As signified by Manhattan’s horse-drawn taxis and the superfluous beachwear at Coney Island, these photographs of New York were taken at the turn of the last century. Oh, wow. That reminds us why they’re called bathing suits. Naturally, it’s intriguing to see the evolving stages of NYC’s mythological, cinematic landscape, its seaports, bridges, and train tracks. Yet, we find ourselves utterly distracted by the residents — the strolling shoppers of the Union Square flower market, the olde fashionistas of Greenwich Village, the sheep herder at Prospect Park… wait, what? Yes, a sheep herder. Plucked from the Library of Congress by the Business Insider, take a gander into the New York of yore in our gallery.
The Brooklyn Bridge. Image credit: Library of Congress
Mott Street (Chinatown). Image credit: Library of Congress
Coney Island. Image credit: Library of Congress
11th Avenue. Image credit: Library of Congress
Central Park. Image credit: Library of Congress
South Street Seaport. Image credit: Library of Congress
Union Square, flower market. Image credit: Library of Congress
Prospect Park. Image credit: Library of Congress
Greenwich Village, hot dog festival. Image credit: Library of Congress
Broadway at night from Times Square, New York, N.Y. Image credit: Library of Congress