Podcast Summary: All Of It (WNYC)

Episode Title: A Harlem Renaissance Walking Tour
Date: February 23, 2024
Host: Tiffany Hansen (filling in for Alison Stewart)
Guest: Carolyn Johnson, Founder of Welcome to Harlem

Overview

This episode blends a deep dive into Harlem’s layered histories, architectural gems, and vibrant cultural narratives—particularly those tied to the Harlem Renaissance—with a practical guide to exploring the neighborhood’s living heritage. Guest Carolyn Johnson, lifelong Harlem resident and founder of the boutique tour company Welcome to Harlem, shares her expertise on key sites, historical myths, the preservation of local landmarks, and the stories behind Harlem’s iconic brownstones, churches, and famed institutions like the Apollo Theater. The conversation also highlights Johnson's creative ventures, such as her board game Harlemopoly, which further celebrates Harlem’s legacy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Carolyn Johnson’s Harlem Roots and Motivations

• Carolyn Johnson, born and raised in Harlem, moved to the Mount Morris Park area 30 years ago. Her journey to starting Welcome to Harlem began with a course for prospective tour guides:

  "One of my mentors and best friend had gotten a grant to teach people how to be tour guides... I loved it and that what sprung me into creating welcome to Harlem." (02:02)

2. Challenging the Myths about Harlem

• Johnson addresses both misconceptions and truths outsiders hold about Harlem:

  "A lot of it is the wrong because they see it on the TV and movies a lot. So they think it's just the African American Community. They think about the crime, the grit and all of that stuff... but Harlem is a beautiful community and it has been multicultural from day one." (02:43)
  "They do get the part right about gospel and jazz and soul food." (02:43)

• Visitors are most surprised by Harlem’s beauty and diversity:

  "I always encourage people to get off 125th street and just wind through the neighborhood... they're just pleasantly surprised about how beautiful the neighborhood is." (03:30)

3. Neighborhoods of Harlem: Diversity & Self-Containment

• Harlem consists of Central, East, and West Harlem—with West Harlem further split into Morningside Heights, Manhattanville, and Sugar Hill:

  "If you put all three... together, we are 6.2 miles. We are one fifth of the island of Manhattan... We probably [are] one of the few self-contained neighborhoods in New York City." (04:25)

• Sugar Hill’s legacy:

  "That was called, like, the Sweet Life when you lived on Sugar Hill... a lot of jazz musicians... writers and entertainers... beautiful brownstones and these magnificent homes... it had a lot of jazz clubs up there, speakeasies and stuff like that." (05:36)

4. Brownstones and Community Fabric

• On the significance and styles of Harlem’s brownstones:

  "Our oldest ones would be inside of East Harlem... In Central Harlem... you have the particular ones known as Stryver's Row. Strivers Row does not have backyards like most typical brownstones. They were built between 1891, 1893, about 140 homes." (07:18)

• The community impact:

  "Astor Row... has front yards. And that's not typical in Manhattan... And they have the beautiful wooden porches... So you have three different types of brownstones inside of Harlem." (08:20)

5. Listener Engagement: Local Memories and Landmarks

• Listener Gregory shares his connection to Harlem’s music legacy:

  "A lot of people don't know that [the] music and art high school, originally was on 137th street and St Nicholas Terrace above the park there. And we called it the Castle on the Hill." (08:45)

• Discussion about the "Triangle Building" on 121st Street, used for community activities today (09:51).

6. Historic Churches: Spiritual and Cultural Heart

• Key churches highlighted:

  "Mother Zion AME Church, that's the oldest African American church in New York... Abyssinian Baptist church... St. Phillips... First Corinthian Baptist Church, which was actually a movie theater house, but converted to a church." (10:38)

• On Mother Zion’s interior:

  "It's just the architecture of it. It's so, so unassuming from the street... beautiful red, the stained glass windows... It's arched like a shoe horse. Not like a regular church... goes back to the Underground Railroad. People like Harriet Tubman... Paul Robeson and stuff like that." (11:29)

7. Preservation and Threats to Heritage

• On landmark status and preservation struggles:

  "Unfortunately, a lot of our buildings are not landmarked in Harlem... churches... being sold and torn down or either gutted... It costs a lot of money to preserve these properties... Harlem has a lot of beautiful spaces that are not landmarked. And that has been one of our caveats." (12:48)

8. Curated Themed Tours

• Types of tours Welcome to Harlem offers:

  "We have a gospel and brunch tour... a live gospel concert every Saturday from 11 to 12... Or they can do the Sunday, the traditional one, where they go to a church service." (14:18)

• On jazz-centric tours and the deep history threaded through the walking experience:

  "We walk first... 120... we went to Mittens... then after being admittance... back up to 125th street and walked across 125th Street... you have the world's famous Apollo Theater... Blumstein's... Hotel Theresa... Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office Building... Studio Museum in Harlem." (15:07)

9. The Apollo Theater and the Black Cultural Stage

• Significance during and beyond the Harlem Renaissance:

  "When it opened up in 1934, that became a place where African Americans were able to showcase their talents... one of the first integrated theaters in New York City, so blacks and whites could sit in the audience together... the black Carnegie hall." (17:05)

• Notable performers:

  "Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Jackie Moms Mabley... Celia Cruz and Tito Puente... First white performer by accident: Buddy Holly and the Crickets in 1958." (17:05, 18:10)

  "If you got talent and you can make it on that stage, they will let you know. And if you don't have talent, they will let you know also. So it's like, take your chances." (18:47)

10. Hotel Theresa: The Waldorf of Harlem

• A microcosm of Harlem’s intersectional history:

  "Built in 1913... a beautiful 13 story structure... doors first opened up, it was for whites only. African Americans did not get access until 1940." (19:03)

• Connections to Civil Rights history and major figures:

  "William Brown was Ron Brown's father... Charlie Rangel was a bellhop there. Sugar Ray Robinson and Joe Louis... Fidel Castro... Malcolm X extended an invitation... had his office space in there. A. Philip Randolph... worked with Adam Clayton Powell Jr. to create the first black union for the sleeping car porters." (19:42-20:44)

• JFK's campaign at the hotel is also noted (20:51).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "If you put all three of those neighborhoods together, we are 6.2 miles. We are one fifth of the island of Manhattan. People don't realize how large we are." — Carolyn Johnson (04:25)
• "That was called, like, the Sweet Life when you lived on Sugar Hill, because you were living at the top and you were looking down into the valley..." — Carolyn Johnson (05:36)
• "The beauty about the Apollo... If you got talent and you can make it on that stage, they will let you know. And if you don't have talent, they will let you know also. So it's like, take your chances." — Carolyn Johnson (18:47)
• "A lot of our buildings are not landmarked... And that has been one of our caveats in our neighborhood, really. Unfortunately, we have lost some beautiful spaces because of that." — Carolyn Johnson (12:48)
• "Mother Zion AME Church... goes back to the Underground Railroad. People like Harriet Tubman, Sigourna Truth, and all these people were associated with it." — Carolyn Johnson (11:29)

Important Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | |-----------|--------------| | 02:02 | Carolyn buys into Harlem's history tour company origins | | 02:43 | Harlem stereotypes vs. lived reality | | 04:25 | Breakdown of the neighborhoods of Harlem | | 05:36 | The Sweet Life: Sugar Hill’s legacy | | 07:18 | Harlem brownstones and their significance | | 08:45 | Listener Gregory recalls original Music & Art High School | | 10:38 | Historic churches and their role in Harlem | | 12:48 | Preservation challenges and lack of landmark status | | 14:18 | Structure and offerings of Welcome to Harlem's tours | | 15:07 | The jazz walking tour and history on 125th St | | 17:05 | The Apollo Theater’s historical role | | 19:03 | Describing and contextualizing Hotel Theresa | | 20:44 | Landmark events and figures connected to Hotel Theresa |

Further Exploration

• Carolyn Johnson’s tours: welcometoharlem.com
• Harlem Jazz Box with a double X: harlemjazzboxx.com
• Harlemopoly board game for a playful Harlem history experience

Summary prepared for listeners seeking a vivid, detailed journey through Harlem’s past and present—without missing its community spirit and rich culture.