Postcard Thursday: The Great Fire of 1845

New Street is one of the most forlorn thoroughfares in the Financial District. Set between Broadway and Broad Street, it essentially acts as an alley today, cordoned off to most vehicles because of its proximity to the New York Stock Exchange.

However, in the 19th century it was still a bustling commercial street, and around 2:30 a.m. on the night of July 19, 1845, a fire started at the offices of JL Van Doren who was an oil merchant and candle manufacturer.

The fire spread quickly, and about two hours later reached the warehouse of Crocker and Warren, "in which was stored a very large quantity of saltpetre" (potassium nitrate), which is a component of gunpowder. Rumors swirled at the time that actual gunpowder was also stored on the premises, but those were never proven, in part because of the total destruction of the building.

Unlike the Great Fire of 1835, which burned over 700 buildings in the same neighborhood, the fire of 1845 was contained relatively quickly. This was, in part, because New York City had completed the Croton Aqueduct, which brought reliable running water to the city for first time.

As we write in Inside the Apple: 

The system was built following ancient Roman principles, with water descending by gravity from the Croton River dam, 40 miles north of the city in Westchester County, in elevated iron pipe. The city had two large reservoirs: the Receiving Reservoir, where Central Park’s Great Lawn now stands and a Distribution Reservoir on 42nd Street, future home to the New York Public Library. The system came to a grand, ceremonial terminus in City Hall Park at the Croton Fountain, the first fountain the city had ever been able to build that sprayed jets of water throughout the day.... Despite the city’s grave need for water for basic human consumption, what actually convinced the public that an aqueduct system was needed was the Great Fire of 1835, which had destroyed most of the old city. Thus [on opening day], New Yorkers weren’t just celebrating their ability to drink a clean cup of water—they were glad that the next time fire struck, the volunteer firemen would be able to vanquish it quickly.

However, while the number of buildings destroyed was minimized, this fire did kill 30 people, making it the deadliest of New York's "great" fires.

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Want to hear more about NYC history?

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Footprints in New York: Tracing the Lives of Four Centuries of New Yorkers Inside the Apple: A Streetwise History of New York City

Happy Evacuation Day... and more

We hope you are enjoying a wonderful holiday weekend. Yesterday's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was one of the largest in the parade's history--but did you know that in the early days, the parade started all the way up at 145th Street? You can read more about that in our Thanksgiving Day blog post from a few years ago.

Today is also a holiday: Evacuation Day, which celebrates the end of the Revolutionary War. The war ended November 25, 1783, right here in New York City. More details about Evacuation Day can be found at this blog entry or in Inside the Apple.

And speaking of Inside the Apple, since today is also Black Friday, we'd be remiss if we didn't remind you of all the ways you could get a hold of copies of our book for the people on your holiday shopping list.

IN NYC:
The book is available from a number of independent bookstores, including our friends at Shakespeare & Company. Or, to find if there’s a bookstore in your neighborhood that carries Inside the Apple, use this handy Indie Bound site and just plug in your zip code.

All the Barnes & Noble stores in the city also carry the book.

OUTSIDE NYC:
Indie Bound will point you to a local indepedent bookstore or Barnes & Noble’s website will show you if the book is in stock.

ONLINE
Amazon.com carries us, of course (usually at the best price) along with B&N, but so do a host of other retailers, including Powell’s, and some you might not think of, like Walmart.com and Overstock.com.

FOR YOUR E-READER

·         Kindle

·         Nook

·         Sony E-Reader

·         Google Books

·         @ iTunes

·         @ Android Market

 

"Inside the Apple" Contest ends at Midnight

Happy Cyber Monday!

Today is your last chance to enter our contest to win a free, autographed copy of Inside the Apple: A Streetwise History of New York City (and to let your friends know how they can enter). Just read our blog entry at http://blog.insidetheapple.net/2010/11/win-signed-copy-of-inside-apple.html for all the details and then tweet to win.

Good luck!

Inside the Apple -- A Great Gift

This week, the holidays are upon us: Evacuation Day [see Wednesday's post], Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Hanukkah, Solstice, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year’s – no matter what you celebrate, ’tis the season for merriment… and gift giving!

You love New York—why not share that love this year with copies of Inside the Apple? With 182 insightful chapters and 14 self-guided walking tours of the city, it is a unique way for your friends and family to learn more about the Big Apple.

But don’t just take our word for it:

The New York Times
“A smart and entertaining window on the city of the past.”

The New York Post
“Tour de force…. While the highlights of any history of New York City are all there (e.g. Ellis Island, Boss Tweed, Central Park, the murder of Stanford White) the stories seem fresher here, thanks to tour guides Michelle and James Nevius' knack for lesser-known facts and anecdotes and their deep appreciation of historical context.”

Publishers Weekly
“Considering New York's dense history, these tours offer something for everyone…. Not even natives know this much.”

Outlook Traveller Magazine
“Buzzing as New York City is, there must be several ways to write guidebooks about it that’ll hold readers in thrall. This one — with its explosive retro cover design that seems to leap off the page — is devoted to the city’s chequered history and attends to the matter streetwise…. Anecdotal and thorough, this lovely guidebook to New York City is quite as much for the newcomer as it is for the native dweller.”

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The book is available at bookstores across the country (and around the world), large and small. Consider supporting one of great New York City independents. Inside the Apple is available from many local NYC stores, including Shakespeare and Company, the Lower East Side Tenement Museum Shop, and Idlewild Books. Visit them in person or order online!

If you prefer an online merchant, the best prices can often be found at Amazon.com. Or follow these links to Borders or Barnes & Noble and you can order online or check your local store for availability.

If you’d like to see if an independent bookstore in your neighborhood carries Inside the Apple, visit Indiebound.org, where you can find your closest store or order online.

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Visit our home page to read more about
Inside the Apple: A Streetwise History of New York City.

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