1911- A Trip Through New York City

[demmiblue]

Old film of New York City in the year 1911. Print has survived in mint condition. Slowed down footage to a natural rate and added in sound for ambiance. This film was taken by the Swedish company Svenska Biografteatern on a trip to America

[mithnanthy]

1. That was AMAZING!

The clothing styles were refreshing.

[TuxedoKat]

2. Very interesting

Thanks for sharing. Saw very few people who looked overweight and the few that were, not by that much.

[COLGATE4]

3. At about 3:01 isn't that the

Triangle Building where the terrible Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire killed scores of women workers?

[demmiblue]

5. It is the Flatiron Building

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatiron_Building

[COLGATE4]

7. Of course you're right. Don't know why I didn't remember

"Flatiron" building. Thanks.

[smirkymonkey]

14. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory building still exists but it's down on Washington

Square Park/NYU area. There is a plaque on the building commemorating the event. It always made me feel very sad every time I passed it.

[A HERETIC I AM]

12. The Flatiron Building is at East 23rd and 5th avenue....

The Triangle Shirt Waste Building is near Washington Square Park, about 5th street, just off Broadway.

So about 3/4 mile apart.

[secondwind]

4. Loved it! Thank you!

[Kashkakat v.2.0]

6. VERY COOL! glad they figured out how to correct speed finally - when I was a kid I used to think

that people back then just walked funny. EVEN later on, knowing it was because of thE OLD FIlm method, the fast and jerky look of it made the old film hard to watch and feel much connection with it.

THIS slowed down version lets you take in more of the detail and lets you feel kinda like you are there!

[NBachers]

8. Absolutely fascinating - Thanks for posting this!

[Mister Ed]

9. Fascinating. Thanks for posting. n/t

[elleng]

10. Thanks, great to see,

thoughts of Dad (who was born in 1913) and aunt, uncles and Grandpa.

[A HERETIC I AM]

11. Very cool....imagine the smells!

The days before deodorant! And all the horses.....

I'm sure New York, as well as any large city back then was a panapoly of interesting odors!

[Kashkakat v.2.0]

13. Looked like a lot of smoke -coal burning? nt

[A HERETIC I AM]

16. I'm sure.

[smirkymonkey]

15. Just fascinating!

I never get tired of looking at old photos/films! One of my greatest fantasies is to go back in time. Everything about this was so interesting, the architecture, the transportation (transition between horse-drawn carriages and cars, street cars and the elevated subway) the clothing, the way the people looked and carried themselves.

Thank you so much for posting! It was such a treat!

[Staph]

17. Fascinating!

Did you notice that everyone, man, woman and child, is wearing a hat? And most of the women are wearing gloves, and a few are carrying umbrella in the sunny weather. Skin cancer was not nearly as common then, when folks took realistic precautions.

[NNadir]

18. Absolutely fascinating. It was the dawn of the automotive age. I've read that...

...at the time the automotive industry was widely regarded as having huge health benefits in cities owing to the fact that it alleviated the problem of horse manure accumulations.

Of course the health consequences of cars in cities are terrible today. One can see that air pollution was already a New York problem in 1911.

The Els are long gone in Manhattan now, but I'm old enough to remember when there were a lot of them, although probably I'm remembering Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens.

(I believe there are still some in Brooklyn and maybe the Bronx, but most of my trips by subway are in Manhattan, and I only drive in Brooklyn on very rare occasions. If I recall correctly though, the #7 train out to Citi Stadium in Queens is elevated. I'm sure I've ridden that line in the distant past.)

I love New York City; I still think of it as the Greatest City in the World, although Paris is certainly up there with it, and New York, like the Presidency, is stained by association with the orange nightmare, the spawn of Hell.

Nevertheless, some of the most beautiful days in my life are associated with Manhattan, and I was just talking to my oldest son this morning at breakfast how one of my happiest memories is the day I spent with him at MOMA, at a time he was emerging from some transient psychological difficulties. It was one of the happiest days of my life, and we got to see Beckmann's triptych "Departure." An unbelievable day, and a day that can only take place in a city like New York.

Thinking of a day like that removes the pain of considering the horrible ignorant and unintelligent thing in the White House with a fellow bigot who, regrettably was once Mayor of New York.

[Donkees]

19. Elevated railroad in New York - "The End of The EL" - 1955

Published on Apr 17, 2011
Newsreel story about the closure of New York's elevated railroad that ran above 3rd Avenue. The line was dismantled in 1955. .

[llmart]

20. That was an incredible video!

Both my parents were born in 1911, so it gave me some perspective on that time.

I thought it was so funny that they just step right in the horse manure when crossing the street. Then they'd probably go to work or to shop or eat in a restaurant with that on the bottom of their shoes.

Also, I like how they walk right in front of a streetcar.

People on DU find the most amazing things online. That's why I come here often too.

[Rhiannon12866]

22. I know! This is fascinating!

We were taught to look both ways, while these people walk right in front of or around streetcars with no hesitation. Everyone is walking or riding in the street at the same time!

My grandmother was born in 1900 so she must have encountered scenes like this. She definitely remembered the advent of cars. There must have been accidents, but they make it look easy. I love footage like this since life has obviously changed so much, but it really wasn't that long ago...

[Ron Obvious]

21. The one-legged man could easily be a civil war veteran.

I love this sort of thing -- it's like time travel.

[Tipperary]

23. Wow.

Thanks for posting!

[LNM]

24. Wow! Thanks for sharing! nt