Views from the Digital Collections: New York in 1950

The Third Avenue Elevated railway, which operated in Manhattan and later in the Bronx, opened in 1878. Service was phased out in sections between 1950 and 1973 and the demolition of the line was completed in 1977.

United Nations, N.Y.C., Secretariat Window Cleaner, 38th Floor. Although 450 UN employees started working at the building in August 1950, the UN's official move took place the following January as it relocated from its former headquarters in Lake Success, New York on Long Island.

Researchers in the Library's Main Reading Room, as seen from the east balcony in 1950. The room, now called the Rose Main Reading Room, is roughly two city blocks long with 52-foot-tall ceilings displaying murals of vibrant skies and billowing clouds.

The Member of the Wedding, adapted by Carson McCullers from her novel, opened on January 5, 1950 at the Empire Theatre starring Ethel Waters, Julie Harris, and Brandon De Wilde. The theatre, which opened in 1893 on Broadway and 41st Street, was a major factor in the northward shift of New York's theater district from Union Square to Times Square. It was demolished in 1953.

Dinner menu from Tavern on the Green, Wednesday April 19, 1950. Offerings include Chopped Chicken Livers (¢.75), Jumbo Frogs Legs Saute ($2.95), Lemon Sole Grenobloise ($2.45), Boiled Beef with Horseradish Sauce ($3.15), and Ice Cream Roll with Nesselrode Sauce (¢.30). "Dancing nightly from 6:45 to closing."

View of the Savoy Ballroom at night, on Lenox Avenue between 140th and 141st Streets, in Harlem. The Savoy operated between 1926 and 1958 and was the country's first integrated dance hall attracting the best Lindy Hoppers, jazz musicians, and iconic singers such as Lena Horne, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, Sara Vaughan, and Frank Sinatra.

A woman walking near Wanamaker's Department Store located at the corner of Fourth Avenue and East 9th Street. Built in the 1860s, Wanamaker's was demolished after a massive fire in 1956 and replaced with a large apartment building.

Six girls on a brownstone stoop. Brownstones and stoops are about as New York as it gets.

Luncheonette, New York City. Like their predecessor, the automat, luncheonettes—typically with counter seating and simple menus—offered quick, affordable meals on the go for low-wage workers.

Penn Station, New York City. When it opened in 1910, the station was considered an architectural gem and a masterpiece of the Beaux-Arts style. The exterior featured columns inspired by Classical Greek structures such as the Acropolis in Athens. The above-ground portions of Penn Station were demolished and rebuilt beginning in 1963.