A Bespoke reader sent in these incredible photos of vintage posters that have been exposed by a demolition crew working on a building at 145th Street and FDB. From the style of the artwork, it appears that these probably are from the late 50s to early 60s. The first poster showcases an event at the legendary Rockland Palace by 155th Street which once hosted Harlem's gay ballroom scene in the earlier part of the 20th century but was eventually demolished in the 60s. Another lodge mentioned at the lower photo is actually the Alhambra Ballroom which still exists today at 126th and 7th Avenue. These would have been great collector items if they were in good condition but most of the memorabilia has been severely damaged and probably ended up in the dumpster by now.
Read more about the the Rockland Palace in our past post:
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Probably from 1965. Probably even around May of that year. The bottom poster is dated May 22, 1965, and May 29 was a Saturday in 1965 (the previous time it fell on a Saturday was 1954 and the next time was 1976). The middle one is in the same general condition, so I bet it's from around the same time.
ReplyDeleteIf the place was not slated for complete destruction, just putting frames around these 3 amazing pieces with the rest of the wall cleaned up could have been a brilliant design addition to many types of businesses.
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