Alfred Pommer

Created by Samuel Ruggles as a haven for wealthy New Yorkers, both Gramercy Park and Union Square have been among Manhattan's most desirable neighborhoods for more than 150 years. From writers and artists to powerful politicians, illustrious figures like O. Henry, Andy Warhol, Samuel Tilden and Joseph Kennedy have walked its streets. The National Arts Club and the Players Club attract patrons from around the city who are in search of a taste of grander times. Tourists flock to historic sites like the Theodore Roosevelt House, the Gramercy Park Historic District and the picturesque Union Square Park. Local tour guide Alfred Pommer and coauthor Joyce Pommer reveal the stories on the streets of the neighborhoods.

Since this Manhattan neighborhood was named for the Murray family and their contributions to the American Revolution, many of New York's most illustrious residents have made Murray Hill their home. The mansions of J.P. Morgan Jr. and William Waldorf Astor stood along its streets. Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt lived here as newlyweds, as did Admiral Farragut, Commodore Perry and Sinclair Lewis, along with Andy Warhol's famous Factory." Not only homes but also many quintessential New York landmarks are located in this historic district--visit the original Tiffany & Company building, the Civic Club, the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and a once-famous B. Altman Department Store that is now New York's Science, Industry and Business Library. Experience the striking architecture and discover the stories of Manhattan's Murray Hill."

SoHo, short for South of Houston," is one of New York's trendiest neighborhoods. Innovative restaurants and fashion-forward shops line Broome and Spring Streets, and artists reside above in modern lofts. But it is also part of the SoHo Cast-Iron Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. Its beautiful old buildings hold stories of the neighborhood's fascinating history, urban decline and regeneration. It was once the center of New York's show business world and its most infamous red-light district. The richest and poorest Manhattanites walked these streets: John Jacob Astor, Harry Houdini, Aaron Burr and P.T. Barnum. Local authors Alfred Pommer and Eleanor Winters reveal these and other stories of an ever-changing SoHo."

Greenwich Village is a tourist's dream and a favorite weekend destination for New Yorkers. A part of Manhattan Island that holds its own amid the noise and confusion of the twenty-first century, it still retains much of the character of the old farming community that was part of the original settlement of Manhattan. The West Village, the northwest section of the neighborhood, is bounded by the Hudson River on the west and Greenwich Avenue on the east and is where it all began. Famous people such as Sinclair Lewis, Fiorello LaGuardia, William "Bill the Butcher" Poole, Frank Serpico, James Baldwin and Jackson Pollock, among dozens of others, called this neighborhood home. Stroll down the back streets and along the waterfront and peer behind the facades of these historic structures to discover its fascinating history, hidden secrets and little-known tales.