Strand Bookstore

The Strand Bookstore stands as the last remaining survivor of what was once known as Book Row. From the eighteen-nineties until the mid-twentieth century, this stretch of Fourth Avenue between Union Square and Astor Place was dominated by nearly fifty competing secondhand bookstores. While the Great Depression and soaring rents gradually pushed every other shop out of business, the Strand endured by moving to its current Broadway location and steadily expanding its footprint.