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The New State Capitol Complex
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Before we were interrupted by the things that life puts in our way, we were focusing on the plans that led to tearing down an entire block of buildings just west of the State Capitol in order that a new state office building could be constructed there. After several years of dithering, plans started…
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Lost Something Over the Week-end?
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Hoxsie’s just gonna leave this relic of the pre-Craiglist days here.
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Hey, You’re Blocking My View
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As we mentioned when talking about the plans to build an office building in what is now Albany’s West Capitol Park, there was a little bit of controversy over blocking the view of the Capitol and the State Education Building, which ultimately resulted in the decision to place the Alfred E. Smith State Office…
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Say, had you noticed there’s a beautiful building over there?
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As we noted (see the previous several entries), a whole bunch of buildings with some very venerable businesses were pushed out of the block of Washington Avenue just west of the Capitol in 1919. In their place was to be a small park and a new state office building. An article in “The American…
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Make way for a new office building!
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Here’s the full view of much of the block of Washington Avenue that existed just west of the Capitol, running from now-lost Capitol Place to South Swan Street. Last week we covered a lot of the venerable businesses that were being pushed out of the block in the beginning of 1919, but we didn’t…
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Groceries, Cigars, and Fish
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When we talked about the former Hotel Borthwick the other day, we skipped over talking about another venerable business that occupied the ground floor of the more westward building, past the opening to the courtyard and, in this view, directly behind the horse. That was Bouton and Vine, wholesale grocers, at 76 Washington Ave.…
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Stoves and Pork
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Continuing our look at a photo from 1919 of a whole bunch of buildings that aren’t there anymore on Washington Avenue, just west of the Capitol, we come to the storefronts of Charles C. Campbell and Christopher Gardner (we covered Edwin Nellegar yesterday). Charles C. Campbell was a stove dealer for decades, at least…
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Electricity, Locksmithing, Barbering and News
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We return to the details of this block of lost buildings on Washington Avenue, just west of the Capitol. On the east side of the old Hotel Borthwick in 1919 were these two modest storefronts. Closest to the Borthwick, with the key hanging in the doorway, was 72 Washington Ave., which in the years…
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Edwin Nellegar, Upholsterer
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For someone who was in business for decades, Edwin Nellegar didn’t leave a lot of information behind. He was born about 1849, and married wife Alida at age 21. We know he advertised for his upholstery business, irregularly. We know that he took a hunting trip in the Catskills in 1898 (from a time…
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Hotel Borthwick
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This charming edifice (a combination of two buildings, if you look closely) is the Hotel Borthwick. Known in a previous life as the Avenue House, it was located just a bit west of the Capitol at 74 Washington Ave. We’re not quite sure when it was built, but as early as 1868 Avenue House…