tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post7525880127515974040..comments2024-03-27T05:56:36.051-04:00Comments on H A R L E M + B E S P O K E: ☞ REMEMBER: Harlem by Jonathan GillUlysseshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00817576268296958520noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-89166371224391763392012-12-26T16:50:44.320-05:002012-12-26T16:50:44.320-05:00I just came across this book-WOW I knew some of t...I just came across this book-WOW I knew some of the early Dutch but this gives me alot more. I am decended from Johannis/Jean de la Montagne. I only wished the Dutch treated the natives fairly. His daughter, Rachel de la Montagne Van Imbroch was captured by the natives and escaped. Luckily her children were not hurt in the raid that did kill many villagers- One of Rachel's decendants is Teddy Roosevelt.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-68560796000060777632011-01-27T18:51:11.932-05:002011-01-27T18:51:11.932-05:00Hey, after reading the post here, just picked up a...Hey, after reading the post here, just picked up a copy at B&N. What a great, comprehensive book on Harlem. Incredibly detailed and very intelligently written. Some very interesting things to say about some famous Harlem-ites - this guy holds nothing back. Well done.Guestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-63631320209685662902011-01-27T15:01:46.541-05:002011-01-27T15:01:46.541-05:00Jonathan, thanks for a comprehensive answer and re...Jonathan, thanks for a comprehensive answer and references.westsiderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01054880627414562052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-83585526525537440712011-01-27T04:23:42.664-05:002011-01-27T04:23:42.664-05:00Re Westsider's Question:
There's no one e...Re Westsider's Question:<br /><br />There's no one easy timeline, because parts of Harlem (Manhattanville and to a lesser extent Carmansville on the Hudson, and the old village of Harlem on the Harlem River) were industrialized and urbanized well before the Civil War, while other parts remained unbuilt well into the 1920s (the Abyssinian Baptist Church was built on farmland). <br /><br />Remember also that the 1811 street grid was purely theoretical uptown for much of the nineteenth century. <br /><br />As for transportation, horse-drawn and steam-driven trains overlapped with the elevated, which overlapped with the subway. But to be very general, we can say that Harlem was largely rural until the large plots were broken up and sold off in the decades after the Civil War. Big mansions rose uptown throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In contrast, the brownstone era uptown is, again roughly speaking (and by brownstone I mean a single-family, two-to-four-story residence or rowhouse), from the 1880s (mostly in lower Harlem, especially surrounding what was then Mount Morris Park) through World War I, while the tenement era (by tenement I mean a multi-unit building from four to six stories) lasts from the the 1860s to the 1920s (mostly near the urbanized sections, again, by the rivers). Before the turn of the century, elevator technology leads to the rise of apartment houses, mostly in lower Harlem and along the parks. <br /><br />Why such haphazard development? Because uptown Manhattan developed both spontaneously (laborers needed cheap housing near the factories where they worked and rich downtowners wanted to locate their mansions and townhouses in cleaner, quieter neighborhoods) but also in response to top-down plans coming from downtown--remember that mass transportation arrived uptown before the masses, i.e., not in response to demand but as a way of creating demand.<br /><br />The best guide here is either the AIA Guide or Robert A.M. Stern. Or, take advantage of the benign neglect that has been both a blessing and curse uptown and check things out in person: The Dyckman farmhouse; the Hamilton Grange and Morris-Jumel Mansion; the most representative tenements are in East Harlem and on either side of Broadway in the West 140s; the brownstones west of Mount Morris Park; the Grinnell on West 116th Street as representative of the grand apartment house. As for transportation, you can still see the trolley rails in the pavement under the Manhattanville viaduct.<br /><br />This is off the top of my head, but I hope it helps!Jonathan Gillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-33387539893428263832011-01-26T19:34:36.276-05:002011-01-26T19:34:36.276-05:00Question for Jonathan Gill, I understand Harlem wa...Question for Jonathan Gill, I understand Harlem was farmland, then elevated trains, then street grid, then brownstones, I am sure I am oversimplifying and maybe the order is wrong however, can you put date ranges to each of these stages in Harlem’s development and especially the first brownstones and where? Many thanks.westsiderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01054880627414562052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-24356960044882987862011-01-26T19:25:29.443-05:002011-01-26T19:25:29.443-05:00Mine just arrived from Amazon (I know--I should h...Mine just arrived from Amazon (I know--I should have gone to a real book store) and it looks wonderful. Can't wait to dive in.Sanou's Mumnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-62821695173860568642011-01-26T13:49:55.824-05:002011-01-26T13:49:55.824-05:00For those who inquired, I understand from my publi...For those who inquired, I understand from my publisher that a Kindle edition will be available in a few days.<br /><br />Also, I'd be glad to answer any questions Harlem Bespoke readers might have, anything from details about a particular building or historical figure to broader themes. At the very least, if I can't answer the question myself, I could point out places to look further.Jonathan Gillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-33117413734125709102011-01-25T14:09:56.654-05:002011-01-25T14:09:56.654-05:00Great interview -- and I'm getting a copy of t...Great interview -- and I'm getting a copy of the book for myself as well...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-71001659878871717502011-01-25T09:32:41.658-05:002011-01-25T09:32:41.658-05:00Yes, my copy has two photo inserts--so 32 pages of...Yes, my copy has two photo inserts--so 32 pages of photos.gattopardonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-23690487934651930992011-01-25T08:01:16.885-05:002011-01-25T08:01:16.885-05:00I'm often on 8th Street & 6th Ave and noti...I'm often on 8th Street & 6th Ave and noticed it the other day in the Barnes & Noble window - 6th Ave side. Will pick one up today! Thank you, UlyssesAFineLynehttp://www.afinelyne.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-72890014936974958062011-01-24T22:09:08.755-05:002011-01-24T22:09:08.755-05:00Is this book full of illustrations (in which case ...Is this book full of illustrations (in which case I'd want a paper copy), or is it just text (in which case I'd get it on my Kindle, which I prefer)? Anyone know?Guestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-91436648044117670412011-01-24T20:21:25.269-05:002011-01-24T20:21:25.269-05:00God Bless You Once Again Ulysees!God Bless You Once Again Ulysees!Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06558758450413912484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-40669487491875517762011-01-24T20:06:46.521-05:002011-01-24T20:06:46.521-05:00Harlem itself is huge and impossible to put in one...Harlem itself is huge and impossible to put in one box, similarly Harlem’s history is diverse and complex, seems like this book is not limiting itself to one part of Harlem’s long and varied history, this will go on my reading list. Thanks for a great interview and post.westsiderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01054880627414562052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-73134832797877142182011-01-24T18:48:41.996-05:002011-01-24T18:48:41.996-05:00Just ordered my copy. THANK YOU both, Ulysses and ...Just ordered my copy. THANK YOU both, Ulysses and Jonathan Gill. <br />@Guest: The book is available for Kindle at Amazon.comvalgbnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-34293101529480029962011-01-24T18:44:49.148-05:002011-01-24T18:44:49.148-05:00This is so necessary. I'm sure it's an am...This is so necessary. I'm sure it's an amazing story.the harlem jakehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11170906469326679213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2048034911181517049.post-13164358214008187552011-01-24T17:26:13.335-05:002011-01-24T17:26:13.335-05:00Any plans to bring this book to the Kindle?Any plans to bring this book to the Kindle?Guestnoreply@blogger.com