{"id":85301,"date":"2025-12-31T07:03:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T07:03:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/85301\/"},"modified":"2025-12-31T07:03:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T07:03:08","slug":"upper-west-side-historical-photo-challenge-no-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/85301\/","title":{"rendered":"Upper West Side Historical Photo Challenge No. 17"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Rob Garber for the Bloomingdale Neighborhood History Group<\/p>\n

Welcome to another installment in the Rag\u2019s Historical Photo Challenge. In honor of the UWS\u2019s own Marty Reisman, table tennis legend and inspiration for the movie \u201cMarty Supreme,\u201c here are images of four ping pong emporiums.\u00a0 How many can you identify? Post your identifications to the comments section, then check in to see what your neighbors have to say and come back two weeks from now when the solutions will be posted, you\u2019ll learn the stories behind the images, and a new UWS Historical Photo Challenge will be presented.<\/p>\n

Solution to Historical Photo Challenge No. 16<\/p>\n

Subject:\u00a0 Billboard blight on Riverside Drive
Location: Riverside Drive looking northeast from West 94th Street
Year: 1913
Image Source: Report of the Mayor\u2019s Billboard Advertising Commission of the City of New York
Clues: Last week\u2019s challenge featured two photographs.\u00a0 Together, they present several clues that suggest their location.\u00a0 If you didn\u2019t recognize the fa\u00e7ade of 244 Riverside Drive on the SE corner of West 97th Street in the top photo, then the lower photo, showing the backside of a fence supported by props, might be the key.\u00a0 At its top center you can see the exuberant cornice of The Peter Stuyvesant at 258 Riverside Drive, now alas removed.\u00a0 The tops of buildings sticking up from 96th Street in the upper photo complete the identification\u2014the photographer was standing on the short 96th Street viaduct, now sometimes called Riverside Bridge.\u00a0 Designed by Carr\u00e8re & Hastings, the viaduct was adorned with ornate railings and splendid lampposts, all stolen for the value of their bronze in the mid-1970s.\u00a0 But none of this is the reason for challenging you with these two photos\u2026<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Top left and right: Riverside Drive and the bridge at West 96th Street in 1913 and 2025.\u00a0 Middle left: the backside of billboards masking a vacant lot at West 96th.\u00a0 Middle right: the West 96th St bridge in 1974.\u00a0 Bottom left: the Peter Stuyvesant, highlighting its cornice. Bottom center: a lamppost on the bridge.\u00a0 Bottom right: base of the stolen lamppost in 2025.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rest of the story: \u2026 these photos were taken to illustrate a turn of the century billboard blight.\u00a0 A surprising amount of Manhattan real estate was still held in an undeveloped state in the 1910s, waiting for the property to appreciate enough to either sell it or build on it.\u00a0 While it was empty, property owners erected fences, partly to keep squatters off but also to generate income by renting it as ad space.\u00a0 Everything from vaudeville shows to beer was advertised.\u00a0 And one row of ads wasn\u2019t enough\u2014\u201ddouble deckers\u201d were common and \u201ctriple deckers\u201d were a real eyesore.\u00a0 Much of this vacant land was in Upper Manhattan, but it could also be found in some surprising places, including right next door to Andrew Carnegie\u2019s mansion on Fifth Avenue.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Left: Fifth Avenue at East 90th Street near Carnegie Mansion. Right: Fifth Avenue at East 108th Street.<\/p>\n

An attempt was made to rein in the billboards through the work of Mayor William Gaynor\u2019s Commission on Billboard Advertising.\u00a0 The commission\u2019s recommendations were not enacted but did become part of the influential City Beautiful movement, which ultimately increased awareness of urban aesthetic considerations and historic preservation.\u00a0 Thanks to such efforts, the scourge of outdoor advertising has been vanquished from the Upper West Side.\u00a0 Wait, what?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Riverside Drive Viaduct at West 131st Street in 1913 (left) and 2025.<\/p>\n

Shoutout to readers: This one wasn\u2019t much of a challenge\u2014many Rag readers recognized the 96th Street bridge.\u00a0 Anthony Bellov added some commentary on the Cliff Dwelling building; he and Alex and Tom Adams homed in correctly on the date as the mid-1910s.<\/p>\n

\u2026and that\u2019s the story behind the mystery image.\u00a0 Now scroll back to the top of the column and take on your next challenge, Sherlockians!\u00a0 If you\u2019ve missed any pictures in this series, here is the\u00a0complete collection<\/a>.<\/p>\n

About the author:\u00a0\u00a0Rob Garber<\/a> has lived on the Upper West Side since the late 20th\u00a0century and\u00a0is a member of the Bloomingdale Neighborhood History Group.\u00a0\u00a0To learn more, visit their website at\u00a0upperwestsidehistory.org<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0All photos in Upper West Side Historical Photo Challenge are used by permission.<\/p>\n

Subscribe to West Side Rag\u2019s FREE email newsletter\u00a0here<\/a>. And you can Support the Rag\u00a0here.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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