We’re proud to share with the public two fun and engaging new interactive maps, Beyond the Village and Back, which explore the stories behind dozens of great New York City landmarks, and their often hidden connections to Greenwich Village and the East Village. Beyond the Village and Back: Manhattan Below 72nd Street and Beyond the Village and Back: Manhattan Above 72nd Street and the Other Boroughs look at the remarkable stories behind some of our city’s most iconic landmarks and institutions, tracing their origin stories, sometimes back as much as nearly 500 years. Those stories have incredible and surprising intersections with Greenwich Village and the East Village.

Did you know that the original Empire State Building was located in our neighborhoods, and still stands?  That the Metropolitan Museum of Art was once located here, and the origins of the institution and the grand form it now takes are rooted in our neighborhoods? That Sailors’ Snug Harbor Cultural Center on Staten Island and the Chrysler Building owe their very existence to our neighborhoods, and that three of the great historic churches of Harlem and the city’s largest synagogue were all once located here? That Queens’ oldest house, the Bronx’s most famous literary landmark, the Statue of Liberty, and Federal Hall all have deep roots connected to our neighborhoods? Discover this amazing history and more in our two new interactive maps: Beyond the Village and Back: Manhattan Below 72nd Street and Beyond the Village and Back: Manhattan Above 72nd Street and the Other Boroughs, based on more than five years of research by the Village Preservation staff.

Our Beyond the Village and Back maps are only the latest online maps and guided tours from Village Preservation that bring our history to life. Check them all out here, and immerse yourself in everything from the story of Women’s Suffrage to Greek Revival Architecture; Bob Dylan to Small Businesses with Big Histories; and in-depth explorations of the Greenwich Village Historic District, the East Village, and South of Union Square. And don’t forget our ever-popular Civil Rights and Social Justice Map.