As each summer rolled around during the first half of the 20th century, parents, children and health officials dreaded outbreaks of poliomyelitis, commonly called polio. This was especially true in New York City, where people lived in such close proximity to each other. The polio virus is spread by person-to-person contact, is extremely contagious and can affect the spinal cord and brain. In many cases it causes paralysis and can be fatal. Polio was often referred to as “infantile paralysis,” because it was especially prevalent in children, though people of all ages could contract the disease.
Omnibuses and Horse Cars or What I Have Learned from Assisting Researchers
It always starts with “Hello. How can we help you?” A simple phrase that begins a relationship between two strangers—the researcher and the archivist/librarian. I provide assistance and guidance to DORIS’ collections. This doesn’t mean that I perform the patrons’ research for them. Sometimes I simply retrieve the requested records or book. More often, I have to dig a bit deeper into our collection guides and catalog to help patrons. It’s those occasions that I find the most interesting and when I learn the most.
Take Me Out To the Ballpark
When researchers think about Municipal Archives collections, generally the focus is on genealogical records or mayoral papers or 19th-century maps. However, the collections are vast and broad in scope, containing material on a range of surprising non-governmental topics such as food, fashion, music, and even baseball. Yes, the national past-time is well represented in the Municipal Archives.
From the Ground Up: A Survey of the Map Collections of the Municipal Archives
In 1891 the Metropolitan Underground Railway Company presented a grand plan for New York City. They proposed to construct a set of tunnels and tracks that would crisscross Manhattan, connecting the Battery to 155th Street, as well as Jersey City and Brooklyn at an estimated cost of $60,000,000. While elevated lines were already in existence, this new transit system would alleviate traffic, reduce noise, protect service from the elements, and propel New York into the 20th Century. Included in the proposal were plans for an East River Tunnel, drawn up by Chief Engineer Charles M. Jacobs. From Battery Park to Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, it would whisk travelers and freight between the boroughs in record time. Alas, the venture never came to fruition, at least, for Charles Jacobs. Instead he would helm the construction of a different kind of East River tunnel: a gas line connecting 71st Street to Ravenswood (now part of Long Island City) that was completed in 1894.
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On April 5, 2018, at a ceremony hosted by the New York Archival Society in the Rankin Reading Room at the Department of Records and Information Services, Commissioner Pauline Toole read a proclamation from Mayor Bill de Blasio announcing April 6, 2018, in the City of New York as “Idilio Gracia-Peña Day.” Society President Kevin Foley introduced Mayor David N. Dinkins who graciously acknowledged the decades of service to the City of New York by his friend and appointed Commissioner, Idilio Gracia Peña.
Digitizing Historical Photographs
On April 5, 2018, at a ceremony hosted by the New York Archival Society in the Rankin Reading Room at the Department of Records and Information Services, Commissioner Pauline Toole read a proclamation from Mayor Bill de Blasio announcing April 6, 2018, in the City of New York as “Idilio Gracia-Peña Day.” Society President Kevin Foley introduced Mayor David N. Dinkins who graciously acknowledged the decades of service to the City of New York by his friend and appointed Commissioner, Idilio Gracia Peña.