After World War II Sixth Avenue was renamed "Avenue of the Americas" in order to drum up interest among the various countries of the Western Hemisphere to do business in NYC. It remains the official name of the street although most New Yorkers still call it Sixth Avenue. In order to emphasize the new name and function of the street, medallions featuring the various countries of the Americas were affixed to street lights. They were taken down in the 1990s as they were exhibiting signs of age and many streetlights were being replaced anyway. These medallions are prominent in any picture (or video) of Sixth Avenue from the 1950s to the 1990s, and they always catch my eye when I see them in a photo.
Four years ago I took a photo of each medallion that remains in the three-block stretch from 56th Street to 59th Street. This month, i had to take a chance to take photos of the rest, the remaining medallions that are downtown between West 4th Street and Canal Street. Seeing the medallions that used to be so prominent but are now almost completely gone was kind of like stepping back in time for me, and was definitely one of my favorite wallet-card finds. I made sure to take a picture of every medallion, so bear with me as I indulge with several photos that are meaningful to me, if possibly no one else.
Awesome! Most of them are too small for me to read what countries they are, unfortunately. I'll have to see if I can get a photo of at least one of them next time I head down that way.
ReplyDeleteIs there any logistical reason they have not been replaced? I get that time and weathering will slowly destroy them, but they seem such a cultural part of 6th avenue that they should be replaced. I am sure suitable, longer lasting medallions can be created that would not bust any bank account. Hell - crowd funded? Donations from big businesses (as long as no ads appears on the signs).
ReplyDeleteHave there been any discussions to return the avenue to it's former glory?
Great post. Definitely brought back some childhood memories. It would be great for the city to restore that look to the Avenue, but nowadays there'd probably be too much "outrage" over which nation ended up on which street corner. Hah.
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