Fun Maps: Greenwich Village Society Historic Photo Archive Covers Three NYC Boroughs

Fans of OldNYC will be excited to see another historical photo mapping tool. The Greenwich Village Society for Historical Preservation (GVSHP) has released its historic photo archive. Though it currently only has 300 images (vs. the 21,000 in OldNYC, the images here range from 19th century drawings to images of lost buildings, to places preserved thanks to the New York City Landmarks law, and more will be added. The photos reflect specifically “the history of the people and built environment of Greenwich Village and surrounding areas,” writes GVSHP.

We’ve embedded the map above (click on the icons to see the images), but you can also browse and search on the GVSHP website.

The current batch of images is a compilation of nine collections: the Claire Tankel Collection, Victor Bonanno Collection, Sam Remo Collection, Julie Rinaldini Collection, Doris Diether Collection, William Eppes Collection, NY Bound Bookshop Collection, Nat Kaufman Collection, and Evelyn Haynes Collection. GVSHP is seeking archive donations, as well.

As GVSHP describes of the collection, “You can see the 9th Avenue Elevated when it was up and the Sixth Avenue El when it came down.  You’ll see old Department Stores, churches, and hotels; pear trees and prisons; markets and mews; libraries and La Grange Terrace; New Yorkers as varied as Peter Cooper and Montgomery Clift; and many, many pictures of Washington Square and the Washington Square Art Show over the years.”

Next, check out 10 surprising photographs of Broadway.