On this very day 107 years ago, the General Slocum sank in the East River—at that time, it was the greatest tragedy in New York history (did you forget?). The steamship's demise was revisited a couple of years ago by Inside the Apple, who noted it had been hired by St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church to take its parishioners—all from the surrounding Tompkins Square Park area—on their annual Sunday School picnic. more ›

The city's last privately owned island was sold to the federal government for $2 million. South Brother Island, a 7-acre island (just west of Rikers Island), will be turned over to the city's Parks and Recreation Department and will remain, as amNew York reports, "significant nesting colony for several types of shore birds, including Egrets, Cormorant, and Night Herons." According to the NY Times, the deal, which was "brokered by the Trust for Public... more ›

THEATER: Noah Diamond has worked as a licensed tour guide on all the major double decker bus lines in town, presenting his spoken word elucidation of New York in a near-continuous loop – ten hours a day for seven years. But when he finally quit the business, he found he could not stop guiding: “You wake up screaming, I'm not a tour guide! Then you do ten minutes on the General Slocum and go back to sleep.” He’s now found a way to recover, by performing a one man multimedia virtual tour of New York. 400 Years in Manhattan is a theatrical journey that takes not just one loop around town but rolls through four centuries of city history. - John Del Signore more ›

Kevin Walsh, Forgotten NY more ›