Seeing neighbors in the museum

This afternoon, my husband and I decided to to go to the Museum of the City of New York. There were a few exhibits that seemed appealing. We hopped on the bus and went cross-town to the East Side.

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That particular stretch of Fifth Avenue was built mostly in the 1920's. The Federalist revival was in full swing. Buildings built during the 1920's tend to have facades that are much flatter than those built from the 1880's to the end of WWI.

I was charmed by this building that seems to have been built in a hybrid Federalist/Egyptian revival style with a bit of Gothic /Deco thrown in for good measure.

I know that some architectural critics were made crazy by these sorts of architectural style salads. Visually though, the composition works and it made me happy to look at it when I walked by.

I just loved this view looking east on one of the cross streets.

We went to the Museum to see the exhibit of Jacob Riis photographs and the one on New York in the gilded age. What I hadn't expected to see was neighbors.

John Quincy Adams owned the land where my childhood home was built. He built his own grand home just up the street from where the little house I grew up in was built during the 1950's. It was nice to see John Quincy Adams' familiar face.

There was a sweet exhibit of portraits of New Yorkers from the 1700's and 1800's. I was delighted to see a portrait of

Dr. Harsen, the man who owned the land on which my apartment building was built.

After finishing at the museum we decided to walk home. It was chilly (down coat weather) but bright. Despite it's being cold clearly Spring was on it's way.

The late afternoon light is my husband's favorite. It was particularly beautiful as we walked home through Central Park.

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sarah in nyc

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