PXL_20240922_155754595

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 14:03:03 -0500

This is a view of lower Manhattan in 1855 from an observatory built for an early world's fair. This is in the New York Historical Society. The Croton reservoir, at 5th Avenue and 42d Street, was a favorite place to stroll and enjoy the view, like today's Highline Trail. The Crystal Palace, beside the reservoir, was put up for the same fair. By 1912, both had been torn down and replaced by New York Public Library and Bryant Park. Foundation stones of the old reservoir still are visible under the library building.