☞ REMEMBER: Riverside Drive circa 1879

When viewing old photos of Harlem before 1900, folks will notice the abundance of nature in the uptown neighborhoods and the top photo from 1879 isn't any different. Looking north from today's Riverside Drive and 124th Street, one can see a lone gentleman standing in the middle of the road by an old shack to the left. The only true structure in sight are some wood frame buildings in the distance which would be Manhattanville when it had all of Daniel Tiemann's paint factories on site. Further in the distance, one can see a small church steeple which would be St. Mary's and around the curb of the hill to the left, but hidden from view, would have been the Claremont Inn.

The only structure standing today from the original photo would be St. Mary's on West 126th Street but reinforced with bricks instead of wood. Where the shack once stood would rise Grant's Tomb and the distance, one can see a high rise Columbia University building (last photo). Click on photos to enlarge. The closest train to this part of town is the 1 train at 124th Street. Read more about Daniel Tiemann's factories and St. Mary's in our past post: LINK or find out about the legendary Claremont Inn: LINK. Archival photos courtesy NYPL. Color photo by Ulysses.