Harlem Village Farmland, 1820 – 1870

Harlem was “a synonym for elegant living through a good part of the nineteenth century.”The village remained largely farmland estates, such as [Conrad] Van Keulen’s Hook. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You…

Aaron Clark, Harlem ‘King Of Lotteries,’ 1860

According to his own Family Record, Aaron was born 16 October 1787 in Worthington, MA, son of David Clark and his second wife Lydia Benjamin. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You can…

Harlem Trolley On Lenox Avenue, 1830’s

Street scene from Lenox Avenue & 123 Street with the 1537 Metropolitan Street Railroad Harlem Trolley car heading uptown. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You can revoke your consent to receive emails…

Harlem Fish Market, 1920’s

This was the Fish Market at 656 West 125th Street on a triangle on Manhattan street (now renamed 125th Street to the right and St. Clair Street to the left) in Manhattanville around the 1920’s. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you…

John E. (Jack) Nail, Harlem Real Estate Mogul

John E. (Jack) Nail, a successful Harlem realtor, was born in New London, Connecticut in 1883.  His parents, Elizabeth and John B. Nail, moved to New York City where the senior Nail bought a hotel, restaurant, and billiard parlor after working for a time in a gambling house. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our…

Docking At 96th Street, 1920’s

The early years of the sewage treatment plant under Riverbank State Park at least has a guard booth. Well, it was a different world in the mid-20th century. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from:…

Muhammad Ali and Stevie Wonder at The Apollo, 1963

Muhammad Ali and Stevie Wonder backstage at the Apollo Theatre, in 1963. We think the image was taken before a performance by “Little” Stevie Wonder as he was known at the time (read Robin V., think that’s Ronnie Spector looking at the camera). Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please…

Mark-Viverito City Council speaker

After months of political jockeying, Manhattan Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito was elected unanimously as the next City Council speaker Wednesday, becoming the first Hispanic official to hold the city’s second-most-powerful political post. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive…

Fire Engine Company No. 53, Harlem, 1883

The NYTimes City Room talks about the Fire Engine Company No. 53 in East Harlem, a four-story Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival-style building that was one of 42 firehouses and related structures designed for the Fire Department by the prominent architectural firm of Napoleon LeBrun & Sons between 1879 and 1895. Become a Harlem Insider!…

Treecycle in Harlem at MulchFest 2013

Bring your holiday tree to a designated city park to be recycled into mulch that will nourish plantings across the city! Join the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation, the New York City Department of Sanitation , and GreeNYC to recycle your Christmas trees into wood chips. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for…

St. Philip’s Church In Harlem, 1940’s (video)

Since 1809, St. Philip’s Church-through its clergy and congregation, its tradition and service, its goals and dreams has been an institution of major spiritual and civic importance in the Harlem community. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive…

My Grandmother’s Harlem Renaissance Wedding

By A’Lelia Bundles Langston Hughes called A’Lelia Walker “the joy goddess of Harlem’s 1920s” Whenever I see my grandmother Mae’s 1923 wedding photographs, I can’t help but marvel at the elegance and extravagance. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting…

Elevated Railroad Train 110th St., In Harlem, 1893

The IRT Ninth Avenue Line, often called the Ninth Avenue El, was the first elevated railway in New York City. It opened in 1868 as the West Side and Yonkers Patent Railway, a cable-hauled line. It ceased operation in 1940. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field…

133rd Street, Harlem, 1920’s (video)

Thirteen.org just took a trip to 133rd Street in Harlem for their City Concealed series, and below is their video on the early Jazz scene there. Become a Harlem Insider! Sign-Up for our Newsletter *Constant Contact Use. Please leave this field blank.By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You…