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Sight-seeing Map of the Hudson River. Points of Interest Visible from the Hudson River Boats, Trains & Airplanes. Copyright, 1929, by W.H. Radcliffe.
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Sight-seeing Map of the Hudson River. Points of Interest Visible from the Hudson River Boats, Trains and Airplanes. Copyright, 1929, by W.H. Radcliffe (New York City.) Printed booklet, 4-5/8" wide x 8-1/4" high, [24] pp.
Price: 15 cents.
Sites are marked on both east and west shores of the river from Mile 0 [zero], Whitehall Building at the tip of Manhattan and Statue of Liberty to Mile 137, Albany and Hudson River ("furthest north" point reached by the discoverer Hendrick Hudson...) Scale above is at the right edge of the pages with the reverse scale on the left edge (mile 0 is Albany to the Statue of Liberty, mile 137.)
Unusual in that it includes sightseeing from an airplane (or aeroplane) and includes a full page ad (page [23]) for Coastal Airways showing a seaplane coming south over the river just beyond the Fort Lee Bridge (an early name for what was to become the George Washington Bridge.) Coastal had offices at 45 West 45th St. in New York City, but it does not state where the seaplane terminal was located in the City. It flew to Albany where its terminal was "Pier foot of Herkimer St."
Hoboken is represented by only one point:
Stevens' Castle - Large brown residence with square tower on hill. Behind it is Stevens' Institute of Technology, built upon the late Commodore Stevens' estate.
Also noteworthy is the listing of the Holland Vehicular Tunnel, which opened in late 1927. It would only have been visible to sightseers on boats as the ventilation towers on each side of the Hudson or by air as the entry and exit plazas in New York and New Jersey.
The Fort Lee Bridge, an early common name for what we know as the George Washington Bridge or GWB, is shown on the map. (Per nycroads.com: First named the "Hudson River Bridge," other names for the bridge had been considered, including the "Palisades Bridge," "Fort Lee Bridge," "Columbus Bridge" and "Verrazano Bridge," before the Port Authority decided upon the "George Washington Memorial Bridge" in 1930. Later, the name was shortened to "George Washington Bridge.")
It is also depicted as a completed bridge in the airways ad mentioned above and on a page [20] ad as the Fort Lee Suspension Bridge. Ad was by Fleer Bros. Coal who supplied coal that was used to heat the metal rivets used in building the bridge. As of 1929, the towers were erected and spinning of the wire rope suspension cables began; the bridge was a long way from being finished.
2012.001.0114
2012.001
Purchase
Purchase
Museum Collections.
1929 - 1929
Date(s) Created: 1929 Date(s): 1929
Good
Status: OK Status By: dw Status Date: 2012-08-17