Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It stretches north from Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village to West 143rd Street in Harlem. It is one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world.
The midtown blocks were largely a residential area until the turn of the 20th century, when they were developed as commercial areas. As early as 1900, rising traffic led to proposals to restrict traffic on the avenue. The section south of Central Park was widened starting in 1908, sacrificing wide sidewalks to accommodate the increasing traffic. As part of the widening project, the New York City government ordered the removal of stoops and other “encroachments” onto the sidewalk in February 1908. The buildings that needed to be trimmed included the Waldorf–Astoria hotel.
By early 1911, the avenue had been widened south of 47th Street. Later that year, when widening commenced on the section between 47th and 59th Streets, many of the mansions on that stretch of Fifth Avenue were truncated or demolished. In addition, the front facades of St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church were relocated, and the gardens in front of the St. Regis and Gotham hotels had to be destroyed.
Here, below are some amazing wide-angled views of Fifth Avenue from Washington Square, north to East 93rd Street, includes index of merchants and residents. These amazing photographs were taken by Burton F. Welles in 1911.
Washington Arch – No. 12 Apartment house, West 8th St.
No. 1 Wm. Butler Duncan, East 7th St. – No. 19 Dr. E.L. Partridge, East 8th St.
No. 24 Charles de Rham – No. 42 Wm. Brockie, West 10th St.
No. 23 Daniel E. Sickles- No. 41 Miss M.L. Kennedy, East 10th St.
West 11th St – No. 62 Mrs. Geo. L. Kingsland, West 12th St.
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