1860

Manhattan: 8th Street - Astor Place

Eighth Street, Astor Place and Lafayette Place showing the old building of the Mercantile Library, or Clinton Hall, erected at the junction of those Avenues. The Library was founded on November 9, 1820, by clerks of merchants. In 1821 it was located in one room at #49 Fulton Street, with 150 members and 700 volumes. From this time it grew rapidly and in 1830 a Clinton Hall Association was formed for the purpose of erecting. In 1854 the Association purchased the Astor Place Opera House, remodeled it for a Library as shown in picture, later this was replaced, in 1891 by the present building,with capacity for 475,000 volumes. Ref: King's Handbook of New York. P. 328. About 1860 Urbrock Collection

Photo from the New York Public Library - Milstein Collection