I can see the Morse Building and old Post Office so I’d assume this is 1880 as both opened then; sadly every tall office building, besides the little Morse Building, is gone; Post Office for glorification, Tribune Building for Pace University, Western Union Building by fire, and the Evening Post Building for a diner.
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If you look at that stretch of Broadway to the left of the Flatiron. It’s a really awkward stretch of road. A pipe dream of mine is for them to turn that stretch of Broadway all the way down to Union Square into a plaza.
I feel like that would make the entire District shine.
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I love certain areas like these that never change, or at least they seem to do so in waves.
For example, Broad Street c. around 1905
Besides the Stock Exchange, Sub Treasury Building, and Broad Exchange Building, everything has since been demolished; a good amount were demolished around 1910, like the Gillender Building, some around 1930, and then more after WW2, like 20 Broad Street and the building in the far back. This is a very different looking area from what was there then.
On the other hand, this is a similar view from around 1963, possibly 1964. Besides the buildings which were razed almost immediately after for 140 Broadway, nothing else has truly changed in over half a century.
I love the areas that change with that sort of weeping angel effect.
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Wouldn’t it be awesome if they made that entire area a plaza? I know there has been some talk about doing that.
The roads are so awkward there they are definitely not meant for cars.
I feel like all those buildings should be residential. Just turn it into a place where people live (like the Flatiron district) and keep “work” buildings in midtown. IMO
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Also I’m holding out hope that eventually some of the smaller clunky modern buildings will be converted into more classic NY buildings.
This one in Brooklyn for example was built in the 1990’s. There is still hope that we can make things right.
It definitely feels that the market is defending more classic buildings these days. That makes me really happy.
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Side note: I find the Gillender Building hilarious. It’s one of my all-time favorite buildings and can’t help but chuckle that it was only around for like 20 years or something.
I just wish it was built in another city like Buffalo so it would have been appreciated. It had no business being built where it was built.
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The old Western Union Building under construction 1873 . Designed by George B. Post whith a high from 230 feet.
after completion 1875 the highest Building Building in the City.
interior
rebuild after the fire from 1890. Next door is the Mail Express Building from 1892.
view from the Woolworth Building
demo from the Western Union Building 1912
1912 the old Western Union Building demolition and build on this side the Telephone and Telegraph Building.
Telephone and Telegraph Building 1915
Demo from the Mail Express Building 1920
complete Telephone and Telegraph Building 1924
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1913: 195 Broadway with the Mail & Express Building, the Western Union Building has been demolished and 2 wings of the building have risen
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1953: I posted them months ago but I feel like these two are worth reposting
Wall Street c. 1953 showing demolition for the new 30 Wall Street Building; Mutual Life Building in the shadows on the left
Federal Hall c. 1945, note the Mutual Life Building in the back
Undated Broad Street
Beaver Building and demolished Pearl St buildings, 1950s
Broad Street around 1954, shortly before the Blair and Cable Buildings were demolished
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Street Map from Manhattan 1955
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Just wanted to give a shout out to Rutherford Place.
I think this is one of the most underrated buildings in the city. The overall design/proportions are quality. It looks great from every angle.
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Anyone else have a favorite building that’s kinda off the beaten track that needs a shout out?
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I’d probably go with this 21-story building that used to be on Liberty Street, demolished for Zuccotti Park. I see it in photographs, and it’s a joy to see with it’s red brick windows and copper roof. It was owned by the Fidelity Casualty Company but online you’ll rarely see any details about it.
For a still existing building I’d go with the American Tract Society Building, I’ve always loved it and it absolutely stuns me every time I look at it, whether in pictures or real life. It looks like something you’d expect to only survive in photographs in a way, and that makes me even more joyous it still stands.
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229 West 43rd Street, formerly known as The New York Times Building. This one is completely over shadowed because it’s near Times Square but man oh man is it beautiful. It’s too bad everything that surrounds it, is terribly ugly.
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Following IHateUSsteel thinking, an old one that also was demolished to make way to Zuccotti Park and I think is kinda forgotten is the Washington Life Blgd. It’s quite hard to find good information about it, there’s only 1 or 2 blogs with good data; and probably the best discussions about it were made only here at YIMBY forums.
Those German renaissance dormers were masterpieces.
An existing one I’ll say the Mercantile Building. It’s a remarkable building we see a lot in photographs, but it’s never mentioned. After all, the pics this building appears are usually from the Chrysler Bldg, ESB ou 500 5th Avenue. It’s in the middle of those three.
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70 Pine Street, 60th Wall Street 120 Wall Street Buildings 1941
Looking up into Financial District from south Ferry 1941
The old Fulton Market 1941
South Street 1941
Skyline 1941
Approaching Liberty Street Ferry 1941
Looking up Fulton Street from South Street 1941
Bowling Green Park 1941
the old Produce Exchange 1942
Corner of Pearl Street 1942
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Wall Street, c. 1956. Notice the smaller buildings that were demolished to widen Water Street, and the two massive buildings demolished for 60 Wall Street.
Custom House Building, 1957
Site of the recently demolished Produce Exchange, showing the back structures down Marketfield Street, 1957.
Downtown skyline c. 1959 [mirrored]
Newspaper Row, old Brooklyn Bridge neighborhood and waterfront; 1964.
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This thread is just depressing lol. I like to believe that NYC is constantly getting better, but this proves otherwise. There have been some huge losses and mis-steps along the way. The city’s growth has not been constant 100% net gain. In almost any other city so many of these buildings would have been the landmark gem of the region and would have stood forever
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See that’s the way I used to feel until I started to realize that the vast majority of the really good buildings are still around.
We just need to find a way to make the ugly ones a little easier to swallow.
My hope is that climate change will incentivize all those ugly glass boxes to retrofit themselves into more environmentally friendly stone clad beauties.
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