Rex Cole Showroom, interior, 1931.

Due to the hilly terrain of the Bronx as well as some parts of upper Manhattan, these steep, often block-long, open air staircases were built to accommodate pedestrian traffic. Referred to as step streets, the staircase seen to the right of 2415 Marion Avenue is one of 63 such "streets" in the Bronx. Though some date to the end of the 19th century, this staircase was constructed by the WPA during the Depression.

This 1923 building once housed the Jacob H. Schiff Center, a Jewish community and cultural center and synagogue. Schiff was a banker and philanthropist. He acquired funding from European investor to assist in building America’s railroads, mines, and other infrastructure enterprises. He strongly held to the German-Jewish tradition of communal welfare. He was involved in building and supporting American civic, cultural, and educational institutions. These acts included lobbying for New York State government reform, donating a large sum to Cornell University, and the building of community spaces such as this one in the Bronx.

Wagner Building, 1937. Constructed in 1937 for the businessman Constantin Wagner, Jr., the Art Deco structure epitomizes the streamlined look and decorative elements (here glazed terra cotta) of the style popular along the Grand Concourse. Early advertising for the building notes its advantageous location on commercial streets, near to public transit, as a well as new population centers (housed in the rising Deco apartment houses on the Concourse) and other shopping and entertainment. The building's Art Deco features remain today, though they have been largely obscured by massive chain store signage, in this case, the huge red and white sign for the stationary store, Staples.

Once a series of four wood-frame houses on East 188th Street between Elm Place and Marion Avenue, only the corner house remains (though so too does the large tree seen in this 1938 photograph).

Originally built as the Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church, this brick church building now houses the congregation of the Solomon Temple Baptist Church. The once next door neighbor of the church has been demolished since this 1938 photograph was taken.

"Children filing into the library after the formal opening with a public celebration." This photograph depicts the 1923 opening day of the Fordham Branch of the New York Public Library. The land for the building was purchased in 1917 but the First World War delayed the construction. The McKim, Mead, and White-designed building was originally called the Bronx Central Library and, when opened, was the largest library building in the borough. The building included a lecture space and was used to teach local immigrants communities (Irish, Italian, and Jewish) how to read and write English and adjust to American culture. The children lined up in the opening day photograph were likely the children of these local immigrant communities.

Flood Triangle, 1938. This three-sided patch of land has been a park since 1849. The lot, once part of William Powell's Union Hill Farm, came under the control of the Parks Department of Westchester County (where this was located until the late 19th century) for use as a "public place or open space" in March of that year. It then became a public park in the city of New York in 1895. The name Flood likely came from a local soldier killed in the First World War. This 1938 photograph depicts two large elm trees which no longer stand here, though the small open space still has smaller foliage and benches used by the local community.

"Grand Concourse, west side, north from but not including E. 184th Street, showing W.P.A. men repaving the west lane of the thoroughfare. Shown, too, is Loew's Paradise Theatre." The Loew's Paradise Theatre (seen the distance, flags flying in front) is one of five Loew's 'Wonder Theatres' opened in the New York City/New Jersey area in the 1929 and 1930. This large movie house, opened in September 1929, was designed by architect John Eberson in the Atmospheric style. In this type of design, particular to movie palaces, the construction and decoration of the interior gave the illusion of being in an outdoor setting, complete with celing paintings of the night sky. Both the exterior and interior of the theatre are landmarked and it is currently used as the home of the World Changers Church New York.

Rex Cole Showroom, 1931. Rex Cole was a local tri-state area appliance store in the early to mid 20th century. The man himself was a lamp manufacturer, who in the 1920s became associated with General Electric, and was chosen as the main retailer of GE's new white enamel Monitor Top refrigerators. By the 1930s, more than 15 Rex Cole showrooms dotted the city and surrounding areas and Cole was making a reported $15 million a year in appliances. This Art Deco inspired store (along with other all over the city) was designed by famed Deco architect Raymond Hood. Hood is best known as the senior designer of Rockefeller Center and architect of McGraw-Hill Building on 42nd Street. The Hood-designed showrooms were impressive and perfect for the marketing of shiny new appliances; here he created a two-story-high central window to display the wares. Despite the quick success of the Rex Cole stores in the early 1930s, Cole was forced to file for bankruptcy in 1935. He closed a number of stores as a result, and the few that remained survived only until the mid 1950s.

2444 Tiebout Avenue, 1941. Sadly the two homes squished between the large brick apartment buildings are no longer, and the land is now used as a parking lot.