Filed Under Entertainment

Savoy Ballroom

By Maria F. Aguirre
596-614 Lenox Avenue<br />
596-614 Lenox Avenue
 This image was taken on Lenox Ave facing towards W 139th Street. It shows the famous Savoy Ballroom with large light up sign outside. Image: Block 1738, Lot 1. Source: 1940s Tax Department photographs, New York City Municipal Archives,
https://nycrecords.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_e7af8735-15da-4936-b0ee-a394ece59bd8/ Date: 1939-1941

“Probably Harlem’s best-known dance hall is the SAVOY BALLROOM, Lenox Avenue and 140th Street. Although patronized by many white persons it is the Negroes’ own place. Many popular dances of the more energetic type have originated at the Savoy, including the Lindy Hop, Truckin’ , the Susie Q, and the Shag. The Negro orchestras that have played at the Savoy are among the leaders in the world of swing music and include those of Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, Noble Sissle, Jimmie Lunceford, Chick Webb, Claude Hopskins, Willie Bryant, and Fletcher Henderson” (New York City Guide, p. 264).

Images

596-614 Lenox Avenue<br />
596-614 Lenox Avenue
 This image was taken on Lenox Ave facing towards W 139th Street. It shows the famous Savoy Ballroom with large light up sign outside. Image: Block 1738, Lot 1. Source: 1940s Tax Department photographs, New York City Municipal Archives,
https://nycrecords.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_e7af8735-15da-4936-b0ee-a394ece59bd8/ Date: 1939-1941
Google Street View of Savoy Ballroom Plaque Location
Google Street View of Savoy Ballroom Plaque Location This is a Google Street View image captured Mar 2023. It was taken from the corner of W 141st Street and Lenox Avenue. It was once the location of the Savoy Ballroom. At this location, there is a plaque that celebrates the history of the Savoy Ballroom. Source: Google Maps, Street View.
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.8177614,-73.9381803,3a,75y,46.58h,90t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sDaNUYORASIyVsJxt0Egtuw!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3DDaNUYORASIyVsJxt0Egtuw%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D38.652622%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192?coh=205409&entry=ttu
Digitized Historical Map: 596 Lenox Avenue<br />
Digitized Historical Map: 596 Lenox Avenue
 Bounded by W. 145th Street, (Harlem River) Fifth Avenue, W. 139th Street and Lenox Avenue, Plate 156 Savoy Ballroom is found on Block 1738, Lot 1. Source: Lanbook of the Borough of Manhattan City of New York (Bromley, 1925).
Accessed through: The New York Public Library Digital Collection.
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e2-0b2c-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Location

Metadata

Related Resources

  1. New York City Guide; a Comprehensive Guide to the Five Boroughs of the Metropolis: Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, and Richmond. New York: Random house, 1939.

Citation Info

Maria F. Aguirre, “Savoy Ballroom,” Tours of 1930s NYC, accessed October 1, 2024, https://aguirremariafernanda.reclaim.hosting/items/show/6.

Related Tours

Filed Under