Welcome to the Upper East Side! It is home to some of Manhattans elites and known for its for its media reference in multiple shows. The upper east side is made up of several other smaller neighborhoods with three main ones surrounding it. The first of the three main neighborhoods is the Lenox Hill neighborhood and it forms the lower part of the Upper East Side. The second main neighborhood is Carnegie Hill and is located North-West of the Upper East Side and makes up the top side of the Upper East Side. Finally, the third neighborhood is Yorkville, located North-East of Carnegie Hill and overlooks the East River. Ironically enough, the Upper East Side does not actually have set boundaries in New York City, however it is widely accepted that the south boundary is 59th street, and the north boundary is 96th street. Some real estate agents will even refer to East Harlem as the upper east side regardless of it being beyond the boundary, this is done to avoid any sort of negative connotations from the name of the neighborhood.
Before the state of New York was ever even colonized, the Upper East Side was a collection of streams that most Native Americans would fish out of at the time. Then in the 19th century the addition of railroads, commercial and residential began to come in. The Upper East Side caused attraction due to it overlooking the East River, and with that it began to attract much wealthier people. This eventually led to Villas, country houses, and different luxury homes being built the wealthier population. These town houses did not last however, eventually due to the fast growing population, the first apartment building went up and soon after many others followed. This led to more transportation being made to compensate for the influx of more people from different areas. For a while, the Upper East Side had an elevated railway that would cause noise pollution around the area. Eventually the railway was demolished and replaced by the Second Avenue Line in 1919. This brought in new commercial and residential buildings, soon the construction of high-rise apartment blocks began in the 1950’s.
The Upper East Side is home to the majority of New York City’s wealthy, and as of a 2002 census stated that the Upper East Side had the highest price per square feet in the United States of America. This influx of wealth in one area means that the majority of its landmarks and cultural institutions are located in the Upper East Side. Nicknamed Museum Mile, Once known as Millionaire’s Row, the Upper East Side host multiple Museums, Art Galleries, Hotels, Houses of Worship, and even Diplomatic Missions. All of these landmarks and buildings are spread around the Upper East Side and located all over the three main neighborhoods.
The lower portion of the Upper East Side is named Lenox Hill, the name came of a combination of the hill that the neighborhood was built upon and a Scottish immigrant who owned about five miles (8 Km) of land. Lenox Hill has numerous luxury stores and designer shops throughout Madison Avenue and many elegant apartments and hotels. Lenox Hill also hosts many cultural sites and most of its art galleries, one of the most well known art galleries is The Frick Collection, an art collection known for its European paintings and fantastic decorative arts all located inside The Frick building. The Frick building is a repurposed mansion which boasts an early-1900’s aesthetic to it. Along with this art gallery the neighborhood of Lenox Hill also hosts the Asia Society and Museum, Central Park Carousel, the Park Avenue Armory, and many more. However, Lenox Hill is known for its progress in the medical aspect, Lenox Hill is home to The Lenox Hill Hospital which is at the forefront in research and treatment in neurology, neurosurgery, sports medicine, cardiovascular care, orthopedics, head and neck surgery, child health and internal medicine.
Carnegie Hill is the second of the three main neighborhoods and is located at the North-End of the Upper East Side. Carnegie Hill got its name from the owner of one of its most remarkable mansions, the owner being Andrew Carnegie himself. Andrew Carnegie’s mansion is now a historical landmark and currently the Mansion has been converted to a branch of the Smithsonian Institution. Carnegie Hill features apartment buildings alongside Park Avenue and Fifth Avenue. The neighborhood also has multiple condos, co-ops, a few brownstones scattered around, townhouses, and what remaining mansions do exist have been converted into museums or schools. Carnegie Hill overlooks the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir within Central Park, it also holds many of the neighborhoods art venues, wine bars, cafes, and Italian and French Restaurants. However its most well known for its most famous art venue, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Yorkville covers the the literal upper east side of the Upper East Side, going from the top of East 96th St down all the way to East 72nd St. Yorkville has many different historical buildings and architecture, this is due to the neighborhood being a major part of the Revolutionary War. For most of the late 19th century into the early 20th century most of the families that came over where German and over time it became Irish, Polish, Hungarian, Slovak, Czech, and many other races. In the 1950’s the city began to remodel Third Avenue El by demolishing most of its cafe’s and commercial buildings. The Dismantling of the avenue also led to many mansions alongside the street to be demolished. This was done in order to make way for a more high rise residential buildings, these buildings went up in the 1980’s. This lead to an influx of residents who looked to live in wealth inside of New York City and choosing Yorkville for its stunning visuals and expensive entertainment around the area.
The Upper East Side features many different landmarks and historical districts that can be explored throughout the neighborhood. Multiple museums are located in the area including Jewish Museum of New York, El Museo del Barrio, Andrew Carnegie Mansion (repurposed to a Smithsonian Design Museum), its most famous one the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and many many more. The neighborhood also features many Hotels, Art Galleries, Houses of Worship, and many historical districts. With so much to do the neighborhood can be rather overwhelming to get around the Upper East Side for any visitor. Luckily if you are planning a day out and figure you need transportation New York City has many options to get around town. While most of the residents of New York City would rather use the subway as it is very convenient this does not always apply with the Upper East Side. With most of the residents being some of the most important and wealthiest people in the world, with the exception of California, will use vehicles to travel around rather then the subway. This means that New York City has an ungodly amount of car transportation companies but more importantly, high-class limo services. This is all too important when visiting New York City but more important when going to the Upper East Side and with so many different limo companies to choose from its nice knowing you will never be left stranded in the city. Many New York executive car services can take you around town on an hourly service or even if you’re just going from one point to another. If you’re coming in from out of town then there is no need to worry, most New York black car companies can drive you long distances, this can mean more then just from New Jersey to New York, or Connecticut to New York. Now a days most luxury car companies can drive you out even further, such as Philadelphia to New York, Washington D.C. to New York, and even Massachusetts to New York. If you happen to be booking a trip and need a recommendation on a car company we suggest My Destiny Limo.
Overall the Upper East Side has a multitude of things to do around the three headed neighborhood. Luxury shops with clothes that can put you in debt just by looking at them and cafes that make you feel like you’re eating the best food in the world. Apartment high rises with a fantastic view of not only the other boroughs but of Manhattan itself. The Upper East Side is one of the United State’s most expensive places to live so if you ever wondered where most of the worlds wealthiest people live. It’s right here on The Upper East Side.