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Mount Morris Ascension Presbyterian Church

1906 establishments in New York CityChurches completed in 1906Churches in HarlemNew York City Designated Landmarks in ManhattanThomas Henry Poole buildings
Ascension Presbyterian Harlem dome
Ascension Presbyterian Harlem dome

Mount Morris Ascension Presbyterian Church, originally the Harlem Presbyterian Church, is a historic 1906 church in the Harlem section of New York City. It was designed by Thomas Henry Poole as the Mount Morris Presbyterian Church and features granite and gold Roman brick. The church is in the Mount Morris Park Historic District. The Harlem Presbyterian Church congregation was organized in the 1840s. A history of the Mount Morris Ascension Presbyterian Church was published in 1988. It is held by the New York Public Library.It is at West 122nd Street and Mount Morris Park West. It has a copper clad dome and a medallion of Noah's Ark above its doorway. An American Institute of Architects guidebook describes the dome above the building's eclectic architecture as "just silly".

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Mount Morris Ascension Presbyterian Church
Mount Morris Park West, New York Manhattan

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Wikipedia: Mount Morris Ascension Presbyterian ChurchContinue reading on Wikipedia

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Latitude Longitude
N 40.80507 ° E -73.94552 °
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Mount Morris Park West 15
10027 New York, Manhattan
New York, United States
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Ascension Presbyterian Harlem dome
Ascension Presbyterian Harlem dome
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Harlem Fire Watchtower
Harlem Fire Watchtower

The Harlem Fire Watchtower, also known as the Mount Morris Fire Watchtower, is the only surviving one of eleven cast-iron watchtowers placed throughout New York City starting in the 1850s. Standing at 47 feet (14 m) tall, it was built by Julius H. Kroehl for $2,300 based on a design by James Bogardus. It is located in Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem, Manhattan. The Mount Morris Park tower went into service in 1857 in response to Harlem residents’ demand. The towers gave volunteers a perch from which to watch for fires that were common in the wooden structures that then made up much of New York City, and the watchers then spread the word via bell ringing. Later, electric telegraphs were installed but the bell provided local alarms. When pull boxes and other technological advances rendered the fire watchtowers obsolete, the system was discontinued and the other towers eventually were destroyed. Harlem's, protected in the middle of a park, endured. During the New Deal, the area surrounding the watchtower was rebuilt by government employees as part of the Works Project Administration jobs program. This project created a gracious plaza (sometimes called "the Acropolis"), stone retaining wall, and wide steps approaching the summit from several sides for pedestrians. The tower was designated a city landmark in 1967 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The last work on the watchtower came in 1994, but cracks in the overall structure and in the bell remained. The granite parapet along the top was in need of restoration. Weather, lack of maintenance, and neglect took their toll over the years. Roof damage allowed water into the structure, rusting structural members. The original copper roof deteriorated and fell off, exposing the interior to more damage. Many of the internal steps were missing and park visitors may no longer climb them or get near the structure, which is protected by a fence. In 2013, the Mount Morris Park Community Improvement Association and the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance partnered with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to raise $4 million to restore the Harlem Watchtower, led by Valerie Jo Bradley. Starting in late 2014, NYC Parks disassembled the tower to restore the structure and ensure its soundness and stability before reconstruction. The tower reopened to visitors in December 2019.

Sylvia's Restaurant of Harlem
Sylvia's Restaurant of Harlem

Sylvia's Restaurant of Harlem, often called Sylvia's Soul Food or just Sylvia's, is a soul food restaurant located at 328 Lenox Avenue, between 126th and 127th Streets, in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City. It was founded in 1962 by Sylvia Woods. It has since expanded to a much larger space at its present location, and an adjacent building. The restaurant also sells a line of prepared foods, beauty and skin care items, cookbooks, and a children's book written by Woods. Woods purchased the original luncheonette by borrowing money from her mother, who had to mortgage her farm to provide it. The restaurant attracts a clientele that ranges from Harlem locals to visiting celebrities. Whoopi Goldberg, Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela, Caroline Kennedy, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Magic Johnson, Barack Obama, Bernie Sanders and Bruno Mars are among those who have dined there. Sylvia's was also featured on a Manhattan-themed episode of the Travel Channel's Man v. Food in early 2009. On September 19, 2007, commentator Bill O'Reilly received criticism regarding comments he made on his syndicated radio show, about having lunch at Sylvia's with Al Sharpton. O'Reilly concluded that stereotypes regarding African Americans were not true based on observations he had made at the restaurant.In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sylvia's Restaurant participated in relief efforts by donating fifty meals to Harlem Hospital. The restaurant announced plans to open a pop-up pantry featuring meal kits to serve the community.