Razed UWS Black, Puerto Rican Nabe Memorialized By Lincoln Center

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — Lincoln Center launched a digital hub earlier this week to honor a neighborhood that was destroyed to build Lincoln Center.

"Legacies of San Juan Hill" will explore the community of mostly Black and Puerto Rican residents that existed on the Upper West Side before it was razed for development in the 1950s.

The online hub will grow over time, but currently includes 12 features of scholarly essays, interviews with former residents, archival photography and audio, video, interactive maps, and more.

“Interrogating accepted historical narratives and injustices around our founding is core to our commitment to building a more just and equitable future for the arts and for New York City," Leah C. Johnson, Executive Vice President of Lincoln Center, said in a news release. “Personally, even as a life-long New Yorker, I did not know much about this area’s history, despite having recently discovered my grandmother lived here."

San Juan Hill was generally considered to go from 59th Street to the south, West End Avenue to the west, 65th Street to the north, and 10th Avenue to the east.

It was home to one of New York City's largest Black populations at the turn of the century, before becoming a mostly Puerto Rican community.

A huge part of it was razed in the 1950s as part of the Robert Moses led Lincoln Square Development plan, which aimed to build the arts center and also a campus for Fordham University.

Over 7,000 families and 800 businesses were displaced during the process.

The new digital hub was created in collaboration with the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College (CENTRO) and the Schomburg Center in Black Culture.

"San Juan Hill's history is rich but often forgotten. The creation of this exciting new partnership between Lincoln Center, CENTRO, and the Schomburg Center will ensure San Juan Hill's legacy won't be lost to time," said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, in a news release.

You can check out the digital hub for yourself — HERE.