Building New York 1880–1935: Architecture, Construction & Labor IN PERSON

Building the Metropolis:

Architecture, Construction, and Labor in New York City, 1880–1935

(An In-Person Talk)

With Architectural Historian Alexander Wood

Presented in Partnership with The Victorian Society New York

Tuesday, February 25th at 6.00 P.M.

An In-Person and Online Program.

The in-person program will be followed by a book signing and a short reception.

In a lecture, based on his recently published book, Building the Metropolis, Alexander Wood will chronicle the sweeping history of New York’s urban development and describe how It became one of the world’s great cities.

Between the 1880s and the 1930s, New York City experienced explosive growth, as nearly a million buildings, half a dozen bridges, countless tunnels and subway tracks, and miles of new streets and sidewalks were erected to meet the needs of an ever-swelling population. This landscape—jagged with skyscrapers, clamoring with transit, alive with people—made the city world-famous.

Focusing on the work of architects, builders, and construction workers, Mr. Wood will detail the physical process of New York’s rapid expansion. The City’s development boom drew on the resources of the whole community and required money, political will, creative vision, entrepreneurial drive, skilled workmanship, and hard physical labor. Mr. Wood shows this to be a national story as well. As cities became nodes in a regional, national, and global economy, the business of construction became an important motor of economic, political, and social development.

Drawing on various sources, including city archives, the records of architecture firms, construction companies, and labor unions, Building the Metropolis will tell the story of New York in a way that’s epic, lively, and utterly original.

Alexander Wood is a historian of American architecture and urbanism. In 2021-2022, he was the Helen and Robert Appel Fellow in History and Technology at the New-York Historical Society. He holds a Ph.D. from Columbia University, a Master of Science in Architectural Studies from MIT, and a B.A in Architecture from The Cooper Union.

The book can be purchased at the talk and also online.

General Admission: $15; General Society Members, Victorian Society New York Members and Senior Citizens: $10; Students: $5.

Advance Registration required.

The General Society Library, 20 WEST 44th Street (BETWEEN 5TH AND 6th AVENUES),

New York City, www. generalsociety.org

Host or Publisher The General Society of Mechanics & Tradesmen