Series I: New York City Views - Manhattan

Series I New York City Views - Manhattan is arranged in an organizational structure by topic of the view. VIEWS include aerial views (those taken from airplanes or from the top of a tall building) and birds-eye views (generally 19th-century prints), as well as general views.

Harbor views are those which show the shore and skyline of Manhattan from the water, or from across some body of water. Some river and harbor views that show more than one borough are filed here. If the view is mainly of another borough, it will be filed therein. For views of the Manhattan harbors and piers from within the city, also look under Rivers.

RIVERS, ISLANDS, and BRIDGES are arranged alphabetically. Most buildings on islands (for example, asylums on Roosevelt Island) are filed under general Buildings headings. It behooves researchers to look under both headings to be sure of complete coverage.

STREET SCENES are views along streets and avenues. Some show a small portion of one block, some show several blocks. For views that specifically spotlight one building, search under BUILDINGS. However, researchers should also search the street scenes for other images of a specific building, especially those which may also show surrounding buildings and street and sidewalk traffic. Street scenes are arranged alphabetically or numerically. Researchers interested in specific areas should also consult surrounding streets, such as the avenues and appropriate cross streets.

PARKS and GARDENS include images of parks and gardens, some now defunct.

BUILDINGS are prints or photographs that spotlight a specific building. Churches and houses of worship are filed alphabetically by name following the organization provided in David Dunlap's encyclopedic work From Abyssinian to Zion, which is available for reference.

NOTE: Churchesand Synagogues also includes temples, other houses of worship, convents, retreat houses, and cemeteries. Government buildings include police and fire stations. Residences are filed alphabetically by the last name of the owner, or by their own name, if applicable. Cross-references have been provided in those cases. Named apartment complexes are filed in alphabetically with residences, and unnamed apartment buildings can be found at the end of the run.

TRANSPORTATION includes images of all sorts of transportation found within the boundaries of New York City. For more general transportation (i.e. generic railroad images), look in the Subject File (PR 068). This category mainly includes images of buses, carriages, elevated railroads and subway images. Images of shipping boats can sometimes be found in Harbor Views, and also in the Maritime History File (PR 100).

EVENTS include views of special events, such as parades, funeral processions, celebrations, and fairs. Researchers looking for parade images should also check street scenes for those streets that are often parade routes, such as Broadway and Fifth Avenue.

Material housed in boxes includes many photos by Beecher Ogden, and also a great many images (most copy photographs) collected and donated by George Bagoe.

Material housed flat has been separated into two categories based on format: Prints and Photographs. Within each format, material has been arranged into the above categories. Each image filed under the Buildings categories is separately listed in the finding aid below. In other categories, attempts have been made to provide more specific information about images in each folder, to reduce browsing and encourage more specific use.