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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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Christmas Holidays The Gilded Gentleman Writers and Artists

Christmas In Old New York: The Ultimate Holiday History Podcast

This week we’re highlighting an especially festive episode of the Gilded Gentleman Podcast — the Bowery Boys spinoff podcast hosted by Carl Raymond — an episode with double the holiday fun, tracing the history of holiday celebrations over 19th-century New York City history. Licensed New York City tour guide and speaker Jeff Dobbins joins host Carl for… 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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Holidays

Celebrate the season with these Bowery Boys Holiday Podcasts

Whether you’re baking, wrapping presents or just staring in wonder at your Christmas tree decorations, take a break from the Christmas music and dive into these holiday themed podcasts from the Bowery Boys. Celebrating many aspects of New York City during the holiday season — from Rockefeller Center, Dyker Heights and beyond…. The Rockefeller Center… Read More

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Holidays

‘Twas The Night: A New York Christmas tradition in an uptown cemetery

Clement Clarke Moore, the lord of Chelsea (the manor for which the neighborhood is named), lived a long and distinguished life as an educator and land developer, dying in 1863 at his home in Newport, Rhode Island. He was originally buried in the churchyard of St. Luke-in-the-Field (pictured below) in the area of today’s West Village. In… Read More

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Holidays The Gilded Gentleman

The Sparkling History of Champagne: A Festive Month of Podcasts

This year it’s going to be a very merry holiday season in the podcasting world — courtesy The Gilded Gentleman, the Bowery Boys spin-off podcast hosted by Carl Raymond. Through the month of December, The Gilded Gentleman will feature brand new, holiday-themed shows with special guests. These episodes are perfect for getting you in the… Read More

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Holidays ON TELEVISION Podcasts

The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree: A History in Branches

PODCAST The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree has brought joy and sparkle to Midtown Manhattan since the early 1930s. The annual festivities may seem steady and timeless but this holiday icon actually has a surprisingly dramatic history. Millions tune in each year to watch the tree lighting in a music-filled ceremony on NBC, and tens of… Read More

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Bowery Boys Bookshelf Holidays

The 2022 Bowery Boys History Book Holiday Gift Guide

The best gifts in the world are books and history lovers, in particular, want nothing more than more books than they possibly have time to read. (My own library and its aching shelves are witness to this.) Here are some of my favorite books of 2022 (with a couple award-winners published in 2021), stories which… Read More

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Holidays Newspapers and Newsies

How New York newspapers covered the first Labor Day — September 5, 1882

Clothing cutters, horseshoers, shoemakers, upholsterers, printers, house painters, freight handlers, cabinet makers, varnishers, cigar makers, bricklayers and piano makers. The first American Labor Day began on September 5, 1882, with 10,000 workers from a wide variety of occupations circling Union Square, then parading up to the area of today’s Bryant Park. (A picnic ‘after party’… Read More

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Holidays New Amsterdam

How Dutch New Amsterdam helped create the American Christmas tradition

After reading this article on the origins of Christmas in America, find some information about a virtual Christmas in Old New York tour from Bowery Boys Walks. There are many different ways to celebrate Christmas, a national holiday derived from the union of Christianity and capitalism. How one chooses to mark the occasion is a… Read More

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Health and Living Holidays

Toxic Turkey Day: New York City’s smoggy holiday crisis

On November 24, 1966, millions of spectators flooded Broadway in New York City to watch the Macy’s Day Parade on Thanksgiving morning. The iconic floats – Superman, Popeye, Smokey the Bear – were set against a grey sky that can only be described as noxious. A smog of pollutants was trapped over New York City,… Read More

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Food History Holidays

Loft’s Candies: Vintage Halloween treats from the Jazz Age

The Loft Candy Company exclusively operated several locations throughout the New York area in the 1910s-30s, many of them proper restaurants. For the Jazz Age candy lover, they were heaven on earth. Occasionally you’ll find an old Loft’s neon sign today, peering from a crumbling facade. Loft’s candy factory was over in Long Island City,… Read More

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Holidays Those Were The Days

Bowlers and Bonnets: A History of the New York Easter Parade

For almost 150 years, budding fashionistas have been prancing up and down Fifth Avenue on Easter Sunday, displaying elaborate bonnets, hairdos and colorful outfits. Given that modern holiday celebrations are often relatively new (for instance, trick-or-treating has only been a common activity on Halloween since the 1950s), this decorative practice located at this particular spot… Read More

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Events Holidays

The Bowery Boys Holiday Special: Finding a little joy in a difficult year

The Bowery Boys Holiday Special is now available for those who support the Bowery Boys Podcast on Patreon at any level. To join in the revelry, head to Patreon and sign up! Spike that hot cocoa and put on your finest Robert Moses-dressed-as-Santa-themed pajamas because Greg and Tom are celebrating! The Bowery Boys look back… Read More

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Gilded Age New York Holidays

The story of the world’s first Christmas tree with electric lights

The world’s very first Christmas tree with electric lights was displayed in 1882 at the home of Edward Hibberd Johnson in the Murray Hill neighborhood of New York City. Not only did it glow with this innovative new form of illumination, this Christmas tree also spun around, revolving like a flashy new car at an… Read More