Instagram is chock-full of photographers capturing visually arresting images of New York City in the here and now. But for those who prefer the city’s past to its present, there are also a bunch of accounts dedicated to curating a veritable treasure trove of historic images of the five boroughs. (And really, who doesn’t love a good vintagephoto of New York?)
Here, we’ve found 16 of the best accounts for NYC history fanatics, whether you’re into old maps, old buildings, old subway photos, or all of the above. Did we miss your favorite? Let us know in the comments.
No surprise here: the city’s oldest history museum also maintains a wonderful Instagram account that’s chock-full of old New York ephemera straight from its archives. It’s also great for sneak peeks at the museum’s current and upcoming exhibits.
Follow this account if you like old maps, vintage photos, and learning things you may not have known about New York’s past. (Such as: apparently Port Authority officers used to zoom through the Lincoln Tunnel in tiny little cars that hugged the walls of the tunnel. Who knew?!)
The folks behind the Urban Archive app, which points users to quirky or fascinating historic tidbits based on their location, also run an Instagram that’s full of photos of old New York. Our favorites: The ones where a vintage street scene is compared to its present-day state.
The Instagram account for Big Onion Walking Tours is less a repository for old photos and more a place to learn the kind of quirky historical facts you’d want to drop at a cocktail party, many of which you’d likely pick up on one of the company’s history-focused walking tours.
You’d never be able to comb through all of the treasures in the NYPL’s archives in a lifetime—but luckily, the library’s Instagram account is there to showcase some of those glorious findings, including sketches, photos, letters, and maps (see below).
If you like the New York Public Library’s account, you’ll almost certainly love NYPL Maps, devoted to all things cartography. The posts aren’t limited solely to maps of New York City, but there are plenty of gems that show key points in the evolution five boroughs.
The bio for Young Gotham’s Insta account notes that it focuses on “New York before 1840,” and indeed, fans of 19th-century architecture will find plenty to love here. But this account is all about context; rather than just showing off old photos, the historic buildings are shown in their current, preserved state.
In contrast to young_gotham, the photos on the Retro New York account are all from the 20th century, and highlight the rapid change that the city has undergone in the past 100 years or so.
As the name promises, this account is all about the #TBT: vintage photos of New York street scenes are paired with images (taken by real estate agent Kate Walter) of the same scenes in the present-day.
History nerds will find this account, run by the city’s archivists, deeply satisfying. It’s devoted mostly to vintage photos, but we love the #TBT posts, which compare a scene of old New York to its present-day incarnation.
This one is for the railfans: The Transit Museum’s account highlights both the present and past of the city’s subway system, with lots of photos of vintage train cars, old subway advertisements, and stations from back in the day.
As Old Vintage New York’s bio puts it, “who said that time machines didn’t exist?” This account is loaded with vivid street scenes of 19th or 20th century New York, and includes captions packed with nifty facts about the people, places, and events of yesteryear.
Come for the cool images, but stay for the actual history lesson: Each vintage photo on this Instagram account, run by a New York historian and tour guide, is paired with a caption that offers a bit of backstory on the place or thing depicted.
This one is for the Brooklyn obsessives: The borough’s premier historical institution maintains a swell Insta account with photos, prints, and other ephemera that tell the story of Kings County.
Yes, it’s another museum account, but hey—they have the best archives to scour. MCNY tends to focus on the exhibit they have on view, sharing images and other ephemera. But sometimes, the images are just delightfully random—like this one of the Macy’s Victory Barnyard, which was established during World War II.
Fittingly, one of the best podcasts about New York’s history also has an Instagram account that spotlights vintage New York—both old photos and sites of historic interest throughout the city. (You can see some of those for yourself on the Bowery Boys’ newly launched walking tours.)
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