Considering this was my first time visiting this section of the Bronx, everything seemed new and intriguing to me. I appreciated the art deco designs featured in the buildings, especially because I studied 1930’s art and architecture (in middle school, but I surprisingly still remember it). I realized that most of the architectural elements and designs of the buildings were mainly for aesthetics—rather than convenience.

Yet, what intrigued me the most was Mr. Goodman’s explanation of the premeditated “burning of the Bronx” during the 1970s. I did not want to believe that landlords deliberately burned their buildings because they profited more from the insurance money than tenants’ rents. 

I found this informative quote by Robert Worth:

 “… the Bronx began to burn in about 1970. Some of the fires were accidents, the inevitable result of decaying electrical systems. Many were set by landlords who would then collect the insurance money. Often they would sell the building–whether it was still inhabited or not–to “finishers” who would strip out the electrical wiring, plumbing fixtures, and anything else that could be sold for a profit before torching it. “Sometimes there’d be a note delivered telling you the place would burn that night,” one man who lived through the period told me. “Sometimes not.” People got used to sleeping with their shoes on, so that they could escape if the building began to burn.”           

It’s disheartening to hear individuals prioritize money over human lives. Imagine being one of the tenants who received a note that your home was going to be burned down. How would you react? What would you do first? Where would you go?

 Although it’s easy to label these landlords as greedy and heartless, I find it quite saddening that arson was a logical solution to some people. It came from a place of helplessness and desperation. It’s reflective of the social and political turmoil of the Bronx during the 1970s.

 To learn more about “why the Bronx burned,” read this article and visit this website!