has been McAllister Tower Apartments, owned by the University of ... Posted by Dave - 09/12/2023 - 12:21pm -
- Minneapolis 1908
- ... store and the Minnesota Bar Association, and the Marriott hotel is a thriving concern. A third level of retail failed as did a ... through.
Anonymous continues: “ . . . the Marriott hotel is a thriving concern. A third level of retail failed as did a ... yes – if you count the horrid office tower and hotel, it’s a bang-up success, but I was referring to the retail portion of ... Posted by Lileks - 01/01/2009 - 10:54am -
![The buildings on the left were razed in the 80s for a ghastly development called “City Center,” which wasn’t as imaginative as its name. The retail portion struggled for decades to fail, and finally succeeded. The sliver of white stone on the right was Donaldson’s, a department store that eventually moved into City Center, where it the brand died in a merger. (The old building was demolished for an attractive Cesar Pelli-designed retail / office complex.) Down the street on the right, it’s the Syndicate Building, later the home of Penney’s. (It was torn down for a retail / office complex.) In the distance, the pointy tower of the remarkably ungainly Minnesota Loan and Trust Building, a 49-foot-wide building that stood until 1920 before it was clawed down for a new Woolworth's.
Everything here is gone except for the light-colored building in the middle. It still bears its original name: Andrus. It’s an office complex. No retail. View full size.
TodayThe view today:
Hi JamesHey James!! It's great to see you here on Shorpy. I can't tell you the number of hours I've spent combing through your website and nearly pi**ing myself reading your captions!
KodaksNotice the sign on the left for T.V. Moreau. In addition to eyeglasses they sell "Kodaks."
E B MeyrowitzI never realized the scope of E B Meyrowitz, Opticians. I thought they were a local NYC optical store and now I see them in turn of the century (20th Century, that is) Minneapolis.
City Center not that successful for retail...In the past five years two of the three levels of retail shops in City Center have been converted to office spaces. It is not longer a major retail presence in downtown Minneapolis.
Hitting the high notesWhat dedication it would take to sell piano/organs from a second-floor shop, and then deliver them with a horse and buggy.
Re: SuccessMore to come? From Lileks? Holy smoke, is this New Year getting off to a great start!
SuccessI meant it succeeded at failing. Minneapolis razed four giant blocks for enclosed multi-level retail, and not one can be called thriving.
thxdave - thanks! More to come.
180 degrees & 62 years later. . . Turn around and face the opposite direction, and wait about 62 years, and you'll be able to see Mary Tyler Moore throwing her knitted tam in the air (over and over and over again).
Road RulesI guess there were no rules then such as "keep right", etc. Everyone just seems to go where they want and the devil take the hindmost. Those poor ladies standing in the middle would look like easy prey.
Jim!We're not worthy! We're not worthy!
Seriously, your web site is the only one I know that can reduce me to fits of hysteria - no matter how many times I read it. I was shopping for bread the other night and saw the Sunbeam bread girl on the wrapper, and was completely creeped out.
And that Gobbler motel - I would pay handsomely to go back in time and spend one night in that place.
WHAT'S THE SITE?A couple of people have talked about Mr. Lileks "site." How can we find it? Sounds interesting.
[If only there were some easy, obvious way to find out! - Dave]
"City center used to be the center of the scene..."Minneapolis' own Hold Steady have mentioned City Center a few times in their songs, most notably in YOUR LITTLE HOODRAT FRIEND: "She said City Center used to be the center of the scene. / Now city center's over, no one really goes there."
Craig Finn, lyricist for the band, has this to say about the mall:
"City Center is a lame mall in downtown Minneapolis that is 50 percent vacant with 50 percent low budget gangsters hanging out. The Champs store in this mall is the best place to get the super new school ghetto Twins/Vikings/T-Wolves gear. I mean the non-traditional stuff."
MoreauThe Eyeglasses of Dr. Moreau: Half Human, Half Animal, Half Spectacle!
Throwing stones in a glass BauhausLileks' comment about the fate of the Donaldson's building is correct. It was torn down (or perhaps to be even more precise, in the middle of being torn down and carted off) when kids trespassed and started the fire that consumed the remains and the Northwestern Bank Building next door. A more complete account of the circumstances of the fire is here.
The City Center has been to urban redevelopment what the Metrodome has been to baseball.
Lileks! OMGMy wife and I absolutely LOVE your book on the 70's decorating! It is wonderful restroom reading and cracks me up everytime I pick it up! Thanks so much! Love the webpage too. (it was soooo hard to find ;) )
SwoonFirst I stumbled upon Mr. Lileks' site where I found the perfect combination of humor, Minnesota and old things. Then I found Shorpy, a perfect combination of photography, history and blazing photo enhancement. Oh, and yes, blazing wit to boot. To see them together is just too much. Thanks for starting my 2009 off with a smile!
Oh, nuts!!!Thanks to Lileks, my day will start even later, now that I have this site to check before heading out!
Lileks has poor attention to detail"Minneapolis razed four giant blocks for enclosed multi-level retail, and not one can be called thriving."
Nonsense. Retail was just one component of the project, which also included an office tower (initially the Multifoods Tower, now mostly occupied by Target). The office tower is 95% occupied (which, in this economy, can be called thriving), the remaining office space in the complex (where Donaldson's/Carson Pirie Scott was) is 100 percent occupied by Marshall's, an office-supply store and the Minnesota Bar Association, and the Marriott hotel is a thriving concern. A third level of retail failed as did a high-profile restaurant space (Scottie's/Goodfellows), but that was a small chunk of the total development.
Hell, he's not even right about Donaldson's. Its store burned down and was cleared before Gaviidae Common -- which was NOT desiged by Pelli; Lileks confuses Gaviidae with the Norwest Tower (now the Wells Fargo Tower) -- was built. The Donaldson's lot sat empty until Gaviidae construction began.
Lileks isn't nearly as smart as he thinks he is.
[I can't be certain but I think I hear the sound of an ax being ground. Or is it a bone being picked? On the wrong side of a bed in a rubber room. - Dave]
Caveat VenditorGiven that Retail is a constant drumbeat among Downtown Resurrectionists, I'd say that Lileks is right on the money. While the office towers are doing well, the retail sections of City Center are looking very poor. Half the retail space on the ground floor is vacant, and the skyway floor is populated by three or four restaurants and a Brooks Brothers. There was a lot of money thrown at that center recently, with the end effect of a long row of empty glass storefronts.
Beyond all this drama, the original picture is fascinating. Considering that almost everything is gone, I couldn't tell which street the photo was taken on until James posted the current view in the comments. (Taken on Nicollet, pointing roughly northeast.)
A short tripHuzzah! Lileks is the reason I found Shorpy along with Achewood. All three are on on top of my browser. With the wonderful contributions of tterrace and others, I've thought that James was a natural for these pages.
Re the attention to detail. Not withstanding the poster's opinions and assertions as to what construe facts, well, we all may be driven to distraction by petty annoyances. For some of us (dear 10:40 poster) it is a much shorter trip.
But, still, thanks for your opinion. That is what Shorpy is about along with the incredible images, Dave's incomparable dry humor and, yes, his needling/lampooning of us as required.
We're all a bit ADD, but in a Happy WayDr. Lileks,
I welcome your additions to Shorpy. Between our good friend Shorpy and your daily multimedia presence, we can all live someplace else for a few minutes.
As for our colleague who questions your accuracy, it sounds like he needed a convenient platform. For some odd reason, I smell the faint perfume of James Rouse.
Please come back and visit us often.
Hey!Looking at this image of Minneapolis 1908, I thought, "James Lileks would be interested in this!" then noticed "Submitted by Lileks." I'm a regular visitor at your wonderful web site, James. Just knew you'd find Shorpy.
Can't resist clarifying one pointAs a native Minneapolitan who's a fan of both Shorpy.com and Lileks.com -- and bugged at the tone of the 10:40 reply just enough to do a quick Google search re Gaviidae and Pelli -- I can't resist noting that Gaviidae Common is listed on Pelli's website as one of his projects.
Keep up the great posts, Lileks!!
Down the Street"Down the street on the right, it’s the Syndicate Building, later the home of Penney’s."
Actually, it was home to Power's.
Lileks was wrong about that, too.
The cult of personality is strong. But if you've worked downtown for 40 years -- as I have -- you know Lileks' description is inaccurate.
[If you've ever wondered what effect working 40 years in downtown Minneapolis has on a person, now you know. - Dave]
Either Rouse or ... Rocky Rococo!
"My nostrils flared at the scent of his perfume: Pyramid Patchouli. There was only one joker in L.A. sensitive enough to wear *that* scent...and I had to find out who he was!"
Also: very cool photo, James. Thanks.
James, I trust you over 10:40James, Keep up the good work. Obviously, everyone has an opinion about the rise and fall of there particular city. Having never been in Minneapolis I would just have to trust Lileks' perspective.
Wha?!?A troll?!? On the interwebs?!? Who ever heard of such a thing?
(You, "sir" are holding the "ax" (sic) you hear being ground. Congrats on being the biggest nerd in the ST:TNG's equivalent architecture thread. Bloody good job, that)
[Speaking of sic, "ax" is the preferred spelling in most dictionaries. - Dave]
State of BlissI am now very happy that, I have been loging in to a site one hundred years of useful service, to the mankind! I heard that Minnesota is a land of 10,000 lakes! Is it so? I will supply the latest photo in the next week!
Harmonic Convergence Is Complete; Scattered Chance Of ApocalypseShorpLeks. This? This is gonna be *great*.
Thanks, folks.
Clarifications.I apologize in advance for the pedantry.
Anonymous Tipster quoted the original post: “Minneapolis razed four giant blocks for enclosed multi-level retail, and not one can be called thriving." Anonymous replied: “Nonsense. Retail was just one component of the project, which also included an office tower.“
I was referring mostly to the retail portions of the project – hence the oblique line referring to “the retail portion” - and apologize for not making that more clear.
Anonymous notes that “the remaining office space in the complex (where Donaldson's/Carson Pirie Scott was) is 100 percent occupied by Marshall's, an office-supply store and the Minnesota Bar Association.”
I’m not sure what he means; it was retail space, not office space, and I wouldn’t call the MBA retail, unless they have a walk-up counter where you can get a smoothie and a will. In any case, I believe these three establishments occupy only half the original space of the departed department store. The rest was carved up into new retail after the department store closed, and those spots had mostly emptied out the last time I strolled through.
Anonymous continues: “ . . . the Marriott hotel is a thriving concern. A third level of retail failed as did a high-profile restaurant space (Scottie's/Goodfellows), but that was a small chunk of the total development.”
In terms of the total development, yes – if you count the horrid office tower and hotel, it’s a bang-up success, but I was referring to the retail portion of the project, which included a three-story mall crammed with stores and eateries. Most are gone. “Thriving” is a subjective term, perhaps, but the current tenant list is rather thin. Aside from the aforementioned shops, the website lists the following tenants: Brooks Brothers, GNC, Jamba Juice, UPS, Starbucks, a dry cleaners, and Elegant Nails. A far cry from the original list, which I believe was over 60 stores.
I covered the opening day of the mall for the U's paper; I worked downtown and went there daily. What it was, it ain't.
(BTW, The “high profile restaurant space,” as I’m sure Anon knows, was an exact recreation / restoration of the old Forum cafeteria, which had survived for decades on the spot before it was consumed by City Center; why it succeeded for decades as a low-priced eatery in the middle of a thriving commercial street with theaters, shops, and offices, and failed as a high-end restaurant synthetically inserted into an upscale mall, is one of those mysteries for the ages.)
Anon continues: “Hell, he's not even right about Donaldson's. Its store burned down and was cleared before Gaviidae Common (which was NOT desiged by Pelli; Lileks confuses Gaviidae with the Norwest Tower (now the Wells Fargo Tower) -- was built.”
Again, I was being maddeningly vague for the sake of brevity. When I wrote “The old building was demolished for an attractive Cesar Pelli-designed retail / office complex” I meant that it was torn down, and something else put in its place. If I gave the impression that Gaviidae Common was constructed before the building on the site was removed and the department store had vacated the premises, I regret the implication.
As for confusing Gaviidae with Norwest, well, they’re the same project, and as for identifying Cesar Pelli as the architect of Gaviidae, I made the same mistake you’ll find on the firm’s own website, which also seems to think they designed it. Perhaps I should have said “Cesar Pelli and Associates,” to make it clear that the great man did not personally design the tile or the hue of the restroom stall dividers.
In any case: City Center replaced a block of endlessly varied structures with a soul-sucking bunker, and while it’s grand that the tower has high occupancy rates and the hotel is a going concern, it’s a blaring example of the insular, charmless, high-concept projects that cleared away a century of history and gave us blank walls, mirrored glass, and parking ramps. If one finds the site’s modern incarnation preferable, Shorpy must be an aggravating site indeed. Unless one takes comfort in the fact that all that messy old stuff got its comeuppance, of course.
Apologies for the length.
Re: ClarificationsSeasons changed, calendar pages turned ... and then actual scattered applause was heard in our workspace as people finished reading your comment. Three cheers for civility and good manners.
In the interests of historical accuracySaid the original post: “Down the street on the right, it’s the Syndicate Building, later the home of Penney’s."
AnonTip said: “Actually, it was home to Power's. Lileks was wrong about that, too. The cult of personality is strong. But if you've worked downtown for 40 years -- as I have -- you know Lileks' description is inaccurate.”
Here’s a detail from the original of the picture. The Syndicate Building and the Powers building are two different structures. The Syndicate is in the foreground; the Powers sign (no apostrophe) is fixed to the ornate entrance of the original store. The taller white structure was a later addition.
The Battle of ShorpyWell that was exciting. In the midst of our Quaker quilting bee, suddenly it's Cinco de Mayo. Lileks is livin la vida loca, in Minneapolis at least. Trolls with popguns lurk behind every lamppost!
How I found Shorpywas through a mention of the site at James Lileks' place. Small world, as I see many of the commenters here have also been there.
Speaking of TrollsWhere's that anonymous buffoon who claimed, in a previous episode of The Shorpy Skirmishes, that Dave "makes his comments from the safety of a black box"? Sure looks like Dave's "box" is the same shade of Peach Flesh all the rest of us sew our quilts in!
[#F7DFCB if you want to get technical. - Dave]
Thanks againHoly mackerel, I had no idea the amount of work that went into some of these images
WonderfulThank you Dave for the answer. And double thank you for all the work you do to bring us fantastic images. My daily production is severely limited by the day dreams your photos invoke.
[Well thanks. But please note that this photo is the work of Dr. Lileks. - Dave]
Mystery objectI have been staring at this photo of Minneapolis for several days now as my desktop wallpaper. I cant get past a mysterious object in this picture. Just to the right of the buggy in the foreground, coming up out of the street is a tall dark thin object that appears to be casting a shadow that appears to have been "removed" from the scene. Also, the photo appears smudged in that area. Any sleuths have any ideas? Or did the cat leave a hairball on my monitor?
[It's a crack in the glass negative that got mostly Photoshopped out. - Dave]
(ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, DPC)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/NicolletMpls1908.thumbnail.jpg "Minneapolis 1908")
- The Waldorf-Astoria: 1910
- New York circa 1910. "Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street." Note the radio masts on the ... on the same block, built by feuding cousins. The Waldorf Hotel, developed by William Waldorf Astor, opened in 1893 on Fifth Avenue at 33rd St. John Jacob Astor IV opened the Astoria Hotel in 1897 on the southwest corner of Fifth Avenue and 34th St. After legal ... Posted by Dave - 03/20/2023 - 9:25pm -
![New York circa 1910. "Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street." Note the radio masts on the roof; the 12 wires strung between the towers, 236 feet apart, are too faint to be seen. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.
Don't Fall!So either that is a facility manager and a midget, or a policeman talking down a jumper. Either way. a precipitous precarious situation.
Future site of ...... the Empire State Building.
The story behind the hyphenIt was originally two hotels on the same block, built by feuding cousins. The Waldorf Hotel, developed by William Waldorf Astor, opened in 1893 on Fifth Avenue at 33rd St. John Jacob Astor IV opened the Astoria Hotel in 1897 on the southwest corner of Fifth Avenue and 34th St. After legal maneuvering, they merged as the Waldorf-Astoria, with 13 entrances. What we're seeing in the Shorpy photo is mainly the Astoria part.
The whole thing was razed in 1929 to make way for the Empire State Building. Today's Waldorf Astoria (no hyphen), on Park Avenue, opened in 1931.
Hide & Seek With the Missing LinesBy adjusting the contrast, saturation, gamma, etc., we can find the missing lines!
Wireless TowersThe New York Sun -- March 06, 1909, Page 12:
"Two forty foot steel towers with wooden staves twenty two additional feet high to be erected above the big pent house on the roof of the Waldorf-Astoria"
Floorplans and descriptionAll this is from the February 5, 1898, issue of Architecture and Building magazine. There is a descriptive narrative that covers everything from the giant battery in the sub-basement to the grand promenade on the roof.
The article also included floorplans for the
ground floor,
first floor,
fourth floor, and the
roof garden.
In the fourth-floor floorplan notice the extra thick wall that runs lengthwise across the middle of the floorplan. That's where the Astoria Hotel (bottom) was joined to the existing Waldorf Hotel (top). Once you see where that is, you can easily see it on the ground and first floor plans.
PhotosI've learned not to try to load too many photos in a single submission. Here are the photos that were part of the February 5, 1898, issue of Architecture and Building magazine:
Writing room,
Astor gallery,
Main restaurant,
Grand Ballroom,
Garden Court of Palms,
Royal suite reception room, and
Royal suite bedroom.
This last photo is from a June 1904 issue of The Architectural Record magazine. I believe it is the West Foyer on the first floor.
There's a naked lady in one of those windows --Or probably should be.
I'm out on the ledge but ...we aren't jumpers, we are doing a little repair work. By the way, the ledge is wide enough to do a ballet.
The antennaThe antenna wires must be more like 150 ft long, if they're parallel to Fifth Avenue. The block is 197-1/2 ft long.
[They're parallel to 34th Street, where the building's frontage is 350 feet. - Dave]
(Technology, The Gallery, DPC, NYC, Streetcars)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-4a19951a.thumbnail.jpg "The Waldorf-Astoria: 1910")
- The Fontainebleau: 1955
- March 30, 1955. "Fontainebleau Hotel, Miami Beach. General view. Morris Lapidus, architect." Photo by ... View Larger Map
Goldfinger That's the hotel James Bond used the telescope to see Auric Goldfinger's cards from ... wife Idabelle. Architect Lapidus designed the curved hotel around the mansion, which was later torn down.
[The hotel was most ... Posted by Dave - 07/26/2013 - 2:46pm -
![March 30, 1955. "Fontainebleau Hotel, Miami Beach. General view. Morris Lapidus, architect." Photo by Gottscho-Schleisner. View full size.
Their clienteleThe two Cadillacs has to say something about them.
This is what it looks like these days.View Larger Map
GoldfingerThat's the hotel James Bond used the telescope to see Auric Goldfinger's cards from Goldfinger's penthouse suite, and where the woman covered in gold died. Also where Jerry Lewis' movie "The Bellboy" was filmed and where the Jackie Gleason variety show (with the June Taylor Dancers) was broadcast live.
[Gleason's show was taped at the Miami Beach Auditorium, not the Fontainebleau. -tterrace]
1954 and two '53sThe middle one I believe is a convertible.
True architecture!What could be more cool and appropriate for Miami Beach than a building that looks a lot like a backyard air conditioner evaporator!
They could have built next door one that looks like an ice cream cone...
ANGdoes anyone know what that means on the end of those logs on the beach?
What is it?It's interesting to see the very first stage of construction on the site of the Fontainebleau, but you didn't identify the large building in the background.
Firestone EstateThe Fontainebleau was built on the Firestone Estate, Harbel Villa, on Millionaire's Row. It was named for Harvey Firestone (think tires) & wife Idabelle. Architect Lapidus designed the curved hotel around the mansion, which was later torn down.
[The hotel was most certainly not designed "around the mansion," which was razed in January 1954, before construction on the Fontainebleau began. - Dave]
edit: My bad for trying to retell the story from memory. No doubt the plan never included the mansion, but, as a kid, I distinctly remember seeing the hotel being built around it, as seen in this photo from Miami Archives:
http://miamiarchives.blogspot.com/2012/07/from-millionaires-row-to-hotel...
Harvey Firestone spent his winters on the estate from 1924 until his death there in 1938. During that time, Firestone, who never lost his common man senses, went to "work" almost every day to the large Firestone Tire Store at Flagler Street and 12th Avenue in Miami where he sold tires to awestruck motorists.
Can Someone Explain This To MeI am just an amature amateur photographer, but I have been waiting for someone else to pose this question, or make this comment. So, here goes. why did the professional leave all of that foreground trash in this great photo, and not crop it out? Thanks.
[Because he knew that it would be cropped out when printed, either photographically or in printed materials, such as in a brochure, portfolio, etc. Even without the trash, that large empty area would not have been included. Keeping it off the negative would have required moving closer, cutting into either the building or the breathing room around it. -tterrace]
Flying WoodHas anyone taken lumber inventory at the Palm Beach Air National Guard lately?
Re: Can Someone Explain This To MeThank goodness for all of the extra area in these photographs. Some of the best discussions on Shorpy have come from spotting something in the fore/background.
Eden Roc lawyers paying a visitMaybe that explains the Caddies. Fontainbleu won a landmark judicial decision in the 50s allowing it to block the neighboring hotel's sunlight.
(The Gallery, Gottscho-Schleisner, Miami)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY_5a23484u.thumbnail.jpg "The Fontainebleau: 1955")
- Uray for Hollywood: 1940
- ... 5th on the east side of the street just after the Beaumont Hotel is an identical building to the Uray Theatre - same facade and ... . The building seen below is next to the Beaumont Hotel at 515 Main -- two entirely different structures. As noted in the other ... Posted by Dave - 11/06/2018 - 8:01pm -
![September 1940. "Theater in Ouray, Colorado." Now playing: "Primrose Path" with Ginger Rogers and Joel McCrea. Photo by Russell Lee. View full size.
Gone todayThese ornate facades were made by two competing family companies, the Mesker Brothers Iron Works of St. Louis or George L. Mesker & Co. of Evansville, Indiana. Ouray had 15 such buildings. The Hiebler building is the only Mesker non-survivor.
Through dark of nightIt appears that the theatre is gone and in its place, a small post office. If you look at the mountains behind, they fit the configuration of the one in the above picture of the Uray. BTW, it was named after Chief Uray; I don't know when or why they added the "O".
[His name is generally spelled Ouray, although one is just as arbitrary as the other, devised as it was by users of the Roman alphabet. - Dave]
He/she is baaack!One of the coming attractions advertised is "Too Many Husbands," a Columbia Pictures comedy staring Jean Arthur as a wife whose first husband is supposedly lost in a shipwreck, only to return after she remarries. A couple of months later, RKO released "My Favorite Wife," a comedy staring Cary Grant as a husband whose first wife is supposedly lost in a shipwreck, only to return after he remarries.
Nearly every one of the silver-rush-era buildings on Main Street in Ouray with cast-iron facades has been preserved. This building, sadly, is the exception.
What a facade!From https://www.boxcanyonouray.com/ouray-heritage/history-of-ouray-the-meske...
For profit-minded businessmen in the late 1800’s the goal was to stand out from the crowd. For those who couldn’t afford fancy masonry or cast iron embellishments, there was an alternative: pick up a catalogue and order a decorative, galvanized sheet metal facade from the Mesker Brothers Iron Works or George L. Mesker & Co. Purchasers could pick and choose from a range of cast iron and pressed metal mass-produced components or spring for a lavish top-to-bottom facade. Their order would come in by train and in just a few days, a plain brick or wood box of a building could be transformed into a beautifully elegant edifice, at roughly one-fifth the cost of a masonry facade.
Moved across the street since 1940?And partially modified on the ground floor entrance? If so, the "Uray Theatre" is still standing.
"Cinema Treasures" (http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/28411) incorrectly lists the former Uray Theatre was located at the site of the historic Wright Opera House (southwest corner of Main and 5th), whose dimensions and facade look nothing like the above.
BUT, using Google Earth at street level, going half a click north of the Main & 5th on the east side of the street just after the Beaumont Hotel is an identical building to the Uray Theatre - same facade and ornamentation (sans triangular structure on the cornice up top and "James" in place of "18HEIBLER89"), only the ground entrance modified. Take a look at the street view - looks like the same building, just moved across the street sometime after 1940:
[The Uray Theatre was at 624 Main Street. The building seen below is next to the Beaumont Hotel at 515 Main -- two entirely different structures. As noted in the other comments, there are over a dozen buildings in Ouray with similar facades. - Dave]
14 out of 15 ain't badExcept for this building. The article linked by FixIt says that of the 15 Mesker façades installed in Ouray, 14 still remain. The exception: the Hiebler building at 624 Main St.
Murder and Suicide Startles CityNews clipping about the Hiebler family in Ouray. Click for the rest of the story.
(The Gallery, Movies, Russell Lee, Small Towns)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-8b26234a1.thumbnail.jpg "Uray for Hollywood: 1940")
- Wish You Were Here: 1905
- ...
[M&S is probably the initials of the bathhouse or hotel that rented the swimsuits. - Dave]
(The Gallery, Atlantic City, ... Posted by Dave - 07/25/2012 - 3:10pm -
![The Jersey Shore circa 1905. "On the beach, Atlantic City." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.
That '70s BookI've seen this photo before, in a 1970s series of books published by Time Life called "This Fabulous Century" with one book per decade. I remember this photo because so many of these people seem so modern, especially the couple in the middle -- our great-grandparents.
Fun loving peopleWhat a really great human element picture this is, I like the guy in the center joking with his girlfriend maybe wife. I would of done the same with my friends or they to me in the photo. Best closeup of people enjoying themselves at the beach, ever. Used to think people back then were more serious, this photo shows them like us nowadays.
Most instructive picture on Shorpy Possibly the finest and most instructive picture ever posted on Shorpy.
Rather than showing the denizens of a far distant time as stiff, alien black & white beings standing and staring uncertainly into a camera, we see that the people of 1905 were pretty much exactly like the people of today, merely clothed differently. This could be any modern gathering of people having fun.
Yesterday and TodayLike so many others before me I am always very intrigued with the folks that display themselves and lives so well in these photos. Changing dress they could be of any era and time, going back forever, I think. We Humans have enjoyed play and communal affection since we first discovered one another. The need for this sociability remains timeless.
Let's hope that this never ends.
"Wish you were here"In another 105 years we *will* be partying with these folks -- dead and completely forgotten!
I can't look awayA particular keeper from Shorpy: I feel as though I should recognize at least five people. The context is that the Civil War was within the experience of one or two of them, while cars, flight, public health, education and endless political upheaval would make their world unrecognizable. In a word, moving.
What a cast of characters!Mario (from Nintendo) is in the center left. Peter Lorre is brushing close to his left shoulder. There are even a pair of jailbirds in the center right.
One of my favoritesJust a great picture, it really captures the humanity of these people, who are now all long gone, but immortalized in a single moment here.
Lots of fun, and a good reminder to smile and enjoy things while they are here.
Stockings and bulgesIt's interesting how our ideas of what needs to be hidden have changed over time. In these old photos women had to wear shoes and stockings even at the beach but men often show quite conspicuous bulges that would be taboo today.
Gangs of New YorkLooks like Bill the Butcher (fourth from left, behind the other mustache) is keeping a sharp eye on young Amsterdam Vallon to make sure he doesn't recruit those two even younger whippersnappers right in front of him.
Thank youMoridin, you said exactly what I was thinking, but in a far more eloquent way than I could have ever written. Well done. And many thanks to Dave, as this picture just became my favorite on the site.
And one other thing..."...we see that the people of 1905 were pretty much exactly like the people of today, merely clothed differently."
And with inferior dentistry.
No legs showingWow... all the women are wearing stockings. What elaborate swimsuits.
And... so do I!
'05One of the most charming and moving photos I've seen here.
"Like the people of today"?I don't know about that.
I'd bet none of these men would be stupid or vain enough to refer to himself as "The Situation."
FlirtingI absolutely adore the guy and the girl in the center who are one of the first subjects I've seen on this site who are showing genuine human emotion.
I also get the distinct feeling that they aren't classically together as girlfriend/boyfriend, but they are certainly flirting with one another. I get this from his body language-- he's stepped away from her at a distance to appear respectful, but his touching her indicates that he is most definitely interested in more. This might actually be a wee bit scandalous ... and I love it.
WonderingThis is exactly what I search for on Shorpy! Some tend to either romanticize the past and others seems to vilify. Enamored by the stately homes, the fine dress or what seems to be the "simpler times," while others are appalled by the stench in the air and the very real hardship of life. However, even for the humblest of viewers, one could view this photo and become philosophical about the past towards the here and now, death, what to live for and "what does it all mean?". I often wondered what would history be viewed like if photography existed a few hundred years ago or a few thousand.
Then again I should just enjoy the picture and move on.
Well I beBack in the day I had a body like those young men. As I have aged I wouldn't mind a swimsuit like theirs.
TimelessUsually we see images of buildings and landscapes long departed. "Not a brick left standing" is the phrase that often occurs in the comments.
But here we have a landscape that could have been snapped at any time in the past 105 years ... even the buildings in the background (is that the Chalfonte, erected 1868?) would have probably been there for most of the past century+.
The nature of Americans hasn't really changed during that span, either and not just in their smiles and pleasures. What percentage of the people over 30 in this photo were actually born in the US? It's an important question, considering all the present debate over immigration and the nature of being an "American." Take a group shot on most of the New Jersey beaches on any July afternoon. The numbers won't be that different.
Much gratitude, Dave, for your beautiful gifts to us. Every image only makes me cherish the beauty and Gift of the Now even more.
A pair of glasses and a smileOne of my favourite pictures on Shorpy. All ages so relaxed in front of the camera, even the older folk who you would imagine would be a bit more wary. I'm sure I've seen him before on this site but that must be Harold Lloyd surely?
From Then to EternityIn the movie "Atlantic City," when someone makes a comment about the beauty of the ocean, Burt Lancaster says, "Yeah? You shudda seen it 25 years ago, kid."
The center of it allIt looks to me like the girl is "with" the guy behind her, since he is very close to her, and has his left hand on her left arm. The fellow grasping her head looks like the brother of the guy behind the girl.
Oh, and is that a corpulent man on the left? Don't see many of those folks in these old photos.
Comment on immigration and being AmericanThe people in this wonderful photo may have been recent immigrants, but they all came through Ellis Island, legally and had full intention of assimilating and speaking English. Like my great-grandparents in 1904.
Today, we have a debate about illegal immigration by people not so interested in assimilating and becoming Americans, Without a Hyphen.
Great picture of people having fun and not worrying about who is American. They all were.
What I Spy with My EyeI love the different interpretations of what is happening in the photo. I see a woman who doesn't want to be photographed yet her brothers (friends, cousins, schoolmates? But I think family, look at those lovely choppers!) hold her in place. One holds her arms to keep her from using her hands and scarf from covering her face while the other holds her head to the camera.
At least that's what I see.
Rich
Pictures like thesePictures like these, that strip away the years between "me" and "them," make me so melancholy. "Margaret, are you grieving over goldengrove unleaving?" Yes. Yes, I am.
Uninhibited by the breachThe two women smiling in the right portion of the photo. Enjoying themselves snaggletoothed and all. Great frozen moment of time for us to study.
Could be todayOne of my favourites on Shorpy. The younger ones look so relaxed, one could mistake it for a modern fancy dress party. I love these people shots, yet they make me feel melancholic knowing they are no longer with us. Ignore me! It's 01:27 in the UK and I must go to bed.
LuckyI feel so lucky to live in the era of photography and often wish/imagine I could look back much farther into the past - I'm just fascinated, and reassured really, that humanity churns on, day after day, before me and after me. The way we have lived and adapted to change over the years, slowly as far as biology goes but quickly when it comes to fashion and social change...I can get lost in this and other photos here for a long, long time. Sorry I can't articulate it very well, but thank you so much for this lovely snapshot. And thanks to the poster who reminded me of those Time Life books. I remember those!
Interlocked M&SI know this is a bit of a bump, but does anyone know what the interlocked M&S on the two kids just to the left of the happy threesome stands for? From their ages I would guess a school.
I also want to echo the sentiment of how moving this image is in connecting people 105 years ago to us today.
[M&S is probably the initials of the bathhouse or hotel that rented the swimsuits. - Dave]
(The Gallery, Atlantic City, DPC, Swimming)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/4a17339a.thumbnail.jpg "Wish You Were Here: 1905")
- Dragon Inn: 1909
- Boston, Massachusetts, circa 1909. "Copley Square Hotel." Check out the scaly mascot slithering up the flagpole. 8x10 inch ... gone.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copley_Square_Hotel
I wonder what happened to it.
That Dragon I am fascinated by ... Posted by Dave - 07/31/2012 - 2:55pm -
![Boston, Massachusetts, circa 1909. "Copley Square Hotel." Check out the scaly mascot slithering up the flagpole. 8x10 inch glass negative. View full size.
Copley Square DragonA closeup.
BeautifulIt is images like this that make the trite phrase "they sure don't make 'em like they used to" the first thing you can't help but think.
Next time I'm downtownI'll have to check and see if the dragon is still there. Great picture!
There's gonna be trouble, I tell yaOn the far right, near the charcoal wagon, there are three characters, either the Three Stooges or the Marx Brothers, and they are earnestly entering that building preparing to raise havoc or create some zany antics. Can't wait to see the next scene.
Oh man, Boston I feel your pain.Clearly on the top 10 ugliest buildings of all time.
Money + No taste = This.
Fussy, yes. Egregious - no.Fussy, yes. Egregious - no. Plus it would have fit in with the rest of the neighborhood. Now it's shadowed by the Pru. And the dragon is long gone.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copley_Square_Hotel
I wonder what happened to it.
That DragonI am fascinated by that dragon, is it made of steel (or other metal)? Despite this hotel still standing, there is no more dragon at the flag. I wonder where is he now?
The Cafe.Years ago when I lived in Boston I had many a fine meal at the Cafe Budapest in the Copley. Their Hungarian Goulash was so good it was otherworldy!
Cars and Horses I think the brief time when cars and horses worked side by side is interesting. Cars seem like they were an oddity up until 1910-1912 or so but by 1920 or 1925 horses must have been largely gone from the cities and replaced by cars and trucks. It must have been shocking.
Imagine if over the next 10 years, cars were replaced by something vastly different.
The Green DragonI emailed the Copley Square regarding the missing dragon. I received a reply from Janice Tugaoen, Director, Sales and Marketing for the hotel:
Thank you for your inquiry and sharing this great photo of our hotel!
According to our previous owner (Saunders family), the dragon was made of copper and had turned green. It deteriorated to the point that they would have had to spend a small fortune to rehabilitate it. At about the time that it was dangerously hanging over the sidewalk, Dan Coolidge (related to Calvin Coolidge) offered thousands of dollars to purchase it and remove it. This solved two problems as they needed the money to assist in the restoration of the hotel. The dragon was moved to a Belmont Hill estate circa 1953, whose owner was a member of an old Boston family and a prominent attorney
[Fascinating. Thanks to both of you! - Dave]
Addendum:
I got another email from Victoria Romano, Coordinator, Sales for the hotel, telling me that the previous owner, Roger Saunders, was the source of the information and that he added that "This picture is priceless. I had never seen it in almost 60 years of ownership."
Still thereSans dragon.
View Larger Map
+104Below is the same view from May of 2013.
(The Gallery, Boston, DPC)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/4a23182a.thumbnail.jpg "Dragon Inn: 1909")
- Blowing Smoke: 1943
- ... etc.
Signs of the Times Ah yes, the sign, the Hotel Claridge and Times Square during the war years. I remember them so well, ... any Longchamps or Childs NY outlet, the Woodstock Hotel and, when my family was flush, the Hotel Taft and the Roxy Theater. ... Posted by Dave - 08/01/2012 - 1:35pm -
![February 1943. "New York. Camel cigarette advertisement at Times Square." Photograph by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Ames Billiard AcademyRight behind the Camel sign was Ames pool room, where parts of "The Hustler" were filmed with Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason in 1960.
Douglas Leigh Inc.Douglas Leigh, the man who designed this and other advertising spectaculars, was 28 when he arrived in New York from Alabama with $9 in his pocket. He developed a multimillion-dollar business designing and erecting breathtaking signs.
Leigh created the Super Suds detergent sign with 3,000 large "floating" soap bubbles per minute. A 120-foot Pepsi-Cola waterfall, the Bromo-Seltzer sign with actual effervescence and the Old Gold cigarettes sign with 4,100 light bulbs were all Leigh creations.
His giant Camel sign that puffed out real smoke rings lasted for 26 years on Broadway and was copied in 22 cities. He was also the brains behind the 25-foot A&P coffee cup that let off real steam.
-- From Leigh's 1999 New York Times obituary
Where are my smokes?I just love the two women in the corner digging through their purses... What might they be looking for in 1943? Money? Ticket to a show?
And the short white socks... Scotty, beam me to NYC, 1943 please!
What's in a name?"Costlier tobaccos," sounds like today's cigarettes!
Mixed MediaI adore these adverts where the object does something -- smoke or steam, movement, three-dimensional objects etc.
Signs of the TimesAh yes, the sign, the Hotel Claridge and Times Square during the war years. I remember them so well, along with Toffenetti's Restaurant, any Longchamps or Childs NY outlet, the Woodstock Hotel and, when my family was flush, the Hotel Taft and the Roxy Theater. Camels were hard to come by for civilians during the war. My dad resorted to rolling his own using Model smoking tobacco and one of those hand-operated machines.
All those bulbs!I would love to see a picture of this sign at nighttime. With all those lightbulbs, I bet you could see it from the moon.
Very LifelikeDoes it cough and wheeze?
OverlapI wonder what the neon over the top of the words "Costlier Tobacco" would say when lit? It looks like it can be turned on and off to make different slogans.
Shorpy window peepers.I just love how many Shorpy images have someone looking out a window! The hotel window above the M in Camel has a shadowy face and a hand holding the curtain back.
[That's Ima Lamp. Not much of a talker, but she really lit up a room. - Dave]
Big smokeWhen I was about 12 or 13 years old in 1952, I went with my siblings, stepfather and mother on a trip to New York City and walked directly beneath the sign. I was amazed at how large it was. The tube blowing the "smoke" was probably a good 2 to 3 feet across. That scale doesn't show up well in photos.
What a dumpNo one's noticed Bette Davis crossing the street?
Slower BurningOne of the neon sign slogans apparently was "Slower Burning"
http://www.si.edu/opa/insideresearch/photo_pages/V17_TimesSquare_smokeri...
And "I'd walk a mile for a Camel"
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/19461756
I'd Walk a MileBoth my parents smoked Camels. My dad switched to cigars around 1960, he died in 1963. My mom smoked 'em until she died in 1985.
My mom told me that during the war she had to smoke a cheap brand called Marvels because Camels were hard to come by. Apparently cigarettes weren't rationed, but most of the cigarette production was shipped to our troops.
Nicotine NostalgiaMy old German father rolled his own cigarettes which he smoked six days a week. However . . . Camels on Sundays!
Remember the Leave it to Beaver episode where Beaver & Larry Mondello climb up on a big sign? I think it was steaming tea.
When I was a kid......my mom told me that there were 20 guys in a room behind the sign smoking cigarettes. At the appointed time, they would all exhale and blow their smoke through the hole.
T'was trueMost of the cigarette production during WWII went to troops overseas. It's the wrong brand, but many should remember the marketing cry, "Lucky Strike Green Went to War." Today's familiar Lucky Strike pack came into being in stores as Green was shipped off to far-flung battlegrounds. Regarding that steamy Camel sign: My brother and I often sidled by it in the 50s, and would wait for the "smoke" to puff out at traffic. I think we thought it was smoke, not steam. I've often wondered if such friendly advertising contributed to my 20 year habit and my brother's 35 year habit. Alas.
The Camel SignIt's interesting, I found a number of images of this billboard online. The structure of the puffing billboard remained the same, just the smoker was repainted over and over again.
1941(?)
1943
1944
1945 (film of billboard in action. Opens in your media player)
1964
1965
Time to Go"Lucky Strike Green has gone to war". There was an untold story behind that, which has been told (about ten years ago) in a book called The Father of Spin.
The CEO of whichever company made Luckies contacted Edward S. Bernays in 1932 because he had a problem. He wanted more women to smoke his cigarettes, but they told him they wouldn't buy Luckies because the green clashed with their clothing. Bernays suggested changing the package color, but the exec wouldn't hear of it. So Bernays set about influencing public opinion to make green a "fashionable" color.
He organized an elaborate clandestine PR campaign (Bernays more or less invented PR), to get tastemakers to glom on to the green idea. It worked in the sense that green temporarily became a fashionable color that year, but it didn't move the sales of Luckies by much, and certainly not in a sustainable manner.
If you know that story, it doesn't take much to connect the dots and see that the war was the perfect excuse to get rid of the offending green. Never mind that many folks at the time expressed outrage at a tobacco company's crass claim of "sacrifice," when many were sacrificing much more than a package design.
(The Gallery, John Vachon, NYC)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/8d14368u1.thumbnail.jpg "Blowing Smoke: 1943")
- Tackle HQ: 1942
- ... Daley), owner of practically the whole town, except the hotel Sandy owns and runs when he isn't on an assignment as a Marshal.
... Posted by Dave - 09/03/2023 - 9:07pm -
- East Boston Tunnel: 1906
- ... circa 1906. "Court Street, Ames Building, Young's Hotel." Plus a subway entrance. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing ... here are gone. The Ames building, on the left, is now a hotel. The two closest buildings on the right are gone and the small building ... Posted by Dave - 06/10/2023 - 6:50pm -
- DeLand Links: 1905
- Circa 1905. "Golf -- College Arms Hotel, DeLand, Florida." Back before golf carts, there was the golf train. 8x10 ...
The height of luxury In the early nineteen teens the hotel advertised: "The equipment is modern and complete, including elevator, ... Posted by Dave - 06/15/2021 - 4:04pm -
- The Walther: 1941
- August 1941. "Hotel on main street of town. Lone Tree, North Dakota." Medium format acetate ... 5-year-old kid to do that repair work at the top of that hotel.
The Walther Help us, Dave, where did you notice the hotel's name?
[In front of my eyeballs. - Dave]
DIY masonry? ... Posted by Dave - 09/09/2019 - 8:38pm -
![August 1941. "Hotel on main street of town. Lone Tree, North Dakota." Medium format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Land of a thousand puddlesA search on Google Maps returned a site of "Lonetree" about 20 miles WNW of Minot. No evidence of a former town -- just a couple of farm homes with numerous outbuildings.
The surrounding countryside appears pockmarked with ponds. Some evidence of oil drillings.
Nice masonry workThey must have hired someone's 5-year-old kid to do that repair work at the top of that hotel.
The WaltherHelp us, Dave, where did you notice the hotel's name?
[In front of my eyeballs. - Dave]
DIY masonry?Building on the right...it looks like the bricklayers quit and the owner had to finish the job himself. Before "This Old House" was on the air.
Which way . . .. . . to the exercise room and pool?
False AdvertisingI definitely see MORE than one tree in that photo!
I'll have to try this trickA mattress for a window blind. Also just maybe a vacancy or two looks to be available.
BrickedHeed the warning sign -- it's not a parking sign! Might have helped to include on the sign: "Falling Bricks".
Berthold, North DakotaThe excitement and cosmopolitan splendor of this part of North Dakota must have overcome Marion Post Wolcott when she was labeling these photographs, as I'm fairly certain that this shot is of the main street of Berthold, ND, the next town to the west of Lone Tree.
Change The Town NameI count at least seven trees, maybe more. False advertising.
Berthold -- Not Lone TreeLonetree ND (or Lone Tree) is a little place on the railroad not too far from Minot that's now a ghost town with a surviving grain elevator. It was never big enough for the collection of stores shown in this picture.
The neighboring town of Berthold appears to be the location of this photo. Proof?
https://books.google.com/books?id=LtswAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA234&lpg=PA234&dq=wal...
This references a Hotel Walther being built in Berthold in 1907. Which, given the somewhat derelict condition of the property, seems possible
I can count at least fiveTrees, that is. The town must have been named some decades earlier.
bricks looseWhat on earth happened to the hotel wall above the windows?
And I am getting slower as I age, and I usually "get" Shorpy's witty photo titles, but to what does "The Walther" refer?
[The name of the hotel. - Dave]
ShyThe town's namesake is just peeking in on the left.
Way out in the stickOne must employ the singular stick in the case of Lone Tree.
Here in Texas, where Everything is Bigger®, we even have a bigger nothing. Notrees (accent on first syllable) way out yonder in Ector County, is almost the last word in desolation. The first word is subject to controversy and, in the abundance of caution, we won't presume to go there.
(The Gallery, M.P. Wolcott, Small Towns)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/SHORPY-8c15277a1.thumbnail.jpg "The Walther: 1941")
- 13th Street: 1925
- ... this row of houses were combined as a small residential hotel: The Donald Hotel. Thus, the matching awnings on all the units.
Prior to service as a ... Posted by Dave - 09/11/2011 - 1:27pm -
![Washington, D.C., circa 1925. "1008-1010-1012 13th Street." View full size. National Photo Company Collection glass negative.
Awning ChasmThis was before air conditioning, so I imagine those awnings served a very real purpose. I would think they came down with the change of seasons.
Awnings and CarThose awnings, and of course, the Model T really help date this image. Without them you might think it was taken in the 19th Century. I must say, however, that the awnings sure spoil the dignity of the architecture, managing to make it look like a pretty lady in a frumpy and rumpled dress.
Any vacancies?I'd love to move right in. This is a great picture, the building, the awnings, even the boy idling on the steps!
I'm sure those awnings darken the rooms, but they'd definitely help keep things cooler!
A-MasingThe Mason work on the facades of the buildings is absolutely magnificent. An art that certainly isn't practiced in today's architecture. I'm also digging that Mansard roof on the far right. Has that Norman Bates look.
The DonaldThis row of buildings, dating from ca. 1890, are beautiful variations of Victorian brick rowhouses. The masonry of the facade is made of pressed and molded brick, a smoother (and more expensive) form of masonry typically reserved for the street-facing sides of city rowhouses. What I find most curious about this photo is the matched carved-stone door portals: the buildings are each unique but the portals are identical.
At the time of this photo, this row of houses were combined as a small residential hotel: The Donald Hotel. Thus, the matching awnings on all the units.
Prior to service as a hotel, these houses saw use as residences of several congressmen (still trying to figure out which ones).
This entire row was razed in the 1930s to make way for a new firehouse. Now this location is in the heart of the K-street lobbying district.
Washington Post, Jun 9, 1889
Building Permits: Emmons & King, four brick dwellings, 1010 and 1012 Thirteenth street northwest, and 1010 and 1012 alley in rear of same, $12,000.
Washington Post, Feb 17, 1929
Adam A. Weschler purchased 1008-10-12 Thirteenth street northwest from Clara B. Campbell. Mr. Weschler will establish his place of business at this location in a new building.
Washington Post, Aug 27, 1930
Three lots at Thirteenth and K streets northwest were brought by the District yesterday for $120,000 as a new site for a fire house to replace two now located elsewhere in the downtown area. Engine Co. No. 16, now at Twelfth and D streets northwest, and Truck Co. No. 3, now at Fourteenth street and Ohio avenue northwest, will share the building to be erected on the newly acquired site at 1008 to 1012 Thirteenth street.
The land, on which now stands the old Donald Hotel, was bought from Adam A. Weschler through the Munsey Trust Co., after considerable negotiation by Maj. H.L. Robb, Assistant Engineer Commissioner, who weighed the merits of three proposed locations at length before final selection of the site was made.
Washington Post, Feb 23, 1975
Alice Fenwick Fleury, 88, who helped operate two family-owned hotels in Leonardtown, Md., and Washington, died Thursday of congestive heart failure.
Along with her husband and daughter, Mrs. Fleury managed the former Donald Hotel in Washington. From about 1915 to 1934, [sic] the small residential hotel was located at 1012 13th St. NW. The family then moved the hotel to 1523 22d St. NW, and operated it until 1956, when it was sold.
My neighborsI live very close to this location, and I walk by here every day. The firehouse, Engine 16, Tower 3, that is now located here is actually quite lovely. And, I believe they won an award for the best firehouse (responder?) in DC last year.
(The Gallery, D.C., Natl Photo)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/31269u.thumbnail.jpg "13th Street: 1925")
- Green Detroit: 1942
- ... the Fisher Building at the distant left, and the Wardell Hotel at the right." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Arthur Siegel. View full ... hidden behind the three-winged Wardell (now Park Shelton) Hotel. The Freer Mansion, one of the most important Shingle Style residences in ... Posted by Dave - 07/30/2012 - 10:52am -
![Detroit, July 1942. "Looking north on Woodward Avenue from the Maccabees Building with the Fisher Building at the distant left, and the Wardell Hotel at the right." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Arthur Siegel. View full size.
Detroit Institute of ArtsIn the foreground, the building to the right (cut off) is now the home of the Detroit Institute of Arts. The building on the left is the Detroit Public Library.
It's strange to see all the trees in the photo. Those are sadly not there anymore.
My Old NeighborhoodI went to college and lived in this neighborhood about a block out of frame to the right. Most of the major buildings in the picture are still there today and look much the same. The Detroit Institute of Art has just finished up a Michael Graves redesign of the 1960s and 70s additions that wrap around the back of the original central building seen here. The DIA atrium contains Diego Rivera's famous Detroit industry murals. The main branch of the DPL on the left is by Cass Gilbert with a later rear addition by his son.
The streetcars are gone of course, but there are groups working to bring them back to this part of Woodward Avenue.
Charles Lang Freer's Mansion is hidden behind the three-winged Wardell (now Park Shelton) Hotel. The Freer Mansion, one of the most important Shingle Style residences in the country, once contained the famous Peacock Room designed by Whistler, later relocated to the Freer Gallery in Washington.
The smokestacks next to Woodward just at the horizon were at the now demolished powerhouse of Ford's Highland Park factory.
Old Detroit87 years ago today I was born in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit was a tree city. I remember going to the top of the downtown sky scrapers and was surprised at seeing so many trees in the city.
[Happy birthday, Seattle Kid! - Dave]
Parade routeDitto anonymous tipster, I worked at that library, attended Wayne State University which is (will be) off to the left, and this side of the photographer.
Site of the Hudson's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Still a Jungle Out ThereSeattlekid, you still can see the treetops from many buildings. I went up in the abandoned Michigan Central Station and after looking at the pictures, you'd think Detroit was all trees. On another note, look at how nice Woodward Avenue actually looks. Nowadays, if you try riding your bike on it you're certainly taking your life into your hands.
Home Sweet HomeJust across Woodward from the Wardell/Park Shelton, in that grove of trees, you can see a roof with several chimneys. 14 years after this picture was taken, I was born in that building, Called the Art Centre Hospital. It later became part of the Detroit Historical Museum, and is now, I believe, part of Wayne State University.
DetroitI was one of the artsy folk over at the College for Creative Studies, but several of my cousins went to Wayne State. The Public Library is really something. My film-major roommate used the grand stairway and second-floor hall as sets for as a fairy tale style palace in a short film he was making.
Clang Clang ClangI lived about a half mile south of there on Woodward a few years back - walked to the library all the time, but it's the trolleys that get me - how cool that must have been.
The Pontiac SignMakes me think of all the GTO's that will help turn this avenue into a street racing legend 20 odd years later. Or was it Woodward Boulevard? Well, what does a hick from Georgia know about Michigan?
Foy
Las Vegas
Woodward AvenueAerial view.
Although MS Live Maps doesn't allow me to view at the same angle, it's still interesting to look at the layout of the area ~66 years later.
Detroit trees and streetcarsSadly, most of Detroit has lost the beautiful American elm trees over the last few decades due to Dutch Elm Disease. I remember the early a.m. spraying helicopter flights over our northwest Detroit neighborhood in the early sixties as the city tried to control the blight. I wonder how many later sicknesses and chronic conditions were caused by all of us breathing the aerial sprays.
In 1970 while working for the DSR (Detroit's bus company), many old time executives told me detailed stories about the streetcars' demise in the 50's. Most of the tales had to do with the auto executives refusing to allow room for tracks within the newly planned expressways (freeways) to the Willow Run auto plant during WWII. One was quoted as saying that he'd be damned if his employees would be taking a streetcar to work instead of buying and driving one of the cars that they made. I think they were sold to Mexico City where they still faithfully ply the rails.
The City BeautifulA few months ago, I was on a road trip from Toronto to Ann Arbor. We went south instead of north (can't remember the road) and ended up driving into Detroit. I was thrilled. The architecture is amazing. I plan a trip soon to visit and photograph these incredible buildings. I'm putting the DIA, the DPL and the Freer Mansion on the top of the list.
I'm rooting for those tracks to be brought back too.
Streetcars and treesA lovely pic of Detroit; if you want to actually be in a city with hard-working streetcars and a blanket of trees go to Toronto, just a few hours east of this view. With a few glass skyscrapers now added one gets the impression of a prosperous, pre-1940 American city, with a dose of peace, order and good government -- sort of a motto there.
Woodward Dreaming CruiseWe used to ride the streetcar down from the 8-Mile Palmer Park area by the State Fairgrounds to go shopping at the big J.L.Hudson department store in downtown, farther south from this photo.
The last day of service of the streetcars they put on several extra cars for a "one last ride" experience. My father took me along and we rode that last trip into the sunset. I got to see Canada across the river and was tremendously impressed at being able to actually see a whole different country.
Still don't know how we got home, if that was the last trip!
About those GTOs on Woodward Avenue. That all happened way farther north from here off into the distance at the top of the photo, starting at 11 Mile Road in Royal Oak (where I lived later on) and racing from stoplight to stoplight (about every half mile) up to about 15 Mile Road in Birmingham. I learned to drive a half mile at a time -- but very quickly.
Detroit, my hometownWayne State University was (and still is) located to the left of what this photograph shows. When this photograph was taken, however, the university was known as Wayne University and was actually operated by the Board of Education of the city's public school district. The word "State" was added to the university's name in the 1950s when it joined Michigan's other main state-supported schools--the University of Michigan and Michigan State University.
In the upper left-hand corner of the photograph two of legendary architect Albert Kahn's edifices can be seen. The tall building is the Fisher Building, so named for the Fisher brothers (of Fisher Body fame) who commissioned it. Immediately in front of, and to the right of, the Fisher Building is what was then known as the General Motors Building. This edifice, which was the world's largest office building when built in the late 1920s, housed the carmaker's main offices until the late 1990s when the automaker moved to its present home in downtown Detroit. Today, the former GM Building is known as Cadillac Place and houses various State of Michigan government offices and courts.
(The Gallery, Kodachromes, Arthur Siegel, Detroit Photos, Streetcars)](https://www.shorpy.com/files/images/1a35409u.thumbnail.jpg "Green Detroit: 1942")
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