THEN

Following passage of the Compulsory Education Law in 1894, at least 14 public schools opened in Yorkville. Most were designed under architect and engineer C. B. J. Snyder who acted as Superintendent of School Buildings for more than three decades, from 1891 to 1923. His legacy is remarkable. Not only did he oversee an estimated 400 projects, but he helped standardize and improve educational facilities citywide. The earliest surviving example on the Upper East Side is Public School 158, a restrained Classical Revival design on the east side of York Avenue, between 77th and 78th Street, completed in 1899. Snyder’s next Yorkville project was Public School 190, completed in 1904. Arranged in three red and tan brick sections, the extravagant main entrance is guarded by a lion’s head.