Derek Strahan

Aside from running the Lost New England blog, Derek Strahan is the author of two books: Lost Springfield, Massachusetts and New England Then and Now, along with being the host of the Western Mass History podcast. Derek is a graduate of Westfield State University, with degrees in English and Regional Planning, and he currently works as a land use and environment planner in Western Massachusetts. Derek also serves on the board of directors of the Springfield Preservation Trust, and he lives in Western Massachusetts with his wife Melissa and their two sons.

Casino Theatre, New York City (2)

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The Casino Theatre in New York City, around 1900. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

Theaters

The scene in 2014:

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A view of the Casino Theatre looking south from across 39th Street and Broadway. The theater was completed in 1882, but was closed and demolished in 1930 as the theater district moved its way north along Broadway.  At the time of this photo, the theater was playing “The Belle of Bohemia,” and the round sign on the corner of the building advertises that all seats for Wednesday matinees cost 50 cents.

Corner of Mulberry & Mosco Streets, New York City

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Clam sellers at the corner of Mulberry & Mosco Streets, New York City, around 1900:

The location in 2014:

This scene, looking up Mosco Street, is at the heart of what was once the Five Points neighborhood.  Mosco Street was originally named Cross Street, and was one of the streets that formed the Five Points intersection, which was located a block in the opposite direction.  This area became an infamous slum in the 19th century, and was the setting for the movie “Gangs of New York.” Today, the renamed Cross Street has been truncated to just one block; it ends at Mulberry Street, and all of the buildings on the west side of Mulberry (including the building on the far right of the first photo) were demolished to create Columbus Park. The building across the street is still there, although the corner entrance has been remodeled. Aside from that, the rest of the facade is still recognizable. Another difference is the makeup of the neighborhood; in 1900 this was a part of Little Italy, but today it has been absorbed into Chinatown.

Broadway & 29th Streets, New York City

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The view looking north along Broadway, just above 29th Street, after a snowstorm around 1905. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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The same scene in 2014:

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I’m sure the “straw hats for this sweltering weather” really came in handy in the 1905 photo.  Not much has stayed the same along this stretch of Broadway – the only building I can identify in both photos is the one on the far right, although even this building has been altered in the past 100+ years.

28th Street Subway Station (2)

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Another view of the 28th Street station, around 1904. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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The station in 2014:

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One of the now-closed exit stairways in the 28th Street station. The first plot was probably taken around the time it opened, on October 27, 1904. Notice the mosaic of the station name to the left, which is still there after 110 years.

28th Street Subway Station (1)

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The 28th Street subway station on the Lexington Avenue line, around the time that it opened in 1904. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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The station in 2014:

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The 28th Street station on the Lexington Avenue Line was part of New York’s first subway line. The station opened on October 27, 1904, and the first photo was probably taken around that time.  Notice the lack of turnstiles – when the subway first opened, employees would stand at the entrance (between the curved iron railings on the right-hand side) and collect fares. Also, the station originally had separate stairways for entering and exiting – exiting passengers didn’t need to pass back through the fare collection area. Overall, not much looks the same today, although the mosaics on the walls are still there. Otherwise, the changes seem to be for the worse, although I’m sure the present-day photo would look far better than a photo from the 1970s or 80s.

On a different note, I am fairly certain that these two photos show the same platform (uptown), but it is difficult to distinguish the two with any degree of certainty, so the 1904 photo could actually be of the downtown platform. Either way, they look almost identical, so a photo of either one would still accurately reflect the changes over the past 110 years.

Subway Station 23rd Street & Lexington Ave, New York City

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The entrance to the 23rd Street subway station on Lexington Avenue, around 1905. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.

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The station entrance in 2014:

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The subway station is still there, but the elaborate entrance and exit kiosks are long gone.  The 23rd Street station was opened in 1904, along the Lexington Avenue Line, the first subway line in New York.  In the intervening years, this intersection has remained remarkably unchanged, even down to the “East 23rd Street” lettering on the corner of the building above the station entrance.