Fascinating Photos Show New York City as It Was in the 1930s

• 20.3K

20.3K

^{Brooklyn Bridge span as it reaches land above South Street near James. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library}

When you think of New York City, you likely think of its gleaming skyline that features some of the most iconic skyscrapers on earth.

Many of them - the Empire State Building included - were built during the Great Depression, projects to help employ workers desperate to support their families.

A pioneering photographer, Berenice Abbott, wanted to document the rapid changes that were occurring in the city as streets and homes were destroyed to make way for new construction.

^{Looking down Broadway at the ornate Bank of Sicily Trust building. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

She pitched a project, called Changing New York, to the Federal Art Project - a government program for unemployed artists and related workers during the Depression - in 1935.

The project was picked up, and Abbott set out to photograph the city's "unseen" sides - not the iconic locations but instead the side streets, people commuting to work, and otherwise documenting old New York before it was razed in the name of progress.

^{Broome Street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

Between 1935 and 1939, Abbott shot 305 images that showed the beauty in the mundane of the daily lives of the people of New York.

The project was completed in 1939, just in time for the World's Fair in Flushing Meadow, New York.

The Federal Art Project also compiled Abbott's images into complete sets, which it distributed to area schools, libraries, and other public entities around the city.

Below is a sampling of some of Abbott's incredible images of Old New York.

^{Oak and Chambers Streets, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

Learn More:

• Lunch Atop a Skyscraper: The Story Behind the Death-Defying 1932 Photo
• The Oldest Surviving Aerial Photo Was Taken From a Hot Air Balloon Over Boston in 1860

^{Fulton Street Dock with the Manhattan skyline in the background. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Lenox Avenue, Harlem. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

 ^{Hester Street, between Allen and Orchard Streets, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Pier 14, North River, from West and Fulton Streets, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Roast corn man, Orchard and Hester Streets, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

Learn More:

• 70 Amazing Historical Photos You Need to See Before You Die
• From eBay to Garage Sales: Photo Discoveries Worth Millions

^{Jefferson Market Court, southwest corner of Sixth Avenue and West 10th Street, looking north from southwest corner of Sixth Avenue and West 9th Street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Vista from West Street, 115-119 West Street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Shelter on the waterfront, Coenties slip, Pier 5, East River, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Old Post Office, Broadway and Park Row, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Under Riverside Drive Viaduct, 125th Street at 12th Avenue, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

Learn More:

• Stories of Lost Cameras That Were Found Under Amazing Circumstances
• 11 Interesting and Bizarre Photos Caught by Google Maps

^{Blossom Restaurant, 103 Bowery, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{John Watts statue, from Trinity Churchyard looking toward One Wall Street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Snuff Shop, 113 Division street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Seventh Avenue looking south from 35th Street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

^{Huts and unemployed, West Houston and Mercer Street, Manhattan. Image credit: Berenice Abbott/New York Public Library.}

Learn More:

• These Amazing Photos Show Abandoned Submarines and Bases From Around the World
• This Astronaut's Photos of Earth From Space Have to Be Seen to Be Believed

Via Daily Mail

---

• Facebook
• Twitter

---

Best Print Product 2021

Try HDR with your photos

Print your photos

Sell your lens

Save $$ on lens

Best Camera Strap

Backdrops You Need

Camera deals you want

We Recommend