Thomas Silk

New batch of tour dates are now available and I can’t believe June is even on the schedule already. I’ve included a few weeknight tours as we have the extra light on our side. To book either head to my bio or go to Landmarksofny.com.

After seven years of Landmarks of New York, I’m starting a Patreon page. Don’t worry, my instagram will be staying exactly the same, I’m not abandoning this platform. But in the past few years I’ve been wanting to experiment with creating other types of content that don’t lend themselves to social media, such as longer videos, podcasts and just longer essays on topics. I may even dabble with more history outside of New York State. If that’s of any interest to you, or you just want to support the work I’ve been doing, hop on over and think about becoming a patron. I’ll also be announcing all tour dates there first so if you’ve been trying to get on a specific one, this might be for you. Patron or not, thank you all so much for the support you continue to give me, this is the best corner of the internet and I can’t wait to continue sharing my love of this city and state with you.

After five years of work, I’m so excited to share the first physical copy of my book, Hidden Landmarks of New York. I’m especially thrilled that I got to open it with my son, two of my greatest creations in one place 😉. I am so grateful to all of you, who made this even possible, and a big thank you to my editor Lisa and the folks at @bdlev who took a chance on me. There is still plenty of time to pre-order, the book officially launches on October 22nd and is available wherever fine books are sold. I’m seriously so stunned that I’m even holding this thing, and it looks absolutely amazing. Thanks again to all of you, I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed creating it. This is also a good moment to point out that I’m a much better architectural photographer than product photographer so go easy on the photos of the actual book.

First time in a while that I’m not doing a post about New York. I’m in Newport for the weekend visiting some of the mansions owned by famous New Yorkers. First stop is The Elms. Built in 1901 for Edward Berwind whose house still remains on fifth Avenue. Can’t wait to share more.

These four buildings are what’s left of a group of nine houses that collectively made up La Grange Terrace, also known as Colonnade Row. In the 1830s, this was the most desirable address in New York City. John Jacob Astor had purchased this land and made Lafayette Street a cobblestone cul-de-sac. He hired either Seth Greer or Alexander Jackson Davis to design these houses, and they were built in 1832. Astor named the group La Grange Terrace in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette’s estate in France. Among some of the notable residents of the row were John Jacob Astor II, Edwin Morgan, and the grandfather of FDR. As time went on, the elite of New York began to move to Murray Hill, leaving this area in a state of decay. In 1902, the other five houses were torn down, leaving just these four. Some of the columns from these houses are now at the Delbarton School in Morristown, New Jersey. The remaining houses have been converted into a variety of purposes, including apartments, restaurants, and theaters. They were among the earliest landmarks in New York, receiving their designation on October 14th, 1965.

It might just be me, but I always find it funny to see old buildings with chain restaurants in them. Not in a funny “haha” kind of way but funny interesting. This building in particular at 70 Prince Street is one of the oldest buildings in the neighborhood. It was built for Patrick Sherryd in 1827 as a Federal style home during the rapid residential expansion in Soho, becoming one of the most populous wards in the city. In the 1880s, the ground floor was converted into a storefront. Today it is a Dig restaurant and an apartment. It was landmarked as a part of the SoHo Cast Iron Historic District Extension on May 11th, 2010.

The south side of Great Jones Street is lined with rather tall old warehouses, with Nos. 31 & 33 being the exception. Despite their size, they pack a historical punch. They were both built in 1871 by different developers. The first occupant of No. 31 on the right was Fire Patrol No. 2 of the New York Board of Fire Underwriters. The NYBFU, as I’m calling it, was effectively an insurance company combined with a private fire department, which was established in 1855. They would remain in the building until 1907, after which it was turned into apartments followed by a Ford Repair Shop. The sign on the top for Joseph Scott Trucking Company is not original to the building and was added on in 1970. No. 33. Was built for the Wilcox and Gibbs Sewing Machine company, which would remain here until 1925. It was then occupied by Bernard Beinecke & Co. a meat company which would lend its name to the sign on the top of the building. Bernard Beinecke was fascinating in his own right. He was an immigrant who worked his way up at the meat company and eventually bought it. He would go on in life to become a developer, famously being one of the men behind the redevelopment of the Plaza hotel in 1905. After the Beinecke moved out, it too was an auto mechanic. Both 31 & 33 Great Jones Street were landmarked as a part of the Noho Historic District on May 13th, 2008.

Just a few blocks south of the Manhattan Bridge is an easy-to-miss memorial. This is the Kimlau War Memorial, which is dedicated to the Chinese Americans who served in the armed forces during the Second World War. Benjamin Ralph Kimlau was a bomber pilot who was shot down in the Pacific at the age of 26 in 1944. Kimlau was born in Massachusetts and raised in Manhattan’s Chinatown. After the war, the American Legion Post in the area was named in his honor. By the 1960s, the post looked for an architect to design a war memorial to memorialize Chinatowns’ war dead. They chose architect Poy Gum Lee, a prolific Chinese American architect who grew up on Mott Street, to do just that. Lee graduated with degrees from Columbia and MIT and worked for the YMCA in China. The arch represents his style of combining modern, for the time, architectural styles with traditional Chinese designs. The arch was dedicated in 1962. While there are many landmarked buildings in Chinatown, the Kimlau War Memorial is the only one that specifically recognizes the contributions of New York’s Chinese population. It received its designation on June 22nd, 2021.

In 1897, the State of New York authorized the creation of what would become the Brooklyn Botanic Garden on a patch of land bounded by Flatbush and Washington Avenue. Part of the land was donated by the Brooklyn Museum for its creation. The Botanic Garden was founded with the idea of making research in botany accessible to the public. As a result, they needed a laboratory. William Kendall of McKim, Mead, and White was responsible for the design. The Laboratory was built in phases between 1912 and 1917 and was inspired by churches in the Lombardy region of Italy. The overhead of the original building is shaped like a cross. As the laboratory grew, additional wings were added. Today, it is home to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden Library. It was landmarked on March 13, 2007. These photos are a mix of Kodak Gold 200 and Ultramax 400.

The Flatbush Dutch Reform Church is one of the oldest churches in New York and the oldest religious site in the city. There has been a church here since 1650, when the Director General of New Amsterdam, Peter Stuyvesant, called for its founding. To house the clergy, there were multiple parsonages built. This one was constructed in 1853 on Flatbush Avenue on the site of the original 1699 parsonage. It was moved to its current location on Kenmore Terrace in 1918 due to rising land values on the avenue, which must have been a sight to see. It was landmarked on January 9, 1979.

In 1898, following the consolidation of the five boroughs of New York City, a municipal building boom began. With a new sense of civic pride and a necessity for increased public services, many libraries, schools, police, and fire stations were built, including this one on Broome Street. Construction began in 1898 and was completed a year later for Fire Engine Company 55. At the time it was built, it could hold four horses to draw the company’s steam engine and wagon to help fight fires throughout Little Italy. It has served continuously as a firehouse for over one hundred and twenty years. It was landmarked on October 13th, 1998.

If you’ve ever wanted to see the inside of a brownstone, now’s your chance. This is 608 2nd Street, one of 26 homes built on this side of the street in 1903. It’s currently for sale, would you live here? Full tour available on my Patreon and YT.