As part of our celebration of FRIENDS’ 40th Anniversary, we will be hosting a special series of walking tours focused on the northward growth that took place as the Upper East Side developed. In a three-part tour series, starting downtown and moving northward, we will trace the city’s growth following the Civil War and the many factors and infrastructure changes that allowed for movement uptown. This walking tour series will be led by Keith Taillon, the historian behind the popular Instagram account @keithyorkcity, whose musings on Gilded Age culture and architecture were profiled in The New Yorker.

Each tour will cover a specific topic related to the growth of the Upper East Side. Starting near East 23rd Street, Keith will take us on a three-part journey uptown, very much like the evolution of Gilded Age society as it moved from its focus around 34th Street, location of the former Astor Mansion, northward toward 90th Street, home of the Andrew Carnegie mansion. Join us for this three-part Friday evening series, “Society Moves Uptown: How the Gilded Age Found the UES.”

Bring your walking shoes! Part 2 of this series will start near NYPL Main Branch and end near East 65th Street, totaling around 1.6 miles. Keith will touch on themes such as: What factors helped pull Gilded Age Society north of 42nd Street? Where did families like the Vanderbilts live and why? When and why did wealthy families begin moving north of 59th Street? What effect did Central Park have on the city's northward growth?

This is a limited size tour, get your tickets before they sell out!