New York Now and Then in Historical Pictures

Marc Hermann is a professional news photographer born and raised in Brooklyn, New York.

He is an official historian and interim trustee of the New York Press Photographers Association. As of November 2012, Hermann has been a staff photographer with the Corporate Communications department of MTA New York City Transit.

In a fascinating ‘Now & Then’ series, Hermann superimposes photographs from the Daily News Photo Archive onto present day photos, taking time to match the angle and framing of the original.

The resulting 15-picture series provides a fascinating way to experience a city’s history, especially one as rich and well-documented as New York’s.

You can find the more from this series on Hermann’s official site.

The bells in the steeple rang even as flames consumed the Church of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary one chilly afternoon. The 90-year-old landmark was practically destroyed by the five-alarm blaze, but was rebuilt and still stands today.

A leaky gas pipe wa the cause of a massive explosion at this Downtown Brooklyn office building that shattered storefronts and injured 28 people. The sturdy 30-story building survived without any lasting scars from this incident.

A recently released inmate of the Brooklyn House of Detention had forgotten some clothing, so the obvious solution was to steal a car with two friends to go retrieve it. They didn’t get far, however, coming to a crashing stop against a light pole at Classon Ave. & Pacific St. The auto body shop visible in the background is still in business, though relocated across the street.

A massive fire in the Elkins Paper & Twine Co. on Wooster St. claimed the lives of two firefighters and four members of the New York Fire Patrol. The building was a total loss, and was demolished shortly after the last of the victims’ bodies was recovered. Eight years later, the carnage would be eclipsed by a fire on 23rd St. in which 12 firefighters were killed, leaving the tragedy on Wooster St. to fade into a distant memory.

An M-7 Priest, a self-propelled 105mm gun, rolls up Park Row in front of City Hall en route to Fifth Ave. library where it was placed on display as part of a war bonds drive.