It’s been quite some time since I came across the Greene Street project online. NYU’s Development Research Institute did a study to understand the historic development of a block in Manhattan. This particular block had witnessed wealthy residents, sex workers, artists, and many more over the past 400 years. Here is a short video summarizing the study and a link to more information.

Greene Street: A Long History of a Short Block

Of course, this made me think about the Bay Area and particularly San Francisco. I would like to see more work on how San Francisco transitioned over time. South San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley… All these cities must have gone through many changes over the last two hundred years. Especially now, with Covid-19, the urban life of these cities must be changing and many neighborhoods must be waiting for what is next for them. After a brief research, I found many resources for amateur researchers like myself. Gladly, California has several online archives that host maps, documents, land claim cases and much more!

This colored video of Market Street in the early 20th century makes me even more excited about the stories that are waiting to be discovered in the archives. Places with stories must be exciting for everyone! ●