☞ REMEMBER: Hamilton Grove Then and Now

A sketch from 1896 shows the plot where the estate of Alexander Hamilton once stood on 143rd Street before it was relocated down the block to make way for the new row house that were being established in the area.  The trees in the foreground where the house once stood was Hamilton's beloved grove which would eventually be chopped down about a decade later.

Harlem historian Michael Henry Adams provided the following insight on the garden of trees in our past article:

"They were 13 Sweet Gum trees, brought as saplings from Mount Vernon by Hamilton.  With star-shaped leaves, they were meant to be emblematic of our new nation growing, flourishing, together.  Even as early as 1889, when the Grange was moved, several had already died..."

The last photo shows the new location of the Grange when it was moved once again to the north most end of St. Nicholas Park.  Those who look a little more closely when visiting the estate today for which the neighborhood was named after may actually find that there are new trees planted throughout the grounds that represent the 13 lost ones from a century ago.  Check out the archival photo in our past post: LINK

Archival sketch courtesy of the Museum of the City of New York