She challenged Robert Moses to preserve Washington Square Park and helped save Shakespeare in the Park. In the process, she became a zoning expert.
Tag Archives: Historic Buildings and Sites
Behind the Trees, a Brooklyn Artists’ Collective
A historic house in Clinton Hill South has been colonized by painters, designers, poets, architects and activists, living and working together.
Stabilized Notre-Dame Cathedral Is on Track for 2024 Reopening, Officials Say
The restoration effort is seeking to meet President Emmanuel Macron’s ambitious plan to reopen the cathedral five years after it was ravaged by a fire — just in time for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
How to Learn More About the History of Your Home
Tracking down property records and researching other documents can shed light on the life of a house.
How Old Is This Old House?
Property records don’t go back far enough to date some houses. But experts can pinpoint a house’s age by studying tree-ring patterns in the house’s timber.
Interactive Shadowboxes Breathe Life Into the Legacies of Village Artists
“Village Voices,” an interactive outdoor exhibition, honors Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker, Jackson Pollock and more.
Cave Featuring Native American Wall Art Is Sold to Anonymous Bidder
The cave, which sold for $2.2 million in St. Louis on Tuesday, is considered a sacred site by members of the Osage Nation. A tribal leader called the sale “heartbreaking.”
Looking for a Gold-Rush Town Named Chinese Camp
A writer went searching for Asian American history in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, where thousands of Chinese immigrants labored during the Gold Rush but where traces of their presence are few.
Michel Laclotte, Who ‘Created the Modern Louvre,’ Dies at 91
He championed two of the most debated architectural projects in recent Paris history: the Musée D’Orsay (in a former train station) and the Louvre pyramid.
‘Golfing Heaven’ in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides
An isolated archipelago may seem an unlikely golf destination, but both history and location have made it just that.
Developers Plan to Demolish Al Capone’s Mansion. Some Want It Preserved.
The gangster’s former refuge on Palm Island, Fla., near Miami Beach, is dividing residents and city officials: Should it be razed to make way for a modern home?
Questions Swirl After Yet Another Emmett Till Sign Comes Down
A historical marker that stood outside the Mississippi shop where 14-year-old Emmett Till encountered the woman who accused him of whistling at her, may have been toppled by a truck. But a historical center is reluctant to call it an accident.
Want to Solve the Housing Crisis? Build More, and Build Higher.
Down with historic preservation!
Kolkata’s ‘Fairy Tale’ Trams, Once Essential, Are Now a Neglected Relic
The few riders left say the 140-year-old system makes sense for a city of 15 million struggling with pollution and overcrowding. But many trips now are more nostalgic than necessary.
Where Home Blends With Community
How co-housing in four places in the Netherlands and Belgium is helping people cope with rising costs, keep loneliness at bay and live more sustainably.
Historic London Synagogue Fights to Stay Out of the Shadows
The 320-year-old Bevis Marks Synagogue claims that two new proposed office towers would block its sunlight and add to the sense of enclosure amid the skyscrapers of the financial district.
The Dream May Be Over for the Grand Prospect Hall
The Grand Prospect Hall, a Brooklyn icon that was built 129 years ago and made famous by its eccentric TV commercials, has a new owner who wants to demolish it.
Staging ‘The Glass Menagerie’ on the Fire Escapes That Inspired It
At Tennessee Williams’s childhood apartment in St. Louis, one of his most famous works has become an immersive event.
The Struggle to Save a House of Music, and Its Legacy
For decades, the Tangier home of Abdellah El Gourd has been a wellspring of the Gnawa musical tradition and a place of pilgrimage for jazz performers. But it has fallen into deep disrepair.
The Eternal Charm of Nathan’s Famous Hot-Dog Stand
For over 150 years, Coney Island has been a beloved summer refuge for New Yorkers looking to escape the heat — and eat the season’s best snacks.
A Mississippi Restaurant Has Been Beloved for Decades. But There’s Another Story to Tell.
Lusco’s, a century-old fixture in the Delta, became known for its food, and for Booker Wright, a Black waiter who dared to tell the truth about the Jim Crow-era South.
The 25 Most Significant Works of Postwar Architecture
Three architects, three journalists and two designers gathered over Zoom to make a list of the most influential and lasting buildings that have been erected — or cleverly updated — since World War II. Here are the results.
The Travel Industry’s Reckoning With Race and Inclusion
Tourists, particularly Black travelers, are paying close attention to how destinations and travel service providers approach diversity and equity after a year of social justice protests.
UNESCO Mosul Competition Design Prompts Outcry
The restoration is seen as essential to the idea that the Iraqi city has moved on from ISIS. But some critics say the plan betrays Iraq’s heritage.
Colosseum Opens Its Belly to the Public
The underground warren where ancient Roman gladiators and animals awaited their fates has been restored.
City Approves Landmarks Honoring Chinese Americans and Native Americans
The Kimlau War Memorial in Manhattan has long been a symbolic gateway to Chinatown, while an archaeological site in Staten Island dates back 8,000 years.
Stripping Away History’s Layers, and Revealing a New Museum
About 200 of France’s top craftspeople collaborated to restore the Hôtel de la Marine in Paris to its original 18th-century splendor.
Touring Alaska in an R.V.
For a photographer based in Juneau, two Alaskan roads — the Glenn Highway and the Richardson Highway — formed the backbone of a stunning late-spring road trip.
A Second Life for North Carolina’s Shuttered Factories
With the rise of remote work, developers are betting they can lure young talent and raise economic prospects for the state’s depressed areas.
Cornelia Oberlander, a Farsighted Landscape Architect, Dies at 99
Her acclaimed modernist but naturalist designs recognized the fragility of the climate and the social effects of parks and playgrounds.
6 U.S. Destinations for a Remote-Working Vacation
As workers prepare to return to the office in coming months, here are six towns and cities to consider squeezing in a working vacation or two.
M.T.A. Bus Crashes Into Brooklyn Home, Injuring 16
An M.T.A. bus slammed into a historic rowhouse in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, injuring several people aboard the vehicle, the authorities said.
Where Oscar Wilde Once Slept (in Prison Garb)
Activists are trying to preserve the prison he was sent to after his conviction for “indecency,” saying his life is an important part of Britain’s history.
Book Review: ‘How the Word Is Passed,’ by Clint Smith
In “How the Word Is Passed,” the poet and journalist Clint Smith visits nine places to assess how we are reckoning with our racial history and its legacy.
The New Detectorists
As an old outdoor hobby draws new followers, metal detectors are sweeping the country.
A Historic Brooklyn Mansion Goes on the Market for $30 Million
The 1901 building, which faces Prospect Park, has been owned by the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture for 74 years and could set a borough record.
Rethinking What It Means to Be a Philadelphia Artist
In a major interior expansion directed by Frank Gehry, the Philadelphia Museum of Art opens new spaces and invites new artists in.
The Art-Filled Studios Gertrude Whitney Left Behind
The sculptor, who founded the Whitney Museum, created her own art in studios on Long Island and in Greenwich Village. The future of both is uncertain.
Antioch, California, Apologizes for Mistreating Chinese Immigrants
The mayor of Antioch, Calif., said the city was going to designate the site of its former Chinatown as a historic district.
Along the Columbia River, Making a Monument of the Land
In the Pacific Northwest, Maya Lin’s ‘art landscapes’ celebrate the river’s partnership with Native American tribes.
Nottingham’s Dilemma: Robin Hood or High Tech?
An unlamented mall in the heart of the English city is being demolished. But what should go in its place?
Immerse Yourself in Indigenous Culture
From Virginia to California, these eight parks, heritage centers and open-air exhibits offer fresh opportunities to confront the history and the present-day realities of Native Americans.
‘Selling the Family Jewels’: A James Joyce Landmark Is Set to Become a Hostel
A planned overhaul of the Dublin home that was the setting for the writer’s short story “The Dead” was opposed by writers, artists, academics and heritage groups.
San Francisco Makes Home of Lesbian Couple a Landmark
The home of Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin, the first same-sex couple to legally marry in California, was an integral meeting spot for activists.
Old Buildings, New Views
Recent renovations around town have uncovered views of Manhattan that had been hiding in plain sight.
How a $180 Million Parking Lot Could Change N.Y.C.’s Historic Character
Will a skyscraper at the South Street Seaport set a precedent for development in historic districts?
A 140-Year-Old Hemlock Was Lost. Now It Has New Life as Art.
The sculptor Jean Shin gravitates to castoff objects, including a threatened tree at Olana, the former estate of Frederic Church.
A Candidate for N.Y.C. Mayor Is Accused of Sexual Assault
A woman who worked on a campaign decades ago with Scott M. Stringer, the comptroller, said she had feared retribution if she spoke out.
A Billion Dollar Battle Over a Parking Lot at the Seaport
For decades, development of a scruffy lot on the edge of the South Street historic district has divided residents. Now our critic supports a new plan.
Stained Glass That Breaks All the Rules
Los Angeles’s oldest stained glass studio, Judson, is collaborating with emerging and established artists to modernize a medieval craft.