Scenes among the spectators at the Polo Grounds, 1885. Baseball was becoming so popular that people would crowd around the park, sitting on carriages and climbing trees to get a view of the action. From Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper May 25, 1885, Vol 60 Iss 1548. Baseball and Black Baseball […]
What is the Use of Struggling?: The Real-life History of The Gilded Age in NYC, Season 3 Episode 4
The lavish Vanderbilt-Marlborough wedding ceremony in the Church of St. Thomas. From The Illustrated London News, November 23, 1895. Bridesmaids wearing white The bridesmaids dresses worn at the Vanderbilt-Marlborough wedding, seen on the front cover of Vogue, 1895. They were white with blue accents. The wedding of Caroline Astor to […]
The New York City Draft Riots, July 1863
Burning of the Colored Orphan Asylum on the first day of the Draft Riots. The Mob in New-York First page of the New York Times, Tuesday July 14, 1863. A depiction by a British reporter of the fire set at the Provost Marshal’s Office. The Ninth District Headquarters was located […]
We Don’t Pretend to Style: The Real-life History of The Gilded Age in NYC, Season 3 Episode 3
Much of this week’s episode involves the comings-and-goings of characters in Newport, which is both a refreshing change of scenery and a fascinating, much-needed look at Black society during the era. Back in New York City, as always, there are a few intriguing details that remind one of city history, […]
On the Contrary, I am Quite Sincere: The Real-life History of The Gilded Age in NYC, Season 3 Episode 2
Much of the joy that comes from watching The Gilded Age involves figuring out which actual historical events provide the background to the intrigue and drama that surround the characters. Sometimes this comes in the form of a pithy remark, and other times it fills up the screen, but no […]
A Vanity and a Burden: The Real-life History of The Gilded Age in NYC, Season 3 Episode 1
If you’re not yet watching the fabulous, fascinating, sometimes frivolous, and always fashion-forward The Gilded Age, please let this be your excuse to do so. Now in its third season streaming on HBO, the show features an incredible ensemble cast, and covers a lot of great real-life New York City […]
The Morris-Jumel Mansion
The oldest house still standing on Manhattan, the Morris-Jumel mansion has an illustrious history, from its earliest days as a country estate commanding the heights, to serving as General George Washington’s headquarters from mid-September to mid-October 1776. The mansion was confiscated by the Americans and transformed into a tavern after […]
We Were All in the Gravest Peril: The General Slocum Disaster
On June 15th, 1904, congregants of the St. Mark’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, including many former members who loved the annual outing and used it as an excuse to return to the old neighborhood of Kleindeutschland, “Little Germany,” gathered on the pier at the end of East 3rd Street. Families and […]
The Jefferson Market and Courthouse
The Jefferson Market and Fire Tower, c. 1866. The police court was towards the back of the assembly room building. From Glimpses of Old New York by Henry Collins Brown. Greenwich Village, once a sleepy hamlet far outside the boundaries of the city that formerly was dotted with country estates […]
See Beach Express: Alfred Ely Beach and New York City’s First Subway
When the so-called “secret” subway line opened in February 1870, many New Yorkers were completely surprised that such a novel form of transit had been built, seemingly right under their noses and unbeknownst to “Boss” Tweed and his Tammany Hall cronies, operating across Broadway in the rooms of City Hall. […]