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Slideshows

Celebrating Jewish Heritage: Photographs by Isaac Almstaedt

Photographer Isaac Almstaedt (1851-1921) captured the beauty of the world around him. A native of Staten Island, Almstaedt turned his artistic eye to the Island’s picturesque surroundings, creating hundreds of memorable landscape photographs. His artistic abilities were equally evident in his portrait photography, and individuals as well known as Cornelius Vanderbilt and Buffalo Bill Cody posed for his camera. From 1886 to 1915, Almstaedt was the official photographer of the Staten Island Cricket and Baseball Club. In his later years, he also created artistic wooden sculptures in his studio in Tompkinsville.

This slideshow highlights the work of this talented artist. Let his photographs take you back in time to another era on Staten Island!

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Alice Austen (left) and Annie Collins (right) on the beach at Bay Head, New Jersey. Photo by Alice Austen, August 25, 1891.

Gartner’s Hotel, South Beach, Staten Island, 1916.

Peter Austen (right) and friends on the beach at Bay Head, New Jersey. Photo by Alice Austen, August 25, 1895. Peter Austen was the uncle of Staten Island photographer Alice Austen.

Alice Austen (center) with her friends Violet Ward (right) and Caroline Ward (left) at Clear Comfort, the Austen family home in Rosebank, Staten Island. Photo by Alice Austen, July 11, 1890.

Water slide at South Beach, Staten Island, ca. 1905-1915.

Bathers at South Beach, Staten Island. Photo by Alice Austen, ca. 1885-1895.

Midland Beach, Staten Island, ca. 1910.

Alice Austen (left) and friends in bathing suits at Clear Comfort, Rosebank, Staten Island. Photo by Alice Austen, September 17, 1885.

P. Bessi’s Pavilion, South Beach, Staten Island, 1915.

South Beach bathing party, Staten Island. Photo by Alice Austen, September 15, 1886. Alice Austen is in the back row at right. The cable that she used to release the shutter on her camera and take the picture is visible in the sand at right.

Oswald Austen at Bay Head, New Jersey. Photo by Peter Austen, probably 1889.

Camp at Cedar Grove Beach, New Dorp, Staten Island. Photo by Coleman Benedict, ca. 1900-1910.

Staten Island artist Gilmer Petroff models a vintage bathing suit at the Historical Museum at Richmond Town. Photo by Raymond C. Fingado, April 7, 1940.

A Day at the Beach

As we continue to hope and plan and look ahead to warm summer days on the beach, take a look at some fashionable beachwear from the past!

Sassafras

Native; Sassafras can be found behind Historic Richmond Town’s Guyon Tavern. Medicinally, sassafras has been applied to insect bites and stings to relieve symptoms. The leaves can be dried and used as thickener in soups and stews. Sassafras was formerly used as a flavoring in root beer.

Wild Wineberry

Wineberries can be found growing wild all along Arthur Kill Road, nearest the Christopher House. Sweet and tart with a raspberry-like flavor, wineberries are used similarly to raspberries to make pastries, such as pie or other sweet treats.

Box Elder

Native; A young Box Elder Tree grows in the garden of the Stephens-Black House. Also called an ash-leaved maple, the Box Elder was widely planted for shade by early settlers in the prairie areas of the United States.

A Yellow Star Magnolia

A Yellow Star Magnolia blooms along Center Street, in between the Bennett House and the Carpenter’s Shop.

Paw Paw Tree

Native; A mature Paw Paw tree stands just beyond the backdoor of Historic Richmond Town’s Tinsmith Shop. Pawpaw trees produce large, edible, green fruits, also called pawpaws. The fruit is fragrant and has a unique and tropical flavor.

Black Walnut Tree

Native; Black Walnut Trees exist across the site. They are most prominent in the Upper Village. Native Americans and early settlers used it for food, dyes, ink, medicine, fence posts, gun stocks and furniture.

Wild Blackberries

Native; Blackberries can be found growing along the fenceline separating the Historical Museum and the Guyon Tavern. Blackberries have three stem types: erect, arching, and trailing. They often have thorns, but some varieties are thornless.

Spring Onions

Spring Onions can be found across the site in early spring. Also, known as scallions or green onions, spring onions are in fact very young onions, harvested before the bulb has had a chance to swell.

Chicory

Chicory can be found all around Staten Island in the spring and summer months. Chicory is a flowering plant in the dandelion family that is characterized by a tough, hairy stem, light purple flowers and leaves that are commonly used in salads.

Pink Magnolia

This stunning Pink Magnolia tree can be found in the yard of the historic Edwards-Barton House. Magnolias belong to the family Magnoliaceae. They are magnificent flowering plants featuring blossoms in white, pink, red, purple, or yellow.

Wild and Wonderful Staten Island

Staten Island is home to some of the oldest architecture in the city of New York. It also happens to be the most rural of all five boroughs. Historic Richmond Town’s 100 acre site is home to both stunningly preserved and restored historic architecture, as well as hundreds of examples of natural beauty. Much of the flora and fauna present at the historic village is unique and native to New York. Take a stroll through the expansive site this spring and don’t forget to bring a sketchbook! See how many plants, trees and animals you can find and identify!

The Quarantine Fire of 1858

While the word “quarantine” is on everyone’s mind today, it’s interesting to look back at a famous quarantine incident that took place on Staten Island many years ago.

In 1799, Tompkinsville, Staten Island, became the site of a quarantine hospital for arriving immigrants who were ill with cholera, smallpox, and other contagious diseases. The diseases spread to Staten Island residents, and many called for the quarantine to be closed. Frustrated by the lack of government action, residents finally took matters into their own hands.

On the night of September 1, 1858, a mob of local residents stormed the quarantine, and, after evacuating the patients, set fire to several of the buildings. Having found no opposition on the first night, they returned on September 2nd and burned the remaining buildings.

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Corner of Beach and Water Streets, Stapleton, photo by Isaac Almstaedt, ca. 1895. (Copy)

The building at right is the Staten Island Savings Bank, and the building at left is the Post Office.

View of Stapleton, photo by Isaac Almstaedt, ca. 1895. (Copy)

The large brick building with the clock tower is Rubsam & Horrmann’s Atlantic Brewery. Rubsam & Horrmann was one of the most successful of the local breweries, operating into the mid-20th century.

George Meurer House Furnishing Store, June 25, 1888. (Copy)

George Meurer’s store was located at 233 Bay Street in Stapleton. Items for sale in his store included glassware, stoves, wooden buckets, and gardening tools.

Cast of “The White Horse Inn” at the German Club Rooms, Stapleton, 1906. (Copy)

For decades, the German Club Rooms at Van Duzer and Prospect Streets was home to a wide variety of performances and social events. Among the performers was the Criterion Dramatic Club, seen here in costume for the play "The White Horse Inn."

Billboard for Knickerbocker Beer, photo by Herbert A. Flamm, July 18, 1957. (Copy)

This enormous billboard was painted on the side of a building at the corner of Broad Street and Tompkins Avenue in Stapleton.

Stapleton Union American Methodist Episcopal Church, photo by Herbert A. Flamm, July 20, 1950. (Copy)

According to the website of Stapleton UAME Church, the congregation was organized in the early 1800s and its current name dates back to the 1850s. The structure depicted here (which still stands today) is the third to have been erected at that location.

Foreign Trade Zone, photo by Herbert A. Flamm, ca. 1945-1955. (Copy)

Stapleton was the site of the first Foreign Trade Zone in the United States. It was in operation from 1937 until 1942, when the Stapleton piers were taken over for government use, and then resumed for some years after the end of World War II in 1945.

Tydol Flying A gas station, photo by Herbert A. Flamm, September 21, 1953. (Copy)

Commercial photographer Herbert Flamm photographed numerous Staten Island gas stations, including this one at the corner of Van Duzer Street and Prospect Street. Tydol Flying A was a brand of gasoline sold on the east coast from the 1930s to the 1950s.

Canal Street, Stapleton, photo by Herbert A. Flamm, 1960. (Copy)

This view of the north end of Canal Street shows a busy shopping district. Businesses visible in the photo include Stapleton Drug Co. Kinney Shoes, Food Farm, Taft Cleaners, F.W. Woolworth, and Sedutto’s Happiness House.

Enterprise Hook & Ladder Company No. 1, ca. 1885-1895. (Copy)

Enterprise Hook & Ladder Company No. 1, organized in 1856, was the first volunteer fire company in Stapleton. They were part of the Edgewater Fire Department, which disbanded in 1905 after the New York City municipal fire department took over firefighting duties on Staten Island.

Garber Brothers store on Canal Street, photo by Herbert A. Flamm, ca. 1946 (Copy)

Brothers Paul, David, and Louis Garber learned the clothing trade from their father, Abraham, who sold fabrics door-to-door. The family immigrated to the U.S. from Poland around 1900 and the brothers established their business in 1919. The store was well-known locally, with branches in Stapleton and Port Richmond. The stores relocated to New Dorp after the brothers sold the business to a national retail chain in 1964, and closed in 1990.

Brisk’s Express, Broad Street, Stapleton, ca. 1885-1895 (Copy)

Michael Brisk advertised his business in the Staten Island Leader on August 1, 1885: "Brisk's Staten Island and New York Express. Goods Delivered Promptly, Furniture Packed, Stored and Shipped. Offices: Stapleton, 9 Broad street, New York, 76 Courtlandt street, 1 Hudson street, 101 Mercer street, 84 Walker street and 90 William street."

Bowling club group portrait, photo by George Bear, ca. 1885-1895 (Copy)

Bowling was a popular pastime on Staten Island in the late 1800s. Although the name of the bowling club seen in this photograph is not identified, perhaps it was the Stapleton Bowling Club, of which the photographer, George Bear, was treasurer in 1893. George Bear’s studio was located on Beach Street in Stapleton, and his clients were drawn primarily from the local German-American community.

A Visit to Stapleton

Among the thousands of photographs in Historic Richmond Town’s collection are some amazing views of Stapleton, a neighborhood in the northeastern part of Staten Island. In the early 1800s, when the area was farmland, it was the childhood home of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt.

By the mid-1800s, it was a thriving residential and commercial neighborhood, home to a large population of German-born immigrants who shared their cultural traditions with other Staten Islanders. The neighborhood was also home to several notable lager beer breweries which gained national and even international reputations.

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