America's Fallen Cities: Empire State

[@EPMTUNES]

These videos make me so sad. Its like watching a car accident but I keep coming back

[@noggin6870]

I mean it's kinda sad, but the world drastically changed. There's no scenario where these cities stay what they were, we don't need them anymore.

[@pieterzuiddam]

@@noggin6870what a nonsense, in Europe we managed to preserve our historic cities despite two devastating wars. This should become a wale up call for people in the US.

[@noggin6870]

@@pieterzuiddam not like these. This town is irrelevant and has been for a century. Germany is filled with former industrial cities that are shells of their former selves.

[@borkrug]

​@@noggin6870Industrial cities in Germany were bombed into oblivion, the US does not have that excuse.

[@noggin6870]

@borkrug it's not necessary to have an excuse, these rotting towns are everywhere, all over the globe. Sometimes the thing that made a city relevant doesn't matter anymore. There's no reason to keep the city in good shape or keep investing in it at that point. The smart thing to do is just let it fall apart while people move away to places that have a place in the modern world.

[@bjdon99]

All the old photos of the main streets show them full of people. Now the modern photos show them mostly empty

[@alexanderrotmensz]

Empty streets define so much of America. No wonder we’re slaves to media bubbles

[@raymondniven5281]

This is the way Pennsylvania, especially Philadelphia treats it's architecture. You should do a video on Philadelphia.

[@pjflynn5978]

I wish Philadelphia took better care of their beautiful and historic rowhome neighborhoods. Many Baltimore neighborhoods have been beautifully restored, especially many middle class neighborhoods. Charles Village, Hampden, Federal Hill and otterbein have seen such dramatic improvements. I’d like to see west philly have large scale restorations and improvements. But PA by large still has so many intact historic cities and towns compared to any state. Like oh my god words cannot describe my love for Pennsylvania and its unusually dense, unique, and ubiquitous rowhome towns. Lancaster (and any of the towns outside of the city), Bethlehem, York, Lewisburg, West Chester, Carlisle, Chambersburg, and so many more cities still have such beautiful historic neighborhoods. I’m not sure why they weren’t gutted like so many other places during the 50s. Maybe because the state was already on an economic decline.

[@track1949]

​@@pjflynn5978Few with money want to live in those. They want new or somewhat new.

[@pjflynn5978]

@@track1949 mmm not true. Look at how insanely expensive a 1200sqft rowhome goes for in DC. Even cities right outside! I see million dollar rowhomes being sold in Frederick MD and Alexandria VA on the regular. There’s no way in hell im ever living anything made AFTER 1950. No character and horrifically made. That is a sentiment shared by many regardless of class.

[@Thatgamingdiary]

All the factories that powered the city back in the day now rot abandoned up in Kensington which in itself it not doing too good run over by substance users & some of the old buildings were destroyed by I-95

[@Dalt21]

@@pjflynn5978 I think that compared to Baltimore, Philadelphia has taken care of their row homes relatively speaking. A lot of west Philly has been restored and is being taken care of. The really sad parts are some areas of north Philly that have really went into decay. But most of south, all of center, old , fishtown , mannyunk, etc is pretty in tact.

[@raimyjaramillo2515]

I live in Troy NY and alot of the Historic downtown area is still intact, the buildings & brownstones are beautiful, and the area still remains walkable. It was the main reason I moved there instead of Albany & some of the other upstate cities. I thank god everyday that Troy wasn't completely bulldozed for a Highway.

[@LiamMeehan-rq7kz]

I love the farmers market

[@raimyjaramillo2515]

@@LiamMeehan-rq7kz yeah they’re great, city really comes alive on Saturdays

[@guyfaux3978]

Troy is where the TV series The Gilded Age is filmed.

[@vaughnmonroejr.7122]

I lived in Troy for almost 7 years up to 2 years ago. Downtown bounced back incredibly from when I visited in the early 1990's. THANK YOU to all the un-named city officials and businesspeople who made it happen.

[@vaughnmonroejr.7122]

@@guyfaux3978 I came home to horses outside my apartment on 2nd Street

[@bluenothing_666]

When I grew up as a German kid watching old Disney movies, the old and beautiful, almost aristocratic America was what I thought this country looked like. When I started to inform myself about architecture due to the ugliness of cities at home in Germany, I was beyond shocked to see entire beautiful cities literally vanishing, disappearing completely. It is sad, so incredibly sad. And the urban re-renewal is such a bad substitute for what once was

[@Tobi-ln9xr]

Nicht ganz Deutschland sieht aus wie NRW. Wenn du mal in Ost-Deutschland, Nordost-Deutschland oder Süd-Deutschland gewesen wärst, würdest du auch schöne Städte sehen. Des Weiteren zeigen Disney Filme auch weitestgehend deutsche Architektur… Aber Hauptsache das eigene Land wieder in den Dreck ziehen…

[@FrankSinatraTheSecond]

New York State is the definition of "how the mighty have fallen"

[@Lodestar12345]

Troy might be one of the best preserved upstate cities. The narrow streets with historic buildings and lined with trees are beautiful.

[@jonahkaz]

These videos are always so disheartening yet I click on them everytime I see a new one😭

[@Strideo1]

These video really capture that heart-wrenching sense of the vanished past. I see the old cities in all their charming classic American glory and just think "what have we done?".

[@brandontaraku6081]

I’d be interested to see a fallen cities series specifically on Downtown LA. While LA is often viewed in a different light, I feel like DTLA has some overlap with a lot of rust belt cities, since it flourished in the late 19th and early 20th century, hosting a lot of great American architecture similar to these cities here. Like these cities, a lot of it was unfortunately destroyed, like the bunker hill neighborhood, and so much of the core urban fabric became underutilized with the advent of suburbanization, like the historic broadway theater district, which feels decrepit and abandoned. Although many parts of LA flourished with the advent of car culture, it seems that its core historic regions have seen better days, peaking in the early parts of the 20th century.

[@michaelmangraviti6772]

Guys, I’m not gonna lie the New York Capitol complex in Albany I think is kind of fire like yeah it’s sort of bleak and dystopian and miserable, but at the same same time as a photographer and architecture enthusiast I can’t help but love it’s striking form

[@IceMeowso]

you just nailed everything wrong with definitions of beauty & purpose in architecture and photography

[@Daniel-hj8el]

As a Syracuser, This is definitely true video 😪of how Empire State have fallen especially you should add in that Syracuse (my hometown) WORST hit, is Main Art deco train station were crumble and then converted into a dreaded highway, very pissed but we are Slowly improve our city to fix our mistakes to make our urbanism great again but man CANT WAIT to have I 81 thru downtown Syracuse removed to reconnect the city!

[@TheDudecof]

Congrats on graduating uni and still sticking to your passion

[@Tobi-ln9xr]

It’s quite sad how many buildings were destroyed by the wrecking ball in countries like Canada, the US, Australia or New Zealand. Those former European settler colonies had quite an interesting architecture with a lot of different architectural styles and features coming together. It’s especially sad when you take into perspective that none of those cities were destroyed by wars or revolutions like most cities in Europe. The buildings were just torn down… Nowadays you can’t see an architectural difference between Toronto, Melbourne or New York.

[@MatthewTS]

This is a great video. Especially about how cities need to preserve their past to remember greatness, or they'll loose their character. And how replacements need to be better, not worse.

[@AydanM]

Another harrowing but deeply insightful video. Keep up the great work.

[@RubmaLione]

This frustrates me beyond belief. Northeast cities were so walkable and beautiful. We had it right from the beginning, and then we absolutely destroyed them to build... highways?? Parking lots?

[@OLDMANTEA]

Barcelona is trying to reverse the trend by creating pedestrian only superblocks within the city.

[@HighFlyingOwlOfMinerva]

That is shocking, honestly. You had gold in your hands and you fumbled it for... parking lots, brutalism and overhead highways? Whoever had these short-sighted idea's should be sued for negligence of the highest order. I pray the partisan aspect of good cities with beautiful architecture and walkability will be gone in the new generation so you can at least recapture some of the grandeur your cities once had, and to also combat problems like obesity (since walking is an effective way to combat it as opposed to sitting in a car for every trip) and depression (as taking a walk can visibly improve your mood many times). Great video, cheers!

[@OLDMANTEA]

A lot of car companies bought out urban mass transit systems and shut them down.

[@AnimeIntroStyles4]

As someone who lives in NYC, I was like wait, is he doing a video on NYC? NYC has ruined some buildings like Penn Station, but overall they’re doing a good job in the last 10 years of increasing green spaces and walkways with projects like The Highline and Little Island.

[@MenPayItForward]

I would like a clear essay articulating what, exactly, constitutes the life-force that has seemingly been lost in these grand cities and their communities. These past scenes are so saddening. The cities I visit feel dead or perhaps soulless in comparison. People seem so much less differentiated and as though their personalities are dampened from a part them being elsewhere (online, mind away from family or community).

[@slizzysluzzer]

They're just less active because there's less incentive to be outside in the first place. It's not just urban planning, it's also technological progress. Homes weren't commonly air conditioned until the 1960s. Television sets didn't become standard until the 50s. Many apartments had no kitchens and what kitchens they did have were often not equipped with fridges and dishwashers. Put frankly, you had no choice but to go outside - to eat, to entertain yourself, to interact with other human beings at all.

[@danshafman4899]

@MenPayItForward You may enjoy the Nature of Order book series by Christopher Alexander. In his earlier Center for Environmental Structure series he tries to define the organic processes of growth by which cities with that life-force come about, and in the Nature of Order he tries hard to put a scientific (though it has an almost religious quality) definition to that very life-force. It’s a heavy read but at times feels less like learning and more like ancient wisdom being revealed to you.

[@simonalexander6700]

Troy and Syracuse are, for the most part, preserved. Syracuse is in the process of restoring the city street grid by demolishing I-81 that cuts through downtown. Rochester without a doubt destroyed itself so heavily. But its also in the process of demolishing the inner loop highway and rebuilding the inner core with dense buildings. Buffalo aswell albeit Buffalo still retains enough grandeur to make a comeback. The city of Buffalo is actively densifying with some really great buildings. They're even rebuilding a dense canalside district, reminiscent of the one from the past. Buffalo is also planning metro rail expansion to Buffalo state North Campus in Amherst.

[@Strideo1]

I heard in Albany they call hamburgers steamed hams. Not in Utica though.

[@jimmypiff2799]

😂😂😂

[@karl7428]

notice how many of these demolishions were done to build parking lots and parking garages

[@christijanrobert1627]

These videos are elegies to the grandeur of the past.

[@liamobrien9451]

I do feel lucky to live in london, where the new was integrated into the old, it's a very beautiful city to just walk through

[@georgepig7362]

Not trying to be that guy but that the Woolworth building 8:33

[@Smgs-ue7tj]

I just noticed that 😅 and I was gona comment.

[@hochlastique]

at 8:30 it says "The Chrysler Builder Under Construction" - isn't it the Woolworth Building? 🙃 I remember Chrysler building was famous for not having any traces of the spire until the very last moment.

[@daveweiss5647]

Seeing our old cities with beautiful architecture, streetcars, statues, canals.... it is beyond tragic... it is an absolute crime what was done to America...

[@12GBKT]

Great vid as always!

[@TopMaverick-k4o]

We are living in an age of decline

[@alexanderrotmensz]

Likely true, but there is energy out there to turn it around. That’s what I hope to do with these videos:)

[@TopMaverick-k4o]

@@alexanderrotmensz Good luck!

[@pitchkinker]

Disagree, the 60s-80s were the age of decline. We’re in the age of realization now

[@TopMaverick-k4o]

@@pitchkinker how were those decades the age of decline

[@noggin6870]

For smaller urban areas yes, but large urban centers are experiencing a great cultural shift and revitalization that is amazing to see. The real age of decline was the peak era of white flight in the 60s to 80s when everyone abandoned the urban centers for suburbia én masse

[@lookoutforchris]

KZbin is censoring comments here about urban decay.

[@mattdunn0804]

Great videos on the decline of cities. Upstate NY once was a major industrial center, but the search for cheap labor made those companies leave. Couple that with the decline of river trade and you see part of the reason for the decline. The state of New York is trying to turn upstate into a technology hub, we shall see if this changes the fortunes of the state. Though some of the large cities have declined and suburbanized, smaller towns like Saratoga Springs and Ithaca have kept their history and continue to be vibrant centers.

[@naptime0143]

You can add in taxes as well. NYS has always had a problem for decades with how it manages tax money

[@Stars123YT]

Do one about Watertown. It actually used to be one of the richest towns in the us

[@DrakeRudolph-v1s]

Much of the historic cores of Albany, Schenectady, Troy, & Saratoga Springs Still remain...

[@Novusod]

It is worth a trip to Utica just get a bite of those steamed hams.

[@edmundironside9435]

Well I'm from Utica and I've never heard anyone use the phrase steamed hams

[@arimihalos7598]

Congrats on graduating, awesome video as usual. I like the concept that cities evolve to suite the needs of their citizens. Great places to live should be flexible enough to accommodate the flow of new ideas and people, but pay homage to what the city is at its core. When i watch your videos, it makes me want to think of an alternative USA where we didn't adopt homogenous and stagnant blueprint of autofocused suburban development, but continued to have modern developments (plumbing, muli-model transport, AC, etc). Seeing these videos make me have hope that we can incorporate traditional development into the USA today to make great places for people to live. Keep up the great work.

[@MrByzantian]

As a small child 20 years ago I lived in Albany. I have some very nice memories playing with other kids in the suburbs. But honestly I'm a little shocked and sad now to see the former glory of this city. I had no idea!

[@sfdko3291]

It's crazy how both Brooklyn and Queens both feel more like cities than other major cities in the USA.

[@danma1156]

Congratulations on graduating!

[@dariuspk2850]

Atlantas urban renewal was abysmal. You should check it out too

[@Kiyoone]

Hi. I am 36 years old and this makes me feel nostalgic and sad at the same time. I simply can't see any beauty in the "Modern architecture"... More and more I feel like anything made after the 2000's have 95% of chance of being TRASH... If it is not that, it is a "remake" from old things that already existed.

[@jonoghue]

FYI the photo at 2:13 looks like it's from the 1990s, based on the cars there. Many of the old buildings in Syracuse are still there. (though not enough)

[@SonnyBubba]

How much of the economy was hurt by The Jones Act? It’s made water more expensive than trains and trucks for hauling bulk freight, which hurts manufacturing, which then helped create The Rust Belt.

[@phoenixjim0527]

You see far less of this pattern of wasteful abandonment and soulless redevelopment in Canada. Europe too. America got it wrong.

[@viktors9385]

Invention of automobile is the worst thing that happened not only to this planet's ecology, but also human culture and architectural heritage.

[@queensmum]

Check out Pittston PA - it’s been going through a revitalization- though sadly some of the historic features are lost to history, they’re planning to bring back a theatre that was torn down (unfortunately with a modern building, but at least there will be a cultural space brought back)

[@robertklose2140]

So sad to see what Americans have "settled" for in the places they live. All because a strip mall might enable them to get a "deal" on an article of clothing.

[@hamstersmailman5517]

These cities exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you

[@j.vanderson6239]

So beautiful. Love the streetcars. Another evidence that US cities were not build for the car. They were BULDOZERD for the car !! So happy that we in Europa care more about our heritage

[@vaughnmonroejr.7122]

Thanks for this video, Alexander. Your match dissolves showing the destruction, literally, of urban renewal are a powerful story. What was the collective wisdom of the 60's that led to destruction? It's reminiscent of European towns & cities leveled in the World Wars, but Europe didn't rebuild with parking lots. As a youngster I witnessed the destruction of an Erie Canal town (Newark) which "renewed" in the 1970's. I have long said that it looks like the town was bombed. As a lifelong resident of Upstate New York (mostly Rochester) I can say there is also much to love.

[@squartbotai1383]

Incredible

[@peteferguson518]

Have you been able to find old pictures of more residential areas with charming townhouses and low-rise condos?

[@gradedcypress11]

what about Fulton? probably the most fallen city in CNY

[@mr.matts1789]

Hey could you ever do a video on Elizabeth Nj?

[@yodorob]

Just like with the Upstate cities, so with the Rust Belt cities further west like Cleveland, Detroit, or Milwaukee.

[@l.a.crenshaw5952]

Its to sad for words how they have destroyed these beautiful Architecture in those City's

[@extragjakovar]

Do one for Australia

[@yodorob]

Rochester was the Columbus or Austin of the mid (maybe late) 20th century. Fast growth, white collar economy, high tech, etc.

[@Lunch_at_Marcos]

It’s truly sad.

[@squartbotai1383]

Schenectady gang

[@RaiJolt2]

I was recently in Utica and it’s still a beautiful city. I do wish it still had the streetcar network. But the forgotten manufacturing plants LITTER the region. Right off of Utica’s mainstreets a couple minutes walking distance from the gorgeous Utica train station are abandoned brick monoliths that used to be industrial centers. The roundabout is really nice though. There is some beautification happening with a revamped front entrance to the museum. Much of the old architecture remains in the city however, even on the outskirts where it takes on a more Victorian feel. There is definitely a sense of decline but the restaurants and cultural centers seem to be doing rather well despite the pandemics effects. There are some modernist buildings that just kinda exist there though and a lot of the brick is gone. Many buildings are boarded up. I will say however the bank of Utica building literally has multiple gorgeous brick buildings to the immediate left of the image you showed in the video. The city is still beautiful though…. Except the new parts of the community college That’s ugly as can be. Also edit: when you showed 1st street broad street intersection in Utica if you turn around it’s suddenly a much denser and walkable urban area next to a train station. Unfortunately it’s only 4-7 buildings of actual good design. It’s crazy how quickly the city just…. Starts getting holes and parking lots and empty lots The buildings on the left a little in the distance are abandoned in if remember correctly Looking at the road layout it’s super clear where buildings were removed and replaced with parking lots

[@gameconsumer2517]

You should really do Youngstown Ohio. Rust belt capital.

[@LeftysLefty]

We have this love/hate relationship with Capitalism. This is what Capitalism does - the downside of Capitalism. Those of us on the poor side of things are very familiar with this side of Capitalism.

[@Friedtoenails]

So soul sucking. The awful highways, parking lots, fast food and big box banality, and brutal modern buildings

[@tariqreingoud]

All that for highways and parking lots. Just insane

[@jfb112697]

as someone that's unfortunately spent time in troy, ny i think we need to prosecute someone for crimes against humanity

[@Hiller013]

Damn, this is sad.

[@SeymourButts-yg3gy]

5:43

[@guyfaux3978]

The only thing is, to preserve the architecture you need funds. How do you get the money to keep the buildings in good shape, if you cannot lease them out profitably?

[@ecurewitz]

So much of it is now parking lots

[@MBP1918]

A tragedy

[@marcusberns3746]

Every one of these vids I watch I think the same thing. How could they do this to us?

[@SeymourButts-yg3gy]

1:18 1:29 8:34

[@mathewleary9832]

And you barley scratched the surface...

[@buttmankun]

Gentleman, don't ever forget what was taken from you.

[@josuevielman535]

When is Indianapolis coming! These are like crack

[@___.51]

Parking, parking, more parking... I'm sensing a theme with many of these photos.

[@LifeOnCoach]

✌🏾

[@mystorage1010]

Very sad.

[@lIIIllIllIlIIlI]

Do detroit

[@kuripangui]

another city made for cars only

[@Tobi-ln9xr]

0:15 "Capital of the world“ 😂😂😂 Typical American modesty. As a European, no it’s by far not…

[@Zalis116]

If only NYC had the headquarters and meeting space of a planet-unifying, supranational organization located within it. Maybe then the claim might have some merit.

[@bano363]

You lost me after the 'capital of the world' remark

[@57687]

Your videos are too effective and they make me really sad I'm going to unsubscribe so I won't feel as bad about what we've lost.

[@alexanderrotmensz]

I have positive videos too!

[@MatthewTS]

We need to know about what happened so we can change it for the future.

[@Sneederinosama]

@@MatthewTSthe US government bulldozed the cities

[@scronx]

Oh but you must understand that all that old gracious culture and architecture was RACIST. It was RACIST.

[@khritdisyapipat63]

No one said that. You're making up a strawman to stroke a narrative in your own head.

[@morewi]

​@@khritdisyapipat63I've heard people say that. Usually in the depths of a humanities department or in the abyss of a leftist forum

[@johnaltobello5095]

It's all about DEMOGRAPHIC change..

[@AmaniCapicotto]

I hope you dont think its black people who bulldoze these cities to build superhighways. They’re usually the number one victims especially with Robert Moses Highway in the bronx eradicating hundreds of historic neighborhoods.

[@underballbutter]

I teared up watching this