1920 Reed Pictorial Map of New York City in 1839

This is a c. 1920 Guy Reed pictorial map of New York City as it appeared in 1839. Coverage includes Manhattan from 106th Street to the Battery and from Jersey City to Brooklyn. New York's high society populate the map, with a well-dressed couple promenading up 2nd Avenue and two coaches taking the wealthy to their estates outside the city. Many of these estates, including the Schuyler, Astor, Dykman, and Woolsey residences, are labeled. Manhattan's iconic street grid, then emerging, appears as dashed lines. Bloomingdale Road (now part of Broadway) and the Post Road are illustrated.

Dean's

This map was 'prepared by' Dean's, a candy store and bakery at 628 Fifth Avenue. Founded in 1839, Dean's sold candy and cakes that ranged from a few dollars to fifty dollars. Very little concrete information about the store survives. It is mentioned in Diary of a Little Girl in Old New York: A thoughtful account of day-to-day events in 1850s New York by Catherine E. Havens published in 1919. Advertisements for the store appear in New York City newspapers and issues of magazines, such as Scribner's and Life from the 1910s to the 1920s.

Publication History and Census

This map was drawn by Guy Reed and published by Dean's c. 1920. The only other known surviving example is part of the collection at the New York Public Library.