New York Through the Ages: Then and Now

Photography is one of the possible ways to make time stay still. Pictures are capable of reviving memories and feelings of the past and bring them to the present. Sputnik invites you to take a journey through time with a gallery of then-and-now pictures of New York City.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

The old pictures from this gallery were taken by legendary American photographer and photojournalist Weegee, who is renowned for his black and white street photography.

Above: This is a combination of the 1946 photo "Fire in a loft building" by Weegee provided by the International Center of Photography showing a fire in a loft building at the intersection of Fulton and Greenwich Streets in New York, and the same vantage point on Wednesday, March 18, 2015, with people lining up for the September 11 Museum. In the background is the World Trade Center transportation hub under construction.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

Weegee worked in Manhattan, New York City’s Lower East Side as a press photographer during the 1930s and 1940s and developed his signature style by following the emergency services and documenting their activities.

Above: This combination shows a crowd on Wall Street in the May 1945 photo "V-E Day" by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography in New York, and the same vantage point in New York on Wednesday, March 18, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

With an astonishing level of realism, much of Weegee’s work depicted the dark side of the city – tenement crimes, car crashes and gangland executions. He was also known for his uncanny ability to arrive quickly at crime scenes – sometimes, even before the police.

Above: This combination shows the January 17, 1941 photo "Chinatown fire" by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography in New York, and Doyers Street in New York on Wednesday, March 18, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

Weegee sold his photographs to tabloids and photographic agencies. His works were published by many newspapers, including the Herald Tribune, New York Post, Daily News, Sun, and others.

Above: This combination shows the 1945 photo "Derelict sleeping on the sidewalk outside police headquarters" by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography in New York, and a woman walking on the same spot on Wednesday, March 18, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

"I have no inhibitions and neither has my camera..." Weegee once said.

Above: This combination shows a 1952 photo of "The Times building" provided by the International Center of Photography and the same vantage point on Thursday, March 19, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

Stark and realistic works by Weegee helped America create a consciousness of itself in the times and conditions of growing urbanization.

Above: This combination shows the March 18, 1943 photo "Wartime rationing: retail butchers await arrival of meat" by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography in New York, and at the same vantage point, the Atlantic Mall, right, and the Barclay's Center, background, in Brooklyn on Monday, March 23, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

In 1945 the Museum of Modern Art held an exhibition of Weegee’s works, and his best-seller Naked City was published. From 1946 to the early 1960s, Weegee worked in Hollywood as an actor and consultant.

Above: This combination of the September 21, 1939 photo "Fiesta turns into tragedy" by Weegee provided by the International Center of Photography shows a murder victim lying on Mulberry Street in the Little Italy neighborhood of New York, and from the same vantage point, pedestrians on Wednesday, March 18, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

Weegee influenced a great amount of outstanding photographers of the 20th century, including Andy Warhol.

Above: This combination shows the 1943 photo "Empire State Bldg." by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography in New York, and the same vantage point on Tuesday, March 17, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

This combination shows the 1953 photo "Showing Tonite" of theater marquis on 42nd Street in New York by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography in New York, and the same vantage point on Tuesday, March, 17, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Copyright Weegee/The International Center of Photography, Mark Lennihan

This combination of the July 27, 1940 photo "Striking Beauty" by Weegee, provided by the International Center of Photography, and the same vantage point on Sunday, March 22, 2015 shows the lower Manhattan skyline near the Brooklyn Bridge.