NOTES
1. For more information about me and my tours and to manage your subscription go to http://www.geognyc.com/?page_id=489 Subscribe your friends or link to this page from your website.
2. Contact me personally with your ideas for custom tours designed for academic, professional, and social groups or family reunions. 718-961-8406
3. On May 31, 2014, I will again offer my “World of the Number 7 Train” tour. (See below) This is my signature tour! Don’t wait too long to sign up. It sells out.
SCHEDULE
The Ecology of Penn Station Sunday, March 16, 2014 11am-1pm
Constructed in a once squalid area of the city known as the “Tenderloin”, Penn Station united rails and tunnels from Long Island, New Jersey and points south that previously terminated on the other side of the Hudson. We’ll walk through the remnants of the neighborhood’s past and discuss its proposed future. Tour includes navigating through transportation connectivity inside the station, visiting the Farley Post Office building (planned as the new Amtrak station), the historic Hotel Pennsylvania, Herald and Greeley Squares and “Koreatown.” Sponsored by MAS. Go to http://mas.org/tours/ to register.
Quaker Flushing Sunday, March 30, 2014 Noon-2:30pm
Well before the establishment of William Penn’s Quaker refuge in Pennsylvania (1681), Quakers had migrated (1650’s) from intolerant New England towns to Flushing (Vlissingen) where “freedom of conscience” was promised by the Dutch West India company. The Flushing Remonstrance (a forerunner of the First Amendment) was proclaimed in 1657 to oppose Governor Stuyvesant’s attempt to ban Quaker practice. This walk will visit the 1694 Quaker Meeting House, pass by the Bowne House (1661) as well as the sites of the Remonstrance and the George Fox monument. Influences of Flushing’s Quaker nurserymen will be discussed. The tour will end at Kingsland Manor, home to the Queens Historical Society, to view the exhibit Practicing Equality, Quakers in Queens and enjoy light refreshments. >Sponsored as a fund raiser by the Queens Historical Society; $15/$20 member/non-member includes QHS entrance and refreshments. Meets at NW corner Main St/37 Ave (Flushing #7) Reservations required (wait list after 25); fee collected at tour. Email Jack Eichenbaum jaconet@aol.com
Daylight Factory Buildings Sunday, May 18th at 10AM
The daylight loft building was to industry what the skyscraper was to offices. Long Island City’s great makeover at the beginning of the 20th century, coincided with the widespread introduction of this architectural innovation that modernized manufacturing and permitted assembly line production. Many of these buildings are finding are variety of new uses, notably as artists’ studios, while Long Island City is rezoned for a post-industrial city. The tour coincides with the Long Island City Arts Open weekend and after the tour you will be able to visit artists’ open studios in some of the daylight loft buildings we will observe! >Meet at NE corner 21St/44 Drive (exit west end of E train, also connected to 7,G at Court Square/23 St, LIC) Sponsored by MAS. Go to http://mas.org/tours/ to register.
“Willets Point” Sunday, May 25th at 4PM
East of Citifield (the New York Mets baseball stadium) is a sewerless hardscrabble area of auto junkyards and related businesses that has twice beaten back attempts at redevelopment. But as it is located between the new stadium and a booming Chinatown in Flushing, public and private interests are again trying to transform “Willets Point”. We’ll walk to the area from central Flushing to understand its important setting, confront political, economic and ecological issues and learn why “Willets Point” is a misnomer. For an early dinner, great ethnic eateries can be found both east and west of the site. Sponsored by MAS. Go to http://mas.org/tours/ to register.
THE WORLD OF THE #7 TRAIN SATURDAY, May 31, 2014 10am-5:30pm
This series of six walks and connecting rides along North Queens’ transportation corridor is my signature tour. We focus on what the #7 train has done to and for surrounding neighborhoods since it began service in 1914. Walks take place in Long Island City, Sunnyside, Flushing, Corona, Woodside and Jackson Heights and lunch is in Flushing’s Asiatown. Tour fee is $40 and you need to preregister by check to Jack Eichenbaum, 36-20 Bowne St. #6C, Flushing, NY 11354 (include name, phone and email address) The full day’s program and other info is available by email jaconet@aol.com The tour is limited to 25 people.