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The Easter Parade: 1904
... so inclined you can still buy them yourself. Motorized Hansom? I always check images of this period to look for automobiles. Is ... I'm seeing? Never saw such a thing before. [It's an electric cab, seen and discussed in several other posts here. - Dave] ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2012 - 10:15am -

New York circa 1904. "Easter crowds on Fifth Avenue." Happy Easter from Shorpy! 8x10 dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Co. View full size. Sing along!In your Easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it . . . Wondering whether these gals found that they were "in the rotogravure." I'll meet you on Fifth Avenueand I'll be wearing a black hat and a black coat. Brrrr!This must have been a very cold Easter in New York. Everyone is quite bundled up with overcoats and mufflers. Quite a contrast to today's temperature in New York. According to the Weather Channel right now it's 64 degrees and raining. Drama in the DetailsWhat were they thinking? Perhaps this... "That Hermione is always tardy for the parade!"Poor forlorn gentleman, in his best bowler, standing in the "clearing" at the bottom left. Looks like he's very distraught. Poor guy! So Much Clothing!To me Easter means light clothing in pastel colors. I guess it is still cold in New York on Easter day. The bonnets laden with spring flowers, worn with heavy coats looks very odd to this Texas girl. On the Avenue, Fifth AvenueUnfortunately the Easter Parade has evolved from a high fashion and tasteful (for the times) public event. Yesterday's Parade was what it has been for the last few decades, an obnoxious demonstration of Lampshade wearing, overloaded trash can cover millinery and similar outerwear. Celebrity spottersJust looks like folks are taking in the sunny day and hoping to spot some famous New Yorkers leaving church. Bendel bonnetsGrowing up, I used to listen to the lyrics of Cole Porter's "You're the Top," from "Anything Goes," and try to understand all is references to the "top" things of 1934. Some of the items he lists remain easy for us to understand, for example Mickey Mouse and the Mona Lisa. I had less luck with his couplet "You're a Bendel bonnet, A Shakespeare's sonnet . . ." until after I moved to New York City. Traveling up Fifth Avenue in April of 1994, I noticed a sign in the windows of the Henri Bendel flagship, "THE BONNETS ARE HERE!" And indeed, Henri Bendel has been a designer and vendor of Easter bonnets to fashionable New Yorkers since 1895. Their main location is exactly six blocks north of where this photo was taken (though I don't know if they occupied that real estate in 1904). Anyway, I bet some of the ladies in this photo are wearing Bendel bonnets, and if you are so inclined you can still buy them yourself. Motorized Hansom?I always check images of this period to look for automobiles. Is this a motorized Hansom Cab I'm seeing? Never saw such a thing before. [It's an electric cab, seen and discussed in several other posts here. - Dave] (The Gallery, DPC, Easter, NYC)
On Broadway: 1905
... or hanging from the side of the building. [It's an electric sign. Similar to the one seen on the New Montauk Theater . - Dave] ... Electric street lights, electric signs, an electric hansom cab, an electric charabanc, what a wonderful world. Are the trams ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/28/2014 - 7:07pm -

New York circa 1905. "Broadway and Times Building (1 Times Square)." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. MetropoleThe Metropole Hotel at 43rd Street. The first hotel in NYC with running water in every room. What is that?Maybe I'm missing something obvious, but for the life of me I can't figure out what that thing is on the left, above the balcony. It looks like three squares covered with dots and topped by a flourish. I can't tell if it's attached to the awning wires or hanging from the side of the building. [It's an electric sign. Similar to the one seen on the New Montauk Theater. - Dave] ElectricElectric street lights, electric signs, an electric hansom cab, an electric charabanc, what a wonderful world. Are the trams underground electric ones or are they cable cars? [The streetcars are electric. - Dave] The hatsThere had to be one guy in a million who defied convention and dared venture outdoors hatless, but I've yet to spot him in these kind of scenes. Aria landmarkLeft foreground is Metropolitan Opera House -- a.k.a. the old brewery, demolished 1967. Tally HoThere's another one of those beasts of an electric tour bus lumbering down Broadway. I wonder if Hoster's is the precursor of Hooters? Future Flappers of AmericaAll of the women in this photo have floor length shirts except the one crossing in the middle of the street. Jaywalking and a short skirt--nothing less than scandalous. E-cabSo, an electric hansom cab operated by a coachman from the traditional topside perch -- bizarre! [Below, an excerpt from he book "Taxi!" by Graham Hodges. - Dave] Electric cabs had showed some promise; since July of 1897, twelve electric hansom cabs had plied the [New York] city streets. Organized by the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company, these novelty cabs competed with horse-drawn hacks. Despite their technological innovation, called by Scientific American in a March 1909 article "one of the most significant facts of city transportation," electric cabs varied only slightly in performance and appearance from horse-drawn vehicles. Scientific Magazine preferred the electric cab because it was silent and odorless. Even though the Electric Vehicle Company expanded its New York fleet to sixty-two in 1898 and then to one hundred the next year, its overall success was short-lived. Electric cabs were cumbersome, were unable to move faster than fifteen miles per hour, and required a battery recharge every twenty-five miles that took eight hours to complete. This problem limited use of electric taxis to single rides and made cruising impossible. Changing a battery also required use of an overhead crane and a spacious garage. Replacing the pneumatic tires required taking off the entire wheel disk, which caused further delays. Despite the clean and silent operation, passenger comfort was minimal. Fares sat in an open seat in the front of the cab, while the driver perched overhead. The brakes were applied forward, which in emergency situations meant that the entire car might topple over. Not surprisingly, electric cabs did not catch on. One contemporary writer observed that many people took one ride but rarely returned for a second, preferring horse-drawn hacks. A fire settled the issue. In January 1907, the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company went under when three hundred of its cabs burned in a garage fire. Or maybe not. More here. Vehicular VarietyCarriages, hackney cabs (when was the last time those were seen in NYC?), electric cars, some sort of electric wagon full of sightseers, at least five trolley cars, a horse-drawn wagon carrying passengers (a bit like a hayride), a farm wagon, and a bicycle - not to mention the sheer volume of walkers of all ages and costumes. This is the age of Wharton, Dreiser and Howells. (It's also the age of the muckrakers and Jacob Riis' exposes.) The women's Edwardian hats and skirts are so luxurious! This was about five years before the introduction of the hobble skirt, which was tightly constricted at the bottom. Women could still sweep down the sidewalk regally in 1905, and often their hats plowed the crowd before them like the figurehead on a schooner. The female cutting across the street in a short skirt and wide-brimmed hat is probably a teenager. Edwardian girls continued to wear short skirts until they "came out" into society or reached the age of 18. Skirt lengths for women wouldn't begin to creep up off this floor until 1915; the Great War made a fashion out of the necessity of less fabric available for women's skirts. "Flapper" style wouldn't begin until the hedonistic post-War late 'teens. I often wonder if a similar photo, taken today from the same perspective, will similarly show a quaint and vanished cityscape to the citizens of 2110. Will they gape at the volume of gasoline-powered individual autos on our streets? TrilbyNote the billboard advertising the play "Trilby." The popularity of this play (adapted from an 1894 novel) is what gave us the term Svengali and also the Trilby hat. FantanaNY Times review of Jefferson DeAngelis in "Fantana" at the Lyric Theater. Re: What is that?I believe that the mysterious electric sign in question was a cab call sign, which lit up with numbers to show how many cabs were being requested by opera patrons after a show. These signs seem to have hung on many NYC theaters and hotels back around the turn of the century. There is still an existing (but, alas, apparently not functioning) one hanging on the front of the St. Regis Hotel on 55th Street. From this exact locationIt would be amazing to see a pic from 100 years later taken from the same or even close spot and placed side by side for comparison. One Times SquareI work across the street from One Times Square, and I've often thought how sad it is that you can't see the building anymore! it's so covered in electronic signs, large billboards, and other metal sheet covering, that you can't see the underlying building anymore. It looks like a handsome structure, but it's all hidden way. (The Gallery, DPC, NYC, Streetcars)
Macys Herald Square: 1908
... landmarks include Lucio's Pearls and a couple of the electric hansom cabs seen in a previous post . 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/18/2012 - 6:58pm -

New York circa 1908. "R.H. Macy & Co., Herald Square." Broadway at 34th Street, with a glimpse of the Sixth Avenue elevated tracks. Other Shorpy landmarks include Lucio's Pearls and a couple of the electric hansom cabs seen in a previous post. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing. View full size. That Corner BuildingWhen Macy's acquired the land for this store, the owners of the corner building held out, so the emporium was built around it. The same thing happened uptown almost 30 years later when the huge RCA building was erected on land that included the NE corner of 6th Avenue and 48th Street. The old building at that corner still stands, and for years was the site of Hurley's popular bar and restaurant. OiiinnnnkkkkkkYou could get a dozen Dying Pigs for $1.35. Can you imagine the amusement and delight caused by a dozen Dying Pigs slowly deflating on the floor? Rolls RazorMy dad had one of these which fascinated me as a kid watching him work the machine. In a beautifully made shiny metal case was the strop on the bottom and the machine would flip the blade at the end of each stroke for the return pull. He was very proud of this device. Only one headI'm fascinated by looking at old street scenes. All of those people going about their important rounds, long forgotten now. The street is torn up on the left, and one set of tracks is blocked for a time. The hot summer sun has caused some ladies to carry their parasols, and a thoughtful hansom cabbie has covered his horse to keep the sun and, maybe, the relentless flies away. Also, HATS. I can spot only one human being without a hat, the fellow at the lower left, near the Shorpy logo; a counterculture type, no doubt. Rolls Auto strop razorI have a Rolls razor which is operated in the way described by Walt. This was only four years after the invention of the double edged safety razor. The Rolls razor shaves quite well too. CorneredThe tale of the Macy's holdout. An eventWhat on Earth has happened here? The total collapse - of what? [It's dirt and pavement from the crew digging up the street. As Con Ed used to say, "Dig We Must." - Dave] Three Twins"Three Twins," a musical, played at the Herald Square Theatre from Jun 15, 1908 to Mar 20, 1909. What a beautiful day. The clock on building says a little before noon. Wish I could time travel back there for one day! I see a circa 1908 Buick in front of Macy's. This is the second '08 Buick I've seen in a post. Have to look out for more of these. Rowland vs. Fred.You have to wonder what was the best and final offer from R.H. Macy to Fred K. Fox for the corner plot before he broke ground on his store with the chunk taken out of it. Hair Dressing ParlorsThe sign is a typical NYC advertisement, still in use today. It looks like Haynob's Hair Dressing Parlors, which provided services like: Marcel waving (popular female hairstyle of the teens & 20's), false hair, Chiropody (foot care). [The name is HAVNOR'S (55 West 33rd Street; Henry J. Havnor, proprietor). - Dave] Head warmerThanks for the close up of our placard bearer, now I can ambulate down to the Hair Dressing Parlour and get me a Marcel Waving False Hair rug to keep my bean covered. Matched PairDoes any Shorpyite know the manufacturer of the two strange vehicles at the kerb by streetcar 678? They would be no fun in at all in a decent snow storm! [As noted in the caption, they are electric hansom cabs. - Dave] Auto StroppingI'd love to know the technology behind the "Auto Strop Safety Razor." How does it strop itself? By having you replace the blade? Picketer Wish I could read that sign the guy on the corner is carrying. An advertisement or some kind of protest slogan? Picture-in-picture.To the left of the entrance to Murray's Restaurant, there's another photographer working with his tripod in the street. It would be fun to find that photo somewhere in the archive! Defy DetectionI love that Lucio's Rubies, Diamonds and Pearls "Defy Detection." [So small, they're practically invisible! - Dave] Lucio's Pearls, only $3.49 post-paid!Ad in Popular Mechanics, 1921: [Pearls, schmearls. I want a Dying Pig! - Dave] The Auto Strop RazorThe Auto Strop uses a single edged blade that is kept sharp by inserting a thin leather strop into the head of the razor. One end of the strop is anchored to something solid and the other end is held taut in one hand. With the other hand the razor is slid along the length of the strop. The razor has a mechanism that flops the blade each time it changes direction. A few back and forth passes along the strop keeps a keen edge on the blade. (The Gallery, DPC, NYC, Stores & Markets, Streetcars)
Broadway From Above: 1903
... the trolley, center left of the photo. [That's an electric hansom cab. - Dave] Looking Downtown Compliments of the Museum of the ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/29/2018 - 7:11pm -

New York circa 1903. "Looking up Broadway from City Hall." With a view of the National Shoe & Leather Bank, and a roving vendor of DESKS. View full size. Rogers, Peet & Co.The building on the left with the flag was originally Rogers-Peet, a clothing store for men and boys. It was at this location for over 70 years, finally closing in 1976. On March 5 of this year, an 1100-square-foot apartment (photo below) in the building sold for over $1.5 million. I wonder if the man who built this little eight story neo-Renaissance tower could have ever guessed that his handiwork would ever bring so high a price. NYC hasn't changed muchNotice the car cutting off the trolley, center left of the photo. [That's an electric hansom cab. - Dave] Looking DowntownCompliments of the Museum of the City of New York: a look at the Chambers Street side of the National Shoe & Leather Bank Building. Apparently the bank was subsumed into the JP Morgan Chase empire. Shoe and Leather Bank 1852 Established Shoe and Leather Bank 1865 Convert Federal National Shoe & Leather Bank of the City of NY 02/01/1906 Converted To Shoe & Leather Bank of the City of New York 04/01/1906 Acquire By Merger Metropolitan Bank (1905-4/1906) 04/01/1906 Name Change To Metropolitan Bank (4/1906-9/1921) 01/01/1921 Acquire By Merger Hamilton Trust Company 09/01/1921 Converted To Metropolitan National Bank of the City of NY 11/01/1921 Merge To Federal Chase National Bank of the City of New York 03/01/1955 Merge To State President and Directors of the Manhattan Company 03/01/1955 Name Change To Chase Manhattan Bank, The (1799-9/1965) 09/01/1965 Convert Federal Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A., The 07/14/1996 Merge To State Chemical Bank 07/14/1996 Name Change To Chase Manhattan Bank, The 11/13/2004 Convert Federal JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association Actually ...This photo could not have been taken from City Hall, as Murray Street is seen to the left (two streets downtown from Chambers) and Murray is south of City Hall. This photo was taken from the old Post Office. [Also known as the City Hall Post Office and Courthouse, part of the City Hall Park complex of municipal buildings. - Dave] Sun in the NorthThat's the New York Sun building just to the north of City Hall Park. Publisher of the "Yes Virginia.. . " letter. Building still stands. You can just about make out a corner (on the right) of "The New County Courthouse" today the home of the Board of Education. Now written in stone is the name "TWEED COURTHOUSE", and it has to be the only building named after a rouge - Tweed and his gang swiped millions from the city, and now he is honored with his name on the building that he used to swindle money for himself and friends. And to think - the city fathers of NY, in building City Hall, never imagined that the city would grow north of here. And all this is facing north. LandmarkThe New York Sun building on Chambers Street was originally New York City's first department store, built for the A. T. Stewart Company. It's now has National Historic Landmark status as well as New York Landmark status and currently houses the New York City Dept. of Buildings offices. TrolleysActually, the 'trolleys' in the photograph are cable cars. You can see the slot for the plough to attach to the cable between the tracks. Also lack of trolley poles and wires is a giveaway. [By this time, all of Manhattan's cable lines had been converted to electricity; the slot is to access the underground electrical conduit. -tterrace] (The Gallery, DPC, NYC, Streetcars)
Texas Flood: 1904
... then but the need to know and "witness" was there. Electric Vehicle Company Those are buses made by the Electric Vehicle Company of Hartford, Connecticut. The advertisement below is ... Columbia made a full line of vehicles including hansom cabs as seen here . Unable to keep up with the demand for electric ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2012 - 5:55pm -

New York circa 1904. "Galveston Flood, Coney Island." The main attraction here was a cyclorama depicting the deadly hurricane that struck Texas in 1900. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Natural curiosityMy first reaction to the Galveston exhibit was the same as I had earlier at the Johnstown Flood pavilion in an earlier, different amusement park -- a kind of smug dismissal. Then I realized it was just an effective way of satisfying a very natural inclination to witness huge events. No Discovery Channel then but the need to know and "witness" was there. Electric Vehicle CompanyThose are buses made by the Electric Vehicle Company of Hartford, Connecticut. The advertisement below is from the February 1, 1906 issue of "The Motor Way." Here is an early version of one style of the company's cabs from the 1902 book "Self-Propelled Vehicles" by James E. Homans. Starting in 1896 in Philadelphia as the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company, EVC was credited for establishing the mechanized cab service in New York. The firm moved to Elizabethport, New Jersey, in 1898 when it acquired Morris & Salom, makers of the Electrobat (1898 examples below). In 1899 Electric Vehicle moved to Hartford after acquiring the Columbia Automobile Company and its factory from Pope Manufacturing. Columbia made a full line of vehicles including hansom cabs as seen here. Unable to keep up with the demand for electric vehicles (some sources claim that in 1899 fully 90 percent of the taxis in New York City were electric), in 1900 it also acquired the Riker Electric Vehicle Co. of Elizabethport. Riker built hansom cabs, along with vans, hotel buses, trucks and and regular taxis (below, from "Self-Propelled Vehicles") that looked very similar to the early ones by Electric Vehicle. The company was controlled by the Widener-Elkins-Whitney syndicate that either bought up companies like Columbia and Riker, or allied themselves with many other electric power oriented companies, such as the Electric Storage Battery Company (Exide), or simply created new companies such as Electric Boat. It even managed to get control of the Selden Patent. The firm also created taxi companies in some 11 cities, including New York, where it would sell itself the electric taxis and the batteries that went in them. In fact, by 1899 it had the state rights to all of New York. Its taxi business did not collapse when "three hundred of its cabs burned in a garage fire," as claimed in the 2007 book "Taxi!" by Graham Hodges. Its taxi subsidiary, The New York Electric Vehicle Transportation Company (which included the Fifth Avenue Coach Co.), had five such garages and many, many more cars (and still managed to save around 250 cars from the fire), and in fact continued in business until 1936. Nor were the cars as clumsy and ponderous as described by Hodges. Rather than wait for an eight hour recharge as claimed in the book, Electric Vehicle devised a battery pack that could be swapped out in 20 minutes, and the vehicle sent back into revenue service. It also invented a fast charger that could recharge a number of battery packs at the same time. Much to its dismay, one had just been installed in the garage that burned. As far as speed went, well, this is from the May 21, 1899 issue of The New York Times: The vignette below is from an 1899 New York Electric Vehicle Transportation Co. stock certificate, and shows two types of cabs made by Electric Vehicle. However, because the syndicate itself was falling apart, some of its holdings suffered. Electric Vehicle Company folded, although the manufacture of some of its products continued under the Columbia name along with Columbia's vehicles (gas and electric). Columbia was sold in 1910 to the United States Motor Company, and ceased production when that corporation collapsed in 1913. Over the years the other companies either folded or were sold off. Many still exist today, such as Exide battery and the submarine builder Electric Boat (now a division of General Dynamics). Fancy FloodI am amazed at the detailed and complex architecture of such a building, especially when you realize it was built as a temporary amusement showcase. And by the way, what's written on the telescope stand? [LOOK VENUS FREE. Astronomical educational something. - Dave] Pardon Me - "Is this the building where they show the Galveston Flood?" EIGHT signs! Come one, Come allSee how 8000+ of your fellow countrymen met their maker a few short years ago! And grab a soda on your way out. Correct WeightI wonder how much they deducted from a woman's weight for all the clothes they wore at the time. Bright LightThis is an excellent view of an arc light, and shows the mechanism to lower the fixture to service the carbon rods. The wires for the electrical supply are intentionally slack to allow the light to be lowered by the rope that runs through pulleys to the base of the light standard. Could you direct me to the Galveston Flood?More signs, Harry. I told you, we need more signs! "Cyclorama"I was trying to determine what the attraction was -- a movie? Stuff they found washed up on shore? A play based on the flood? Then I did what many die-hard Shorpy fans do ... last. I read the caption and googled the keyword! Motorized StagesI find those motorized stages (don't know what else to call them) very interesting. Anyone have an idea of what they are? Looks like they might be electric. Virtual realityWell, I suppose, if you regret missing out on the thrill of boarding the last train out of town, which was swept off the causeway and into the bay by the storm surge, or, being conscripted to load the dead onto a barge for burial at sea, this might be the next best thing. The perfect show for all those people who like to rubberneck accidents on the freeway, making me late for work. Thanks a lot! Motorized stagecoachesThe two vehicles one with steeplechase park on its side seem to be possibly the ancestor of our modern cars, they appear to be converted carriages missing the team and traces that would have gone with them. Under the drivers seat is possible engine with louvers. If anyone knows what they are please post it. [Those are, as Dennis M surmises, electric coaches. - Dave] (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Coney Island, DPC)
Longacre Square: 1904
... of Packard. What a picture! Oh, and Happy New Year Electric cab On the right, facing away from us in the distance past two hansom cabs,is an electric hansom cab with pneumatic tires. You can see the ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/01/2012 - 5:35pm -

New York circa 1904. "Longacre Square." Soon to be renamed Times Square after the recently completed New York Times tower seen here. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. 106 Years Ago…Or thereabouts. It is utterly amazing to see a photo of Times Square from this era. To think of how far we have evolved as a nation is evident in this photograph. This area of NYC is a place where my great-grandfather worked and lived a portion of his life. I cannot help but think how the world will be when my future great-grandson (or granddaughter) ventures out into the world 106 years from now. Guys and DollsI'm sure others have noted/ commented how few women we see in some of these "downtown" pics, in any U.S. city. Also, I don't know that much about how many people had their own horse and carriage for transportation. For example, the guys on the far right, both wearing hats, both sitting "up front" - what's the deal? Driver and passenger? Coworkers in a company vehicle? Two guys commuting together? Extraordinary photo!It's hard to believe that people once lived there in apartments with flowers in the window and, probably, clothes drying on a line in the back. This may well be the most remarkable glimpse I have seen of my hometown's past. Thank you Dave! Pre MouseWow! Times Square looked great before Disney took it over. Oh, to explore this scene in person..This image comes alive like few have, you can almost hear the clippity-clop of the horses' hooves. Makes me wish I had a time machine and could spend a day or two exploring those streets. Thank again Shorpy! Cohan & Packard1904 was the year of George M. Cohan's big hit, "Little Johnny Jones," which opened at the Liberty Theatre on 42nd Street (somewhere to the right of this picture) in November 1904. The run didn't last long, but "Little Johnny Jones" was successfully revived in 1905 at the New York Theatre, apparently the one we see here with Cohan's name in lights. So should this picture be dated 1905, or was something else by the great Cohan also showing? On another front, I thought surely 1904 was early for a full-scale Packard dealership. Wrong! Packard went big time in October 1902. New York's FinestPolice protection seems abundant. I seem to count six policemen in this photo. And, oh, the glorious, glorious signs, including George M. Cohan at the New York Theater. Center StageAnd right in the middle of all this urban confusion is the newly minted Flatiron Building. Can you imagine the impression this building must have made at the time. It looks, from this angle, like it could lean over at any moment! Great Photo! [Another tourist lost in Manhattan. As noted in the caption, the tall building is the New York Times tower. The Flatiron building is 20 blocks away. - Dave] Re: Center StageCould I sell you a map, sir? Or perhaps a bridge. Getting in on the ground floorI've scanned the photo carefully--am I right? The Packard dealership has a wide field for growth--no autos on the street. And what was the history of the building it occupies? I'm vaguely thinking a church. IntriguingWait, you mean there's a building under all those billboards? Understandable MistakeOne might be forgiven for mistaking the Times Building for the Flatiron. They both occupy a similar triangular-shaped block created by the angular intersection of Broadway with (in the case of the Times Building) 7th Ave. and (in the case of the Flatiron Bldg.) 5th Ave. But the top half of the two buildings are quite different. Very difficult to determine whether any of the buildings in this photograph are still in existence today. Today everything is plastered with electronic billboarding. As in "everything". The Times Building is still there (I believe), but is today vacant and serves only as an easel for a number of extremely large, electronic billboards that completely cover the once-grand exterior of the building. The New Year's Eve ball descends from its roof top, but it has really ceased being a "building" in the true sense of the word. The functioning NY Times Building is today a new skyscraper over on 8th Avenue. Packardoccupied the showroom at 1540 B'way from November 1904 to June 1907. Can't find any info on previous tenants. 1540 B'way is now occupied by the Bertelsmann Building. Just four years laterMontague Roberts would be pulling away in the Thomas Flyer automobile right in front of the Times building to begin the NY-Paris Race. 1540 BroadwayIt seems I took a photo at a similar angle back in 2000 (as, I'm sure, did a few million other people) that includes the Packard dealership's address of 1540 Broadway. A little snooping indicated that this address now contains the Bertelsmann Building and the Virgin Megastore - which I think may be closed now. In my crappy little photo can be seen across the top of the Virgin sign the partial "LSMANN BUILDING" sign at far left. More About the Times TowerYes, there really is still a building under the electronic signs. It recently added a new tenant on the bottom floors (the ones with visible windows): Walgreen's new flagship store. (In the early days of the Times Square renewal project, this had been the home of a Warner Brothers store that had some fun items that combined WB characters and Times Square references.) Sadly, however, if you stripped off the signage, you would not see the grand old facade of the Times Tower. At an intermediate stage in the building's evolution it became the Allied Chemical Building, and the decorative stone and terracotta were stripped away and replaced with a bland white "modern" facing. The present hodgepodge of signage is actually preferable. The AIA New York Chapter's Urban Center gallery once had a great show with all kinds of serious and whimsical proposals for how the Times Tower might be restored or adaptively reused. I seem to recall that one included a roller coaster! It's too bad none of the better ones were ever adopted and carried out. Packard BuildingI would venture to say that the Packard building was a stable or carriage repair facility of some kind. That's what The Longacre was known for-If you look around on 8th Ave, there are still a very few buildings that look like the 2 just north of Packard. What a picture! Oh, and Happy New Year Electric cabOn the right, facing away from us in the distance past two hansom cabs,is an electric hansom cab with pneumatic tires. You can see the electric motors on the rear axle. The Times TowerThe building was empty for a long time, but has since been renovated and has tenants, including a Walgreens on the ground floor. Last year, Mayor Bloomberg drove through an initiative to reserve much of Times Square for pedestrians, with the result that it today looks and feels in some ways more like the 1904 photo than the one shown from 2000. +106Below is the same view (south from 46th Street) from November of 2010. (The Gallery, DPC, Horses, NYC)
Cafe Martin: 1908
... me luck. Handsome Incidentally grouped: A fancy hansom, behind which lurks a cop in his tall gray hat, two men in derbies, a ... It's always interesting to see how they turned out. Electric Cab The funny looking vehicle out front of the building on 26th ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2012 - 5:58pm -

New York circa 1908. "Cafe Martin, Fifth Avenue and 26th Street." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Previously on ShorpySame building seen here last year. I remember the Mark Cross Leather Goods building. You can see their signs painted on the side. That building and the one to the left of it are still there. I know the cornerI worked on 26th and 3rd for 10 years I walked past this corner hundreds of times on my way to work. It did not look like this though in the '70s and early '80s. This photo amongst many makes me want to crawl into it. Me like.The fire plug. I think it's an original "flip-lid" from N.O. Nelson Mfg in St. Louis. Gotta have it. So into the time machine I go with wrench in hand. May have to ask the newspaper boy to distract the flatfoot while the street repair guy and I lug it back to the machine. Wish me luck. HandsomeIncidentally grouped: A fancy hansom, behind which lurks a cop in his tall gray hat, two men in derbies, a newsie kid with his wares, and a guy in a straw boater. And this being New York, street work in progress. RoadworksThe accepted warning sign of beam on barrel plus plank might have lost some weight after nightfall. Curtains at the Cafe MartinN.Y. Times, Jan. 4 1910 The Finished ProductI happened to come across the Photochrom postcard made from this photo. It's always interesting to see how they turned out. Electric CabThe funny looking vehicle out front of the building on 26th Street is an electric cab. In 1897, electric vehicles found their first commercial application as a fleet of electrical New York City taxis, built by the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company of Philadelphia, was established. +101Below is the same view from June of 2009. (The Gallery, DPC, Eateries & Bars, NYC)
The Flat-Iron: 1903
... on the far right? Taxi The car in question is a Hansom cab built by The Electric Carriage and Wagon Company for use in New York City. They were a ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/30/2015 - 4:16pm -

New York circa 1903. "Flat-Iron Building, Fifth Avenue and Broadway." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Automobile?Any idea what type of automobile that is on the far right? TaxiThe car in question is a Hansom cab built by The Electric Carriage and Wagon Company for use in New York City. They were a failure as they were very costly to maintain. They were replaced by a fleet of French Darracq gasoline autos that proved to be more practical. +103Below is the same view from April of 2006. Equitable Life Assurance SocietySign on the third floor reads (with assistance of a magnifying glass): Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States will occupy this entire floor Oct lst 1902. StartlingSeeing the building today, it still stands out as something special. Seeing it in the context of yesteryear and its surroundings is just startling. Truly an icon. (The Gallery, DPC, Flatiron Building, NYC)
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