Today I walked down Lexington Avenue, about 8 miles.

Lexington Avenue is the analog to Madison Avenue, running north/south from 131st St. to 21st St. a half block east of Park Avenue. Like Madison Avenue, Lexington Avenue was created by real estate developer Samuel Ruggles in 1832 as part of a plan to increase the value of the land that would become Gramercy Park and Union Square (two of his projects).

Lexington Avenue terminates at 21st St. at Gramercy Park, one of only two private parks in the City. Membership in Gramercy Park is restricted to residents of the surrounding buildings, who pay an annual fee of $7,500 to receive a key to the park - around 400 people currently have keys. In the center of the park is a statue of the famous 19th-century Shakespearean actor Edwin Booth, who today is better known for his relationship to his younger brother, John Wilkes. (John was also a famous actor - it would be like if Casey Affleck shot the President today.)

Below Gramercy Park, the street becomes Irving Place (named for Ruggles' friend Washington Irving) through to 14th St. Below that I picked up Lafayette / Centre St. through SoHo down to City Hall Park. New York's City Hall was built in 1811 and is the oldest city hall in the country still in use.

Start of walk

Lexington Ave. at 130th St.

View up Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 127th St. and 126th St.

125th St. Corner

Lexington Ave. btw 126th St. and 125th St.

EZ Pawn Corp. Building

Lexington Ave. btw 118th St. and 117th St.

7 Hours? The future is now!

Lexington Ave. btw 116th St. and 115th St.

Cool building

Lexington Ave. btw 115th St. and 112th St.

Guernica

Lexington Ave. btw 112th St. and 111th St.

Upside-down pig

Lexington Ave. btw 112th St. and 111th St.

Rowhomes

Lexington Ave. btw 107th St. and 106th St.

Shapes

Lexington Ave. btw 106th St. and 105th St.

Knit Flower #1

Lexington Ave. btw 105th St. and 104th St.

East Harlem mural

Lexington Ave. btw 104th St. and 103rd St.

View up Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 103rd St. and 102nd St.

Knit Flower #2

Lexington Ave. btw 102nd St. and 101st St.

Approaching the Upper East Side

Lexington Ave. btw 96th St. and 95th St.

Brick rowhomes

Lexington Ave. btw 91st St. and 90th St.

Cool building

Lexington Ave. btw 83rd St. and 82nd St.

View down Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 81st St. and 80th St.

Gargoyles

Lexington Ave. btw 81st St. and 80th St.

Angel with Trumpet

Lexington Ave. btw 77th St. and 76th St.

Church of St. Jean Baptiste

Lexington Ave. btw 76th St. and 75th St.

View up Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 76th St. and 75th St.

Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 70th St. and 69th St.

Hunter College

Lexington Ave. btw 69th St. and 68th St.

View down Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 68th St. and 67th St.

Cast(?) Iron Facade

Lexington Ave. btw 63rd St. and 62nd St.

We've reached peak-cupcake

Lexington Ave. btw 61st St. and 60th St.

Bloomingdale's

Lexington Ave. btw 60th St. and 59th St.

Central Synagogue (b. 1872)

Lexington Ave. btw 55th St. and 54th St.

Citigroup Center

Lexington Ave. btw 53rd St. and 52nd St.

These are the grates that Marilyn Monroe stood over in the famous picture

Lexington Ave. btw 52nd St. and 51st St.

View down Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 48th St. and 47th St.

View up Lexington Avenue

Lexington Ave. btw 48th St. and 47th St.

Chrysler Building

Lexington Ave. btw 43rd St. and 42nd St.

Cool design

Lexington Ave. btw 42nd St. and 41st St.

Empire State Building in the distance

Lexington Ave. btw 39th St. and 38th St.

Tall shutters

Lexington Ave. btw 31st St. and 30th St.

Interesting building

Lexington Ave. btw 31st St. and 30th St.

Curry in a Hurry

Lexington Ave. btw 31st St. and 30th St.

69th Regiment Armory

Lexington Ave. btw 26th St. and 25th St.

Battles fought by the 69th Infantry Regiment

Lexington Ave. btw 26th St. and 25th St.

Site of the famed 1913 Armory Show, which introduced avante garde European art to America

Lexington Ave. btw 26th St. and 25th St.

Baruch College

Lexington Ave. btw 26th St. and 25th St.

High School...

Lexington Ave. btw 23rd St. and 22nd St.

...OF THE FUTURE!!!

Lexington Ave. btw 23rd St. and 22nd St.

Cyrus West Field lived here

Lexington Ave. btw 22nd St. and 21st St.

He planned the first Trans-Atlantic Cable

Lexington Ave. btw 22nd St. and 21st St.

Gramercy Park (no plebs allowed)

Lexington Ave. btw 22nd St. and 21st St.

Gramercy Park

Gramercy Park West btw 21st St. and 20th St.

Corn Maiden

Gramercy Park East btw 21st St. and 20th St.

View up Lexington Avenue

Irving Pl. btw 20th St. and 19th St.

Irving Place

Irving Pl. btw 17th St. and 16th St.

Red building

Lafayette St. btw Astor Pl. and 3rd St.

The City's first major public library

Lafayette St. btw Astor Pl. and 3rd St.

Astor Library history

Lafayette St. btw Astor Pl. and 3rd St.

View up Lafayette St.

Lafayette St. btw Great Jones St. and Bond St.

Fork in the road

Lafayette St. btw Bond St. and Bleeker St.

Right to Arm Bears

Lafayette St. btw Houston St. and Jersey St.

Interesting marketing tactic

Cleveland Pl. btw Kenmare St. and Broome St.

Centre St. btw Broome St. and Grand St.

Moving into Chinatown

Centre St. btw Hester St. and Canal St.

Law & Order soundstage

Centre St. btw Hogan St. and Worth St.

Foley Square

Centre St. btw Pearl St. and Duane St.

Brooklyn Bridge Hell

Park Row

Woolworth Building from City Hall Park

Park Row

New York City Hall (b. 1812 - oldest City Hall in America still in use)

Park Row

City Hall Park

Park Row