legends Greater Astoria Historial Society 35-20 Broadway, 4th Floor | L.I.C., NY 11106 718.278.0700 | www.astorialic.org Gallery Hours: Mondays & Wednesdays 2-5 PM Saturdays 12-5 PM Exhibits ~ Lectures ~ Documentaries ~ Books Walking Tours ~ Historical Research Unique & Creative Content For more information visit us on the web at www.astorialic.org This image adapted from an invitation to the Long Island City Athletics 33rd Annual Masque Ball, 1909. 32 OCTOBER 2013 I LIC COURIER I www.queenscourier.com Making modern Making father proud The Steinways had to leave Manhattan. During the New York City Draft Riots in 1863, when the city was ruled by the streets for three terrifying days, a mob of thousands carrying torches and assorted weapons marched on the Steinway factory. Forewarned, armed workers stared back from factory windows. Payments in cash were made. The horde slowly drifted away. Only by chance a torch was not tossed through an open window onto some sawdust in a bin or lacquer in a vat. If that had happened, by the next morning the corner of Park Avenue and 54th Street would have been a brick walled ruin. The story would have ended there. Throughout the decade of the 1860s, things got much worse. Workforce loyalty was tested by wave after wave of anarchists, socialists and other assorted labor agitators who showed up repeatedly at the factory’s front door trying to form unions or, at a moment’s notice, announce a work stoppage in sympathy for another shop across town. Adding to the family’s woes the Park Avenue factory was quickly becoming a noose about their necks. After less than two decades, they had run out of room to expand. Acres were needed by the growing concern – not city lots. William Steinway sent agents around the metropolitan area. He received reports of “a beautiful garden spot surrounded by waste lands and vacant lots” in Long Island City, Queens. With a half-mile of waterfront, it was both near the geographical center of Greater New York and was only fi ve miles from New York’s City Hall. Ultimately, the company purchased some 400 acres. For the next 80 years - as late as the 1950s - they were selling lots. The Steinways hauled a camera to the top of a tall building. They took six pictures and knitted them together into a stunning panoramic view that went from the Hell Gate to Flushing Bay. It is undoubtedly the most breathtaking picture of Queens from the 19 century. Copies are displayed at the Steinway & Sons factory and the Greater Astoria Historical Society museum. William zealously set about building a utopian community going about his task. Although the Steinway Settlement had many enlightened amenities provided by the company, it was empathically no “company town.” Housing was open to everyone. LEGENDS OF LIC BY GREATER ASTORIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY LEGENDS OF LIC The company built a public bath house, a waterfront park, a fi rehouse with apparatus served by a volunteer company, a post offi ce, and a public school. Churches were built. The community boasted one of the fi rst kindergartens in the country. Its lending library, through mergers, became the Queens Borough Library. Steinway Street, as a local shopping hub, began with the commercial district that grew up serving the community’s needs. Nearby a number of manufacturing enterprises started.Everywhere was both backing and support from the Steinways. Within 20 years, more than 7,000 people lived in the Steinway Settlement. William Steinway in his diary wrote “Father would be proud.” Next: The Steinway Tubes and Mr. Daimler
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