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Inside The New York Botanical Garden

Past in Focus: The Library Building

Posted in Around the Garden, From the Library on January 15 2012, by Matt Newman

Our historical archives are something of a treasure chest for history buffs, stuffed with 100-year-old photographs of a Garden in transition. I sometimes find myself digging through them just for contrast and comparison (and the fashion sense of our forebears; I really want to bring back flat-brimmed straw hats). My latest dig yielded some interesting results, not to mention a new series we hope to keep up with in the future.

More specifically, it produced a Library Building (better known then as the Museum Building) and its surroundings at the turn of the century:

Library Building -- November 15, 1901
The Museum Building -- November 15, 1901


At the turn of the 20th century the means for construction were a little less sophisticated than they are today–horses and steam engines were the rule. But even without the modern benefit of diesel-driven power equipment, old New York got the job done.

Library Building
The Library Building -- April 15, 2011

In a little over a century much has changed, and yet there are so many aspects that remain constant. At times, seeing elegant, classic architecture like this makes you wonder if today’s developers will once again see the beauty in doric columns, or egg-and-dart molding.

Historical photos courtesy of the LuEsther T. Mertz Library archives.