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[UPDATED] Guess The Year: A New York City Block
By
Jen Carlson
Published Apr 3, 2012
Modified Apr 4, 2012
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Apr 3, 2012
Modified Apr 4, 2012
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Photo courtesy of the MCNY
It's been a while since we challenged you with a Guess The Year post, so here we go. Can you guess what year, and even better, where this photo was taken? We'll update later with the date, location, and a photo of what this area looks like now.
UPDATE: This photo was taken on the west side of 5th Avenue, between 54th to 55th Street, in 1923.
A little tidbit about 5th Avenue during that time: a year prior to this photo, the city had just "reacted to complaints about the ongoing replacement of Fifth Avenue's mansions by apartment buildings by restricting the height of future structures to 75 feet, about half the height of a ten-story apartment building. Architect J. E. R. Carpenter brought suit, and won a verdict overturning the height restriction in 1923," arguing that "the avenue would be greatly improved in appearance when deluxe apartments would replace the old-style mansions." On the Museum of the City of NY's site, these buildings are listed as apartment buildings.
Here's the next block, between 56th and 55th Streets, from the east side:
Photo courtesy of the MCNY
RobertMosesSupposesErroneously came pretty close!
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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