Robert E. Lee Monument, New Orleans, about 1906. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
The same monument in 2009:
In a bit of a departure from my usual northeast locations, I came across the c.1906 photo of the same statue that I photographed in 2009 while in New Orleans. The subject, given that it’s the south, is Robert E. Lee, and the statue has been there since 1884.
First Parish Church in Lexington, Mass., between 1900 and 1910. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
The same church in 2013:
Although many buildings in Lexington predate the historic battle in 1775, the First Parish Church building isn’t one of them. This particular church was built in 1847, replacing the 1793 one that burned in the midst of a renovation. Since then, not much has changed from this viewpoint, as evidenced by the two photos taken over a century apart.
The John Ward House, at 38 St. Peter Street in Salem, Mass, around 1906. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
The scene in 2019:
The John Ward House is one of the oldest buildings in Salem, having been built in stages between 1684 and 1723. It was originally the home of currier John Ward, and it remained in the Ward family until 1816. It was subsequently used as a bakery, and by the time the first photo was taken in the early 20th century it had become a tenement house. However, in 1910 the house was moved several blocks away, to its current location off of Brown Street, and it was restored to its colonial-era appearance. Here on St. Peter Street, nothing has survived from the first photo, but the John Ward House is still standing at its new location, and it is now owned by the Peabody Essex Museum.
The house at its current location, as seen in 2013:
The Witch House, at the northwest corner of Essex and Summer Streets in Salem, around 1901:
The house in 2019:
The Witch House in Salem is one of the oldest houses in Massachusetts, and is the only surviving building in Salem with direct ties to the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. The house was owned by one of the judges, Jonathan Corwin. It was likely built in the 1660s or 1670s, although some place its date in the 1640s or even earlier. The 1901 photo was taken prior to its restoration and move; a street widening project necessitated moving it about 35 feet, and the house was restored to its presumed 17th century appearance, which did not include the attached storefront from the 1901 photo.
City Hall in Albany, between 1900 and 1910. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
City Hall in 2009:
Albany’s current City Hall was built in 1883 to replace an earlier building that burned in a fire. It was designed by noted architect Henry Hobson Richardson, and not much has changed about its appearance in the past 100 years, other than the addition of the clock face on the tower.
The view of Easthampton from Mount Tom, between 1900 and 1910. Image courtesy of the Library of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
The scene in 2019:
Not much has changed in Easthampton in 100 years, at least nothing that it particularly noticeable from the summit of Mount Tom. President William McKinley would’ve seen a very similar view during his visit in 1899, but another famous visitor to the mountain, Jonathan Edwards, would’ve seen a very different view in the 1730s.