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Brooklyn History On The Waterfront Podcasts

Behind the Domino Sign: The Story of Brooklyn’s Bittersweet Empire

The Brooklyn waterfront was once decorated with a yellow Domino Sugar sign, affixed to an aging refinery along a row of deteriorating industrial structures facing the East River. The Domino Sugar Refinery, completed in 1883 (after a devastating fire destroyed the original), was more than a factory. During the Gilded Age and into the 20th… Read More

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Gilded Age New York Parks and Recreation Podcasts Skyscrapers

It Happened at Madison Square Park: The Heart of New York During the Gilded Age

So much has happened in and around Madison Square Park — the leafy retreat at the intersections of Broadway, Fifth Avenue and 23rd Street — that telling its entire story requires an extra-sized show, in honor of the Bowery Boys 425th episode. Madison Square Park was the epicenter of New York culture from the years… Read More

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Bowery Boys Parks and Recreation Podcasts

New York City Parks: The Bowery Boys Podcast Collection

We love talking about parks on the Bowery Boys podcast because they are an excellent way to experience history and recreation at the same time. In February we will be bringing you two all-new episodes related to two New York City parks — one park which traces back to the founding of the United States… Read More

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Amusements and Thrills Podcasts Writers and Artists

Truman Capote’s Black and White Ball: The Absurd Story of a Marvelous Party

PODCAST Your ticket to Truman Capote’s celebrity-filled party at the Plaza. This month FX is debuting a new series created by Ryan Murphy — called Feud: Capote and the Swans — regarding writer Truman Capote‘s relationship with several famed New York society women. And it’s such a New York story that listeners have asked if we’re going… Read More

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Bridges Podcasts Revolutionary History

Kosciuszko! The Man and the Bridge: A Thrilling Tale of Revolution and Pollution

The Kosciuszko Bridge is one of New York City’s most essential pieces of infrastructure, the hyphen in the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway that connects the two boroughs over Newtown Creek, the 3.5 mile creek which empties into the East River. The bridge is interestingly named for the Polish national hero Tadeusz Kościuszko who fought during the American… Read More

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Bowery Boys Podcasts

The Bowery Boys Podcast Year In Review 2023

Thank you for making 2023 another excellent year for the Bowery Boys podcast. This year our shows spanned hundreds of years of history — from the Dutch wall of New Amsterdam in the 1650s to the paparazzi woes of Greta Garbo in the 1950s — and looked at many forgotten aspects of city life like… Read More

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It's Showtime Music History Podcasts

Leonard Bernstein’s New York, New York

On the morning of November 14th, 1943, Leonard Bernstein, the talented 25-year-old assistant conductor of the New York Philharmonic, got a phone call saying he would at last be leading the respected orchestral group — in six hours, that afternoon, with no time to rehearse. He later recalled, “I don’t remember a thing from that… Read More

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Gilded Age New York Holidays Podcasts Religious History

Grace Church: Heavenly Style and High Society in Gilded Age New York

Manhattan’s Grace Church sits at a unique bend on Broadway and East Tenth Street, making it seem that the historic house of worship is rising out of the street itself.  But Grace is also at another important intersection — where religion and high society greeted one another during the Gilded Age. Grace is one of… Read More

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Bridges Gilded Age New York Podcasts

The Roeblings: The Family Who Built The Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge, which was officially opened to New Yorkers 140 years ago this year, is not only a symbol of the American Gilded Age, it’s a monument to the genius, perseverance and oversight of one family. This episode is arranged as a series of three mini biographies of three family members — John Roebling,… Read More

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Holidays Podcasts Revolutionary History

Evacuation Day: The Forgotten Holiday of the American Revolution

For decades New Yorkers celebrated Evacuation Day every November 25, a holiday marking the 1783 departure of British forces from a city they had occupied for several years. The events of that departure — that evacuation — inspired annual celebrations of patriotism, unity and a bit of rowdiness. Evacuation Day was celebrated well until the… Read More

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Film History Podcasts Pop Culture

Garbo Walks: A Tale of Old Hollywood in New York City

Garbo in New York! A story of independence, glamour and melancholy, set at the intersection of classic Hollywood and mid-century New York City. This is the biography of a legendary star who became the city’s most famous ‘celebrity sighting’ for many decades while out on her regular, meandering walks. Garbo had once been Hollywood’s biggest… Read More

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Music History Podcasts Preservation

Last Dance at the Hotel Pennsylvania

PODCAST When it opened in 1919, the Hotel Pennsylvania was the largest hotel in the world. Over a hundred years later, its fate remains uncertain. Is it too big to save? (NOTE: Alas the hotel was torn down in 2023.) After the Pennsylvania Railroad completed its colossal Pennsylvania Station in 1910, the railroad quickly realized it would… Read More

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Mysterious Stories Podcasts

Gotham’s Greatest Ghosts: The Bowery Boys Halloween Specials

Our first ghost stories show was released on October 11, 2007, featuring New York City’s famous haunted tales and urban legends (with historical context). Since that time we have released seventeen Halloween-related shows as well as a recording of our Joe’s Pub live show. Take a spooky trip down memory lane with a re-listen to… Read More

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Gilded Age New York Podcasts

The Gilded Age Mansions of Fifth Avenue: At Home with the Astors and Vanderbilts

So we don’t know if you’ve heard, but New York City is an expensive place to live these days. So we thought it might be time to revisit the tale of the city’s most famous district of luxury — Fifth Avenue.   For about a hundred years, this avenue was mostly residential— but residences of the most… Read More

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Mysterious Stories Podcasts

The Bowery Boys Halloween Special: Ghosts of the Gilded Age

This newly edited edition of this episode of the Bowery Boys is now running on the The Gilded Gentleman podcast. Listen today: PODCAST Four strange and spooky tales taken from New York City newspaper articles published during the Gilded Age For this year’s 10th annual Bowery Boys Halloween special, we’re highlighting haunted tales from the… Read More