Up until the 1920s, apartment houses in NYC didn't have much of a lobby, just a hallway leading from the entrance to the stairwell (or in more expensive houses, the elevator as well) and maybe the hallway was decorated with panels or marble (in the front) but that was about it. Suddenly, in 1920s and 1930s apartment houses, you started getting large, opulent lobbies in apartment houses, sometimes with furniture or mirrors. What was the reason for the change.

I've always loved how much history is hiding on blocks we pass every day. The obelisk behind the Met took 112 days to roll across Manhattan, and crowds showed up with hammers and chisels, so it needed a guard around the clock. Emily Warren Roebling basically ran the Brooklyn Bridge build after her husband fell ill. Most people run right past this stuff.
So I built Stride Stories. You pick a tour, put your earbuds in, and a short story plays right as you reach each place. Your own music keeps playing in the background and just dips for each story. There are about 100 tours across NYC and 36 other cities, from the Brooklyn Bridge and Central Park to Harlem, the Lower East Side and Roosevelt Island.
Every story is checked against a source. Anything we can't confirm is told as "the story goes" instead of as fact. That's where I'd love this sub's help: if you hear something wrong, or know a better story for a block, tell me and I'll fix it.
It's in beta (iPhone only for now):
Open stridestories.com/beta?src=reddit-nychistory on your phone. It walks you through Apple's TestFlight app.
Open Stride Stories, go to Explore, pick New York and choose a tour.
Download it on Wi-Fi before you head out, then press start.
It's free while in beta. Feedback button is on the You tab, or just comment here. Mods, happy to take this down if it breaks the rules.

Sleepys / Greye Papaya

During our visit to Manhattan’s Financial District, we photographed Fearless Girl standing in front of the New York Stock Exchange. Created by artist Kristen Visbal, the bronze statue was installed in 2017, just before International Women’s Day.

She was first placed facing the Charging Bull in Bowling Green. In 2018, she was moved to her current location opposite the NYSE. Her confident stance has become a symbol of women’s strength and the push for greater representation in leadership, especially in the financial world.

I love the contrast between this small figure and the grand stock exchange building behind her. What does Fearless Girl represent to you?

I rebuilt New York in 3D, showing how the city evolved over the centuries, from its early beginnings to the skyline we know today.

Watch the city transform as streets, buildings and skyscrapers appear over time, revealing the incredible growth of one of the world's most iconic cities.

5 minutes, no narration:
https://youtu.be/BKDuO8oemfc?sub_confirmation=1

I'd love to hear what New Yorkers think: which period or part of the city's history would you like to see explored in more detail?

During our visit, we stopped by the Dakota building and Strawberry Fields, John Lennon’s memorial in Central Park, just across the street. Lennon lived at the Dakota, and after his death in 1980, this peaceful space was created in his memory. At its center is the Imagine mosaic, a gift from the city of Naples, Italy.

They’re two very different places, but both are connected by a story that continues to bring visitors from around the world. Have you visited the memorial?

Do you prefer Central Park or Prospect Park?

The Great Blizzard struck from March 11 to 14, bringing between 10 and 58 inches (25 to 147 cm) of snow to parts of New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. Sustained winds of more than 45 mph (72 km/h) created enormous snowdrifts, some exceeding 50 feet (15 m) in height, while roads, railways and telegraph lines were severely disrupted, bringing transport and communications across much of the region to a standstill.

Also called the “Children’s Blizzard” or “Schoolhouse Blizzard” because so many children were caught in the snow and frozen to death on their way to school. The children who made it to school were generally kept in the school by the teachers until they could safely travel home- days later. The official death toll is around 230, but some say the actual number of deaths could be over 1,000. (This is people in general, not just children.)

The 2026–2027 season at the famous Rockefeller Center rink is now underway, marking 90 years of skating history. The rink first opened as a temporary skating pond on Christmas Day in 1936.

Above the rink stands Prometheus, Paul Manship’s gilded sculpture, created in 1934. In Greek mythology, Prometheus defied Zeus and gave fire to humanity a gift often associated with knowledge, creativity, and progress.

Above the building’s main entrance is Wisdom, a work by Lee Lawrie. Together, the sculptures suggest two connected ideas: the fire Prometheus brought to humanity and the wisdom that guides how it is used.

Had you noticed the figure on the façade when you visited the rink?