Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue Between 190th and 193rd Streets

Mary Sargent © 2010 ………………….………..…… ………………….. click to enlarge

Okay, now we're back on the Washington Heights walk, briefly interrupted for some snow pics.

Would you believe that these buildings are part (the back part) of George Washington High School?  Here's the front.  According to Wikipedia, Maria Callas attended this high school.  Also Henry Kissenger.  And since they were both born in 1923, they must have attended at the same time.  Can't you just see them as teenagers, holding hands, going to the soda shop after school?

See map.

Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue Between 190th and 193rd Streets

Mary Sargent © 2010 ……………………….. click to enlarge

Tonight I went to the trouble of photographing a section of my map and posting it here because I know you don't look at the map links I usually include and you need to know where this walk took place.




I'm not sure if this helps though.  Too little.  (You could enlarge it.)  And yet I had to give you enough for location purposes.  Okay, see the curvy street in red at the center right?  The top part of that is Ft. George Avenue.  The straight part is Amsterdam Avenue.  There is no indication, either in actual reality, or online, where one stops and the other begins, so I'm going to say that Ft. George is the curve and Amsterdam is straight.  You needed to know.

You also need to see High Bridge Park on a map because it's quite large and yet largely unknown in Manhattan.

In case you still don't know where you are, this is at the top of Manhattan; there's the Cloisters on the left, Dyckman Street, the southern border of Inwood, is above the Cloisters.

Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue Between 190th and 193rd Streets

Mary Sargent © 2010 ……………………….. click to enlarge

Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue at 190th Street

Mary Sargent © 2010 ……………………….. click to enlarge

This is one entrance to Highbridge Park, which runs from 155th to Dyckman Street along the Harlem River.  There is plenty to say about Highbridge Park and we will say it in nights to come but tonight is but a lick and a promise because I'm falling asleep over my keyboard.

Upper West Side, Amsterdam Avenue at 84th Street

Mary Sargent © 2009 ………………….…………… ………………….. click to enlarge


Ah.  Le Pain Quotidien across the street.  I bet they have hot coffee.  Yes, they do, you can sit at their communal table, get yourself a latte, it comes in a bowl like in Paris, and you pay, um, with tax and tip, you pay $5.00.  Bit steep, but I had to have it.  The bowls are good for warming your hands.

And this, my friends, is the end of this walk, as I went straight home after this.  Who knows if I will get out tomorrow?  Not I.  I can't shake this cold and if it's bad outside, I'm staying inside.  We'll see.

Manhattanville, Amsterdam Avenue at 126th Street

Mary Sargent © 2009 ……….. click to enlarge

According to Kevin Walsh at forgotten-ny.com, this building was originally the Bernheimer and Schwartz Pilsner Brewing Company, built in 1905. Now known as the Mink Building (presumably because it was a fur storage center for 50 years), it's mixed use, office and retail space. It is on the north side of 126th Street.


And on the south side?




Mary Sargent © 2009 …................................…….. click to enlarge

A live poultry store! Yes! Below La Granja in very faint lettering, it says Live Poulty. See below.



Mary Sargent © 2009 ….............................…….. click to enlarge

The Mink Building is reflected in whatever is between us and the chickens.

The New York Times recently had an article about slaughter houses in New York City. Interestingly, they're on the increase. There are now about 90 live poultry markets in the metropolitan area and that is double what it was in the mid-90s. This is because of increasing demands from immigrants who want to check out their food before they select it. Far from being incongruous to have these places in New York, we have "probably the country’s highest concentration of live-animal markets." It's a big city kind of thing, I guess.


See map.

Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue at 173rd Street

Mary Sargent © 2009 …………………………………….. click to enlarge




Mary Sargent © 2009 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

Right smack at the end of 173rd Street at Amsterdam Avenue is this arresting building. The sign says Highbridge Play Center. According to the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission, which granted landmark status to this building on August 14, 2007, this is a bath house, an Art Moderne-style bath house. Where there's a bath house, there must be a, uh, in this case, a huge swimming pool. Built by Robert Moses in 1936 over a reservoir that was part of the Old Croton Aqueduct. Oh, I'm just paraphrasing what's in the article. You should just go to the article and read it for yourself. It's worth it. There's a picture of the pool, too.

See map.

Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue Between 181st and 182nd Street; 182nd Street Between Amsterdam and Audubon Avenues

Mary Sargent © 2008 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

After going as far east as I could go on 181st Street, I turned back, and here at Amsterdam Avenue, I spied my destination: the Eleanor Roosevelt Junior High School. I mean, a corner of my destination; it's there on the right side of the photo.



Mary Sargent © 2008 …………………………………….. click to enlarge


Here it is. One block long. This one's for you, Gladys.




Mary Sargent © 2008 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

This friendly student told me that, yes, this is the main entrance. It is a modest entrance for a block long building. She then said I should go in and turn left and walk down the hall to a room where they would answer all my questions. Okay. But once inside, it seemed more sensible to talk to the guard instead. I asked him my one question - did he know when the building was built. He said, I think the 60s. Or maybe the 30s. Hmm. When I went back out the friendly student showed me where the date was carved into the building: 1965.




Mary Sargent © 2008 ………. click to enlarge


See map.

Washington Heights, Amsterdam Avenue at 181st Street

Mary Sargent © 2008 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

See, I told you we were running out of city. We're in Illinois now. Just kidding. Those treetops you're seeing are growing up from Highbridge Park, which is a big, big park, I'm always surprised to see. And I'm a sucker for these late afternoon slanted light, dramatic clouds landscapes.

See map.

Upper West Side, Amsterdam Avenue between 104th and 105th Streets

Mary Sargent © 2007 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

I double love this photograph. I can't explain it.

See map.

Upper West Side, Amsterdam Avenue between 103rd and 104th Streets

Mary Sargent © 2007 …………………………………….. click to enlarge


See map.

Upper West Side, Amsterdam Avenue Between 101st and 102nd Streets

Mary Sargent © 2007 …………………………………….. click to enlarge


You all know that Amsterdam Avenue is really Tenth Avenue. The name was changed in 1890 (above 59th Street) to add some cachet to the neighborhood.

See map.

Morningside Heights, Amsterdam Avenue at 111th Street

Mary Sargent © 2007 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

Here's the top of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine from 111th Street. You'll have to wait until I walk 112th Street for a full frontal shot. As you can see, the cathedral is still being built. It was begun in 1892 and it is still being built. As you might imagine, there were some setbacks along the way. For the full story go here.


Mary Sargent © 2007 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

I walked onto the grounds, looking for a little garden way in the back that I remember from when I lived here. I'd come here sometimes and be the only one here. Then on September 11, 2002, Luka and I sat in the garden while inside they were reading the names of all those who died in the terror attack the year before.

Here's the side of the cathedral.

Morningside Heights, Amsterdam Avenue at 111th Street

Mary Sargent © 2007 …………………………………….. click to enlarge

Here 111th Street stops at Amsterdam Avenue and here we have this, uh, sculpture called the Peace Fountain. I've never seen anything look more unlike a peace fountain than this monstrosity. From the website Sacred Destinations: The Peace Fountain depicts the struggle of good and evil. The forces of good, embodied in the figure of the archangel Michael, triumph by decapitating Satan, whose head hangs from one side.

Decapitation for peace! There's a rallying cry.

Morningside Heights, Amsterdam Avenue Between 118th and 116th Streets

Mary Sargent © 2006 …………….....……….. click to enlarge

This is the last shot of my October 7 walk, now turning on Amsterdam and walking downtown to 110th, then back to Broadway and subway home. Columbia University to the right in this shot.

Upper West Side, Amsterdam Avenue at 83rd Street

Mary Sargent © 2006

After work on Thursday, I met Barbara at her apartment on West 88th Street and we walked down Amsterdam looking for a place to eat. Finally settled on Fred’s. It was all right, we sat outside on a nice cool evening. It’s getting dark earlier and as we sat there, the street lights came on, giving a little kick of excitement. The margarita helped. I had a pulled pork sandwich and Barbara had a Cobb salad. Meanwhile, across the street . . . were they having more fun at the Hi Life? The cocktail glass flashed off and on.

Later, while I was inside, Barbara entertained herself by watching the goodlooking shirtless man in the apartment above the Hi Life make up his bed.