The cultural survival of New York City is, of course, a pretty old story.
As its history has become more diverse and complex, stories of resilience — in the face of risk and in times of crisis — have been played out here.
In a new video produced for The New York Times and a multimedia project with the Times, the documentary and more than 160 unique images from past and present stories of urban resilience — from the early 1900s to the present day — are featured as glimpses of how New York has undergone change.
These interviews range from oral histories with survivors of the famous 1910 Manhattan fire and the historic East River flood of 1903 to retellings of the story of the New York Police Department’s October blizzard of 1947 and the firefighters who fought an hours-long building collapse in lower Manhattan this past March.
These stories bring the past into sharp focus for our present and allow you to experience the city anew.
Watch the videos here, and read more here.