Preserving South Street Seaport tells the fascinating story, from
the 1960s to the present, of the South Street Seaport District of
Lower Manhattan. Home to the original Fulton Fish Market and then
the South Street Seaport Museum, it is one of the last
neighborhoods of late 18th- and early 19th-century New York City
not to be destroyed by urban development. In 1988, South Street
Seaport became the city's #1 destination for visitors. Featuring
over 40 archival and contemporary black-and-white photographs, this
is the first history of a remarkable historic district and maritime
museum. Lindgren skillfully tells the complex story of this unique
cobblestoned neighborhood. Comprised of deteriorating, 4-5 story
buildings in what was known as the Fulton Fish Market, the
neighborhood was earmarked for the erection of the World Trade
Center until New Jersey forced its placement one mile westward.
After Penn Station's demolition had angered many New York citizens,
preservationists mobilized in 1966 to save this last piece of
Manhattan's old port and recreate its fabled 19th-century "Street
of Ships." The South Street Seaport and the World Trade Center
became the yin and yang of Lower Manhattan's rebirth. In an
unprecedented move, City Hall designated the museum as developer of
the twelve-block urban renewal district. However, the Seaport
Museum, whose membership became the largest of any history museum
in the city, was never adequately funded, and it suffered with the
real estate collapse of 1972. The city, bankers, and state bought
the museum's fifty buildings and leased them back at terms that
crippled the museum financially. That led to the controversial
construction of the Rouse Company's New Fulton Market (1983) and
Pier 17 mall (1985). Lindgren chronicles these years of struggle,
as the defenders of the people-oriented museum and historic
district tried to save the original streets and buildings and the
largest fleet of historic ships in the country from the schemes of
developers, bankers, politicians, and even museum administrators.
Though the Seaport Museum's finances were always tenuous, the
neighborhood and the museum were improving until the tragedy of
9/11. But the prolonged recovery brought on dysfunctional museum
managers and indifference, if not hostility, from City Hall.
Superstorm Sandy then dealt a crushing blow. Today, the future of
this pioneering museum, designated by Congress as America's
National Maritime Museum, is in doubt, as its waterfront district
is eyed by powerful commercial developers. While Preserving South
Street Seaport reveals the pitfalls of privatizing urban renewal,
developing museum-corporate partnerships, and introducing a
professional regimen over a people's movement, it also tells the
story of how a seedy, decrepit piece of waterfront became a
wonderful venue for all New Yorkers and visitors from around the
world to enjoy. This book will appeal to a wide audience of readers
in the history and practice of museums, historic preservation,
urban history and urban development, and contemporary New York
City. This book is supported by a grant from Furthermore: a program
of the J.M. Kaplan Fund.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
