Ten Years ‘Off The Grid’
A lot can happen in ten years — pop culture references grow old, new technology emerges, and the stories we tell continue to evolve. Village Preservation’s blog Off The Grid celebrates a momentous milestone today, thanks in part to all who have contributed to it over the years and our amazing supporters who continue to learn about and explore our neighborhoods’ wonderful history with us.
On February 25th, 2011 our first two posts premiered (back then we were still called the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation!) with a mission statement about Off The Grid and its future, as well as a trip behind-the-scenes to document the film locations of Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver. From there, we were off to the races, posting over 300 more posts that year, from the history of local businesses to updates regarding our advocacy campaigns.
The years following were no different, and, to date, we have posted 2,672 articles covering the history and diversity of Greenwich Village, the East Village, NoHo, and even buildings beyond our neighborhoods. Over the last ten years, over 350,000 readers have visited our blog, giving us the fuel to post new content daily and keep uncovering the hidden history all around us.
Our favorite topic, no surprise, is our advocacy efforts and the history we are fighting to preserve.
Our Favorite Articles
Each week, our staff publishes five new articles that help document and shed light upon the history and importance of the people, sites, and organizations that have called, and still call, our neighborhoods home. This research helps our advocacy efforts and helps our readers gain a better insight to what we are fighting for every single day.
Our staff was asked to pick a favorite article over the last ten years that had a lasting impact on them, and the results are in:
Sarah Bean Apmann: Hugh Ferriss Lived Here
Andrew Berman: The Death and Life of Louis Sullivan
Harry Bubbins: Beyond The Village and Back: Gould Library & Begrisch Hall
Ariel Kates: African American, Feminist, & LGBTQ Solidarity at the Women’s House of Detention
Sam Moskowitz: Remembering the 344th Lost Firefighter, and Fire Patrol House #2
Joey Rodriguez: In Death, As In Life, Marcel Duchamp Left Mystery
Lena Ruben: Angel Hair Press: “A Rush of Poetic Chutzpah” in the East Village
Lannyl Stephens: Greenwich Village: The Birthplace of Modern American Drama
Louisa Winchell: New York City’s 1940 Tax Photos — Now Online!
Your Favorite Articles
Of course, our loyal readers also have a few favorite articles which they return to year after year. These subjects have been jockeying for supremacy ever since they were published!
- When was my building built? and other tricky research questions (November 14th, 2011)
- Tenement House Act of 1901 (April 11th, 2016)
- The Oldest Building in the Village? (June 2nd, 2011)
- How Bohemians Got Their Name (April 16th, 2013)
- The Astor Place Riot (August 25th, 2016)
We also took a look at the most popular posts in relation to their publication year (note: some of these have been eclipsed in popularity since):
2011: When was my building built? and other tricky research questions.
2012: Is Gay Street Really ‘Gay’?
2013: Happy Birthday, Andy Warhol (which formerly held the title of our most popular post)
2014: Kitty Genovese and the Village
2015: Where did Ross on Friends Live?
2016: Tenement House Act of 1901
2017: The Cornelia Street Cafe: Nearing 40, and in Need of Help
2018: The Greenwich Village Building With a Starring Role in Hitchcock’s Rear Window
2019: A Prince of a House: No. 203 Prince Street
2020: Business of the Month: House of Oldies, 35 Carmine Street
None of these articles would have happened without your generous support of Village Preservation. We hope that you will consider donating and continuing to help our mission to preserve our neighborhoods and their future.
And if you want to find your own favorite among our almost 3,000 blog posts over the last ten years, just go to the homepage and search by tag, by neighborhood, or by keyword. We’re sure you’ll find something you’ll love!
Here’s to another ten years!