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Post by fiona on Oct 17, 2010 20:30:29 GMT -5
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Post by fiona on Oct 17, 2010 20:37:25 GMT -5
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Post by fiona on Oct 17, 2010 20:48:12 GMT -5
An error has occured in consensual reality...  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 17, 2010 21:02:18 GMT -5
An error has occured in consensual reality...what can we really trust...  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 18, 2010 18:19:56 GMT -5
for your viewing pleasure, a trio of horse barns...  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 18, 2010 18:43:28 GMT -5
And last, but not least, horses are in short supply these days...  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 18, 2010 19:55:08 GMT -5
This last picture concludes our photo tour of the Olbiston Apts, 1431 Genesee Street, Utica NY. My next focus will be on the Genesee Flats, the building that occupied the space from 1892 to 1896. Watch this space and thank you.
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 18:00:18 GMT -5
Moving on now to the Genesee Flats. I will post all the views of the building that are available. I took them from a photograph of the Flats taken in 1895, as well as the illustrations on the front page of the (Utica) Saturday Globe of 3/7/1896. ( archived in the Research Library of the Oneida County Historical Society) Other pictures, illustrations, drawings, news clips are taken from various internet sources. (newspapers from Rome, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo and the New York City also carried graphics as well as the story) Many persons have worked tirelessly to find, post, and in many cases, transcribe these documents and graphics into readable form. I thank the following individuals for their assistance and dedication to this project: David Griffin, Dick ( Clipper) Nagaele and Jon Hynes. Further credits will appear at the end of this section.
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 18:44:46 GMT -5
Let's start by looking at this old Utica, NY city map from around 1885. This clearly shows the 6 vacant lots fronting on Genesee Street owned at that time by A.J.Williams. These lots were purchased by the firm of Latcher and Northrup and in 1890 they began to construct a massive red brick apartment house on the spot, the first of it's kind in Utica. This building would open in 1892 as the "Genesee Flats." Housing 60 families, it stood until 3/3/1896, when it was destroyed by fire, a fire which completely gutted the building in under an hour, leaving 4 persons ( and possibly more) dead and several hundred people homeless.  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 18:53:03 GMT -5
Here is the only pre fire photograph of the building known to exist. I believe it was taken in the summer of 1895. The building looks as the architect intended it to be seen, a pristine, elegant residence for the upper class of Utica. Indeed, if the Titanic was said to be the "ship of dreams", then this was beyond a doubt the " building of dreams."  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 18:59:38 GMT -5
Another beautiful view.  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 19:11:28 GMT -5
Here is an excellent enlargment of the front section.  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 19:17:03 GMT -5
This is my favorite view. By the way, the coachman's name is Issac Wilson. How do I know this? Trust me. I wrote the story.  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 19:23:40 GMT -5
A gardener doing what a gardener does. Notice the beautiful brickwork on the front wall just behind the gardener and the carved face of a man with long mustaches. It's very light, you can just make it out. (Just above the arch)  |
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Post by fiona on Oct 21, 2010 19:44:08 GMT -5
Here's a postcard view of the Olbiston from around 1911. Looking North down Genesee Street, the park like setting of the Flats must have looked quite similar. The elms are just magnificent.  |
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