The iconic "Charging Bull" statue has become recognized worldwide as a symbol of New York, but it was originally an illegal art installation that was dropped in the middle of the street on December 15, 1989. 🎂🐂

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. 93 years ago on June 26, 1927 — The Coney Island Cyclone wooden roller coaster op…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. 123 years ago on June 15, 1897 — A fire sweeps through Ellis Island's wood buildi…

[Coronavirus monologue — 7 northeast states form a joint committee to evaluate ending social distancing] Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/adv…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. 69 years ago on March 29, 1951 — The 'Mad Bomber' begins his largest streak of at…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. [Coronavirus monologue] 53 years ago on March 26, 1967 — Thousands of people gath…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. Coronavirus Info for NYC — Westchester resident tests positive for coronavirus, b…

Passengers Aboard Royal Caribbean's Anthem of the Seas Cruise Ship Test Negative for New Coronavirus — AGBC Health page tracking the coronavirus Gunman Who Allegedly Ambushed Cops Due in Court as Tension Between NYPD, Elected Officials Escalates 64 years ago on February 8, 1956 — Eastern Air Flight 663 swerves to avoid an oncoming aircraft and cras…

Coronavirus Info for NYC 175 years ago on January 29, 1845 — 'The Raven' by Edgar Allan Poe is first published in the New-York Evening Mirror 63 years ago on February 1, 1957 — Northeast Air Flight 823 crashes on Rikers Island after takeoff at LaGuardia, killing 20 and injuring 78 28 years ago on February 4, 1992 — Area code 917 is introduced, orig…

11 years ago on January 15, 2009 — Captain Sullenberger lands USAir Flight 1549 in the Hudson River, an event that would become known as the Miracle on the Hudson 19 years ago on January 17, 2001 — A 2.4 magnitude earthquake strikes the Upper East Side of Manhattan 63 years ago on January 21, 1957 — The Mad Bomber is arrested after planting at leas…

AGBC collects a variety of links from across the internet and analyzes them to power our links page. Links are selected and ranked based on whether they are about New York and interesting enough to share. A few times per day, this same system also re-ranks the past few hours of news links and creates our top stories page. Taking that same idea and …

Starting off with a bit more busway news this week: In a study released by Sam Schwartz Transportation Consultants [PDF link], the 14th Street busway has improved travel times on multiple modes of transit by evaluating a variety of data sources, including the Department of Transportation, independent traffic counting, and Citibike data. M14 A and D…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. A moment of remembrance this week for Alelia Murphy, who I mentioned back in July…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. The ridership on crosstown buses at 14th Street has increased to more than 32,000…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. If you're one of the 26,000 people who visit the Wall Street Bull on a typical da…

Take a trip through the slimy, sickening side of the city and prepare yourself for A Great Big SCARE! It's ironically appropriate that the subway celebrates its birthday right around the spookiest time of year, as it prominently features in New Yorkers' nightmares. 115 years ago on October 27th, 1904, The original 28 subway stations opened, stretch…

Last week I walked you through the history of the Guggenheim Museum to mark its 60th anniversary on October 21, 1959, and this week I wanted to point you to a podcast by 99% Invisible, a design and architecture podcast, which worked with the Guggenheim to produce a special audio walkthrough that talks about the history of the building and some of t…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. We've been following the 14th Street busway since it was first proposed, and afte…

A surprising development in the city's fight against billboard barges — The company floating the LED billboards in the waters around Manhattan has thrown in the towel after new state regulations pushed them back 1,500 feet from the shoreline. The advertising company promoting the billboard boats has now settled with the city and agreed to be subjec…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. 9 years ago on October 4, 2010 — 🎉 A Great Big City is founded 🎉 99 years ago — T…

On previous episodes we've covered the threat of measles and West Nile virus, but this week another mosquito-borne virus took the spotlight as Eastern Equine Encephalitis, or EEE, was found in mosquitoes in the surrounding area. The CDC describes the disease as rare, with only a few cases per year, but one out of three people die from the resulting…

Those new state license plates may have hit a bump in the road. As we predicted when online voting opened began to choose the new plate, the actual replacement of the plates became a contentious issue, just like when the gold 'Empire' plates were rolled out in 2010. The uproar surrounded the mandatory $25 fee and the additional fees if you wanted t…

A quick note on what is undoubtedly the top story of this week: The September 11th attacks. It's a uniquely difficult subject to cover, and one that has a unique interpretation within the city, whether you witnessed it first-hand or have come to understand it by living in the city and walking the same streets. I won't be playing excerpts from eyewi…

This may be the final measles update for this season: The city Health Department declared the Brooklyn outbreak over as of September 3rd. During the outbreak, 33,805 doses of the MMR vaccine were administered to people younger than 19 years old in Williamsburg and Boro Park, and the 2018 to 2019 outbreak involved 654 confirmed cases. Numerous other…

The suspect wanted in connection with abandoning two empty rice cookers in the Fulton Street subway station and one in Chelsea was apprehended around 1am on August 17th. Larry Griffin of Bruno, West Virginia was seen in video being wheeled in a wheelchair out of a building in Longwood in the Bronx by paramedics with his head slumped to the side. Em…

Last week, I started out with a quick measles update saying that the outbreak has mostly subsided, but I want to reiterate how important it is to get yourself and any young children vaccinated before the next outbreak begins. Israel-based Ynetnews revealed this week that a 43-year-old flight attendant who had contracted measles while working on the…

In the latest city measles data, just six new cases were registered in July, with none so far in August. The number of new cases have steadily declined since the high point in April, when there were 183 new cases in one month. As the disease spreads through communities, it naturally reaches a maximum number of infections as the vast majority of peo…

Event Planner Ongoing events: Mostly Mozart Festival (All Day Event) NYC Restaurant Week (All Day Event) Thursday, August 8 Columbia Greenmarket Thursday and Sunday Cortelyou Greenmarket Sunday HHFM East Harlem Market NYC Public Beaches NYC Outdoor Public Pools Guster with Rubblebucket ¡Arriba! Latin Dance Party with Avenida B A Dash of Summer: Coo…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. The goats brought in to clean up Riverside Park are taking a summer vacation! The…

Event Planner 164 years ago on August 1, 1855 — Castle Clinton begins functioning as the country's first immigrant processing center at the tip of Manhattan — Castle Clinton begins functioning as the country's first immigrant processing center at the tip of Manhattan \n\n It was operated by New York until April 18, 1890, when the U.S. government wo…

Hudson Yards may be New York's newest neighborhood, but it has already risen to the #2 spot on PropertyShark's list of the city's most expensive neighborhoods Way back in Episode 7, we talked about the proposal for a public beach in Manhattan, and this week, the Hudson River Park Trust revealed some renderings of what the park and beach may look li…

Top story this week has to be the blackout that hit west Manhattan. Coming 42 years to the day after the 1977 blackout from last week's show, this year's power outage was much less dramatic and lasted only a few hours. ConEd CEO John McAvoy described the failure of both the primary and backup protection systems at a power substation at 64th Street …

New York honored the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team for their fourth World Cup victory with a ticker-tape parade and a presentation at city hall on July 10th where each member of the team received a key to the city. The team has won 48 of its last 50 games played and has now won four of the eight total women's World Cups played. (According to th…

Moving the Fourth of July fireworks back to the Brooklyn Bridge for the first time since 2014 went off without any problems, although it did leave a few flames burning on the bridge after the fireworks were finished. It seemed to be the smoldering remains of the fireworks casings or leftover chemicals and not the infrastructure of the bridge itself…

In a preliminary report, the NTSB has released details this week on the June 10th crash of a helicopter atop the AXA Equities building in Midtown. New measles cases continue to decrease as the city's outbreak continues. In the latest data, there have been just 16 new cases reported in June 2019, down from highs in March and April of around 170 new …

No new information on the Midtown helicopter crash as the NTSB continues their investigation, but the incident has stoked local officials to criticize the conditions that led to the crash: Carolyn Maloney, the Congressmember who represents the district where the helicopter came down renewed her calls for private transit and tourism helicopter fligh…

(0:49) Top story this week is the second helicopter crash within the past month, this time atop a building in Midtown. The FAA confirms that Timothy McCormack was not licensed to fly in bad weather because he was not "instrument rated", meaning that he was not qualified to fly a helicopter using only the instrument panel and was only certified to f…

24 years ago on June 5, 1995 — Just after 6am, a 'J' Train headed into Manhattan rear-ends an 'M' Train on the Williamsburg Bridge, killing the train operator and injuring 64 others With New York hosting the World Pride Festival in June and the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots approaching at the end of the month, Police Commissioner O'Neill …

The Subway Emergency Brake Saboteur 72 years ago on May 29, 1947 — United Flight 521 crashes during takeoff from LaGuardia Airport Airbnb and New York City Reach a Truce on Home-Sharing Data The city's number of measles cases have flattened out in data this week showing just 12 new cases since May 20th and 54 new cases in the month of May. This bri…

62 years ago on May 25, 1957 — South tube of the Lincoln Tunnel opens 21 years ago on May 26, 1998 — The Supreme Court rules that the majority of Ellis Island belongs to New Jersey Quinnipiac poll results give de Blasio the lowest marks of any potential candidate The Amateur Astronomers Association of New York will be holding viewing sessions where…

Over the years, there have been three major terror arrests just the month of May, 8, 9, and 10 years ago: 8 years ago on May 11, 2011 — Two potential terrorists are arrested after acquiring weapons and expressing interest to attack city religious sites and the Empire State Building 9 years ago on May 1, 2010 — Terrorist attempts failed Times Square…

We looked at the city's number of measles cases last week on episode 21, and new numbers this week show that the outbreak continues to grow. Within the city, there have now been 498 total confirmed cases, and increase of 32 over last week, and in data from the CDC, the nationwide total is now at 839. A new school has been ordered closed this week f…

The measles outbreak continues to grow as new cases are identified. According to the city health department, there have been 466 confirmed cases of measles in Brooklyn and Queens since September, and New York is a major contributor to the nationwide total of 764 cases, the highest number in 25 years. Within the city, Orthodox Jewish communities are…

Event Planner for the weekend of May 3rd Tribeca Film Festival (All Day Event) May 3, 4, 5 — Frieze Art Fair Summer on the Hudson: Saturday, May 4 — Summer on the Hudson: Monuments Tour of Riverside Park — General Grant National Memorial (in Riverside Park) Saturday, May 4 — Shape Up NYC Dance Fitness Class in West Harlem Piers Park at 11am Sunday,…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. 106 years ago on April 24, 1913 — The Woolworth Building opens, becoming the tall…

Visit agreatbigcity.com/support to learn how to support New York City local news and allow us to keep bringing you this podcast. If you are a New York-based business and would be interested in sponsoring our podcasts, visit agreatbigcity.com/advertising to learn more. I hope you enjoyed the roundup of baseball history on last week's episode. Today …

106 years ago on April 9, 1913 — The first game is played at Ebbets Field A devastating fire sweeps through Polo Grounds stadium 96 years ago on April 18, 1923 — The original Yankee Stadium officially opens 10 years ago on April 16, 2009 — The newest Yankee Stadium opens — The new Yankee Stadium opens 55 years ago on April 17, 1964 — Shea Stadium o…

New York will become the first American city to instate congestion pricing — Quinnipiac poll shows little support for congestion pricing 39 years ago on April 1, 1980 — 33,000 transit workers go on strike, bringing subways and buses to a standstill for 12 days 34 years ago on March 31, 1985 — The First WrestleMania is held at Madison Square Garden …

108 years ago on March 25, 1911 — The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire kills 146 people, becoming the deadliest industrial accident in the city's history — Disturbingly, a similar deadly fire would occur on the same day 79 years later at the Happy Land Club, a story covered in episode 14 of the podcast 4 years ago on March 26, 2015 — A gas explosion and fi…

23 years ago on March 17, 1996 — The city hospitals and the FDNY combine emergency response units to form the FDNY EMS and provide ambulance service citywide. In February 2019, the Daily News reported that the city EMS handled 83% of calls to the FDNY, and did so with a workforce less than half as large as the number of firefighters. 61 years ago o…