Last year, David Whitcomb bought a building for $100,000 in Geneva, N.Y. He discovered a trove of photographs tucked away in the attic. Source: New York Times
Posts published in “Historic Buildings and Sites”
He Brought Moynihan Train Hall to Life, but Didn’t Live to See It
By Gotham Rex on January 15, 2021
Many credit Michael Evans with turning the vision for the hall at Penn Station into a reality. Before it opened, he took his own life. Source: New York Times
Preserving New York’s Ties to the Underground Railroad
By Gotham Rex on January 8, 2021
Safe houses and other structures used in the fight against slavery were often clandestine, and survivors today can be difficult to document. But there’s a 19th-century house in Washington Heights … Source: New York Times
They Died in the French and Indian War. Their Remains Await Reburial.
By Gotham Rex on December 18, 2020
The bones of British soldiers and colonial militia were disinterred during a reconstruction of Fort William Henry nearly 70 years ago. Source: New York Times
The Bittersweet Tale of a Diner, a Toy Shop and a Changing New York
By Gotham Rex on December 11, 2020
One is expanding. One is closing. But not all is lost. Source: New York Times
Carnegie Hall Stands By Its Chairman, Despite Tax Violations
By Gotham Rex on December 9, 2020
Robert F. Smith has acknowledged his involvement in a 15-year scheme to hide more than $200 million in income and evade taxes, but he retains the support of the hall’s board. Source: New York Times
In Brooklyn, Grand Army Plaza Gets an Intervention
By Gotham Rex on November 20, 2020
The Memorial Arch, a granite monument to soldiers and sailors in the plaza, is about to get desperately needed restoration work. Source: New York Times
The Good News/Bad News About Ice Skating at Rockefeller Center
By Gotham Rex on November 7, 2020
Maybe the rink will lack tourists this winter, but there are plenty of cooped up New Yorkers who would appreciate it. Source: New York Times
Faith Stewart-Gordon, Doyenne of the Russian Tea Room, Dies at 88
By Gotham Rex on October 14, 2020
After her husband died in 1967, she was the sole owner of the festive Manhattan gathering and gossiping spot until she sold it in 1995. Source: New York Times
Audubon Park, From Hinterlands to Urban Density
By Gotham Rex on October 2, 2020
The ornithologist-painter John James Audubon took flight from Lower Manhattan to escape its ‘pestilential vapors.’ He landed in the picturesque woodland of the future Washington Heights, changing its landscape forever. Source: New York Times
A Climate Center on Governors Island? Could Be a Game Changer
By Gotham Rex on September 17, 2020
A rezoning proposal that has been floating around is finally up for city review. This kind of development is just what New York needs now. Source: New York Times
Gene Norman, Who Helped Landmark Broadway Theaters, Dies at 85
By Gotham Rex on September 5, 2020
As chairman of New York’s preservation commission, he also oversaw the preservation of St. Bartholomew’s Church, the Coney Island Cyclone and Ladies’ Mile. Source: New York Times
Frank Sinatra Slept Here, and So Can You
By Gotham Rex on August 23, 2020
In New York and across the country, the former homes of famous writers, musicians and film stars are available as short-term rentals. Source: New York Times
Planned Parenthood in N.Y. Disavows Margaret Sanger Over Eugenics
By Gotham Rex on July 21, 2020
The group will remove the reproductive-rights pioneer’s name from a Manhattan clinic as it reconsiders her views. Source: New York Times
All Quiet on the Far East Side
By Gotham Rex on June 20, 2020
An epic preservation battle over two tenement buildings facing York Avenue seems to have been ended by the U.S. Supreme Court. But is it really over? Source: New York Times