Beautiful Vintage Noir Photos Of New York City In The 1940s

Smoggy waterfront skyline of New York City as seen from the shores of New Jersey, 1946.

French-born photographer Andreas Feininger moved to the United States in 1939 and started to work at LIFE magazine in 1943. One of America’s greatest photographers of the 20th century, Feininger was well-known for his photographs of New York City, which was also his favorite subject. His grand love for New York was plainly shown in numerous photographs, both in black-and-white and in color, from viewpoints all around the city.

Take a look back at the city in the 1940s through these transcendent photographs taken by the masterly photographer.

h/t: vintag.es

NYC, 1940

Underneath West Side Highway near 125th Street, 1940.

9th Avenue Elevated armature in Harlem, on 8th Avenue near 127th Street, 1940.

Sheep Meadow, Central Park, 1940.

Central Park, 1942.

Independence Day parade up Fifth Avenue, 1942.

An exterior view of the entrance to the Ferry Terminal at Liberty Street, 1942.

Feeding the ducks and swans in Central Park on a sunny Sunday afternoon, 1943.

People walk past the Broadway Cocktail Lounge in Times Square during a dim-out in the city, 1943.

Dimout, downtown Manhattan and East River, 1943.

View of Times Square, looking south on Broadway from 47th Street, summer 1944.

Times Square at night with traffic and lit billboards, 1945.

Vaudeville Loew’s State Theatre at 1540 Broadway at night with traffic and crowds, 1945.

View through the window of an Art Deco-styled Horn and Hardart Automat, 106 West 50th Street, 1945.

Radio City Music Hall lit up at night, 1945.

A photo shop specializing in ‘Fine Portraits’ and passport photos near Times Square, 1945.

Pedestrians walk past sign that advertise the Club Samoa, Club Downbeat, and the 3 Deuce on West 52nd Street, 1945.

In a small store front called ‘Pop’s Pop Corn’ near Times Square, a white-coated vendor serves two women, 1945.

A night image of Beef Steak Charlie’s restaurant all lit up in neon on the 50th street and Broadway area, 1945.

Manhattan, 1945

Nighttime view of the illuminated Manhattan skyline from the Brooklyn Bridge, 1946.

View of a crescent moon over lower Manhattan, 1946.

The three tallest buildings are, from left), the City Bank Farmers Trust Building (Cross and Cross, completed 1931; later known as 20 Exchange Place), the Cities Service Building (Clinton & Russell, Holton & George, completed 1932; later known as the American International Building), and the Bank of the Manhattan Company building (H. Craig Severance, completed 1930; later known as 40 Wall Street and the Trump Building).

View of illuminated skyscrapers at night, 1946.

Outside view of the Center Theatre at night, 1946.

Embassy Theater showing newsreel format films at night with neon signs and large crowds out front on broadway in Times Square, 1946.

View of a street corner, possibly in Queens, where a Nedick’s ‘fast-food’ restaurant, the White Rose Bar, and Dr. Henry W. Walden’s dentist office all shine brightly in the night, 1946.

Typical crowded urban scene in Midtown Manhattan looking north on 5th Ave from 31st Street, 1948.

Street covers by the snow during snowstorm, 1948.

Pre-Christmas holiday traffic jamming highway ramp into the city, 1948.

Aerial view of Manhattan Skyline, 1948.

Boys playing game of punch ball down by the docks, 1949.

Nighttime view of Midtown Manhattan and the Rockefeller Center, 1949.

Exterior view of buildings at night, 1949.