Murder in the City: New York, 1910-1920 Hardcover – June 13, 2017

The book uses the resource of hundreds of photographs found during renovations at NYC police headquarters. They cover the period of 1910-1920. Many are very graphic, depicting horrific scenes of murder and vicious mayhem and non crime scenes such as car wrecks.Where available the authors have sourced background stories of the scenes depicted.This helps enormously to place a context and deepens the human tragedy depicted.The photographs are exceptionally detailed and high resolution, most having been captured on large format negatives or glass emulsions.It is a well balanced book that also contains rare and spectacular city-scape photographs depicting the architecture and social life of the era.This copy was bought second hand and is in near new condition.

This book is a beautiful look into the seedy underbelly of New York in the 1910's-1920's. Measuring in at just over 12" tall, it contains more than 240 gorgeous black and white photos. I'm not one to walk the traditional historical paths that polite society would appreciate. Not all the photos in this book are gruesome and most originate from Brooklyn, though there are some from other parts of the city. I have a deep appreciation of where criminal investigation has come from and how it continues to evolve. I was hoping there was a little more info for most of the photos within, but it seems that info may have been the victim of time as well as inadequate record keeping. None the less I highly recommend this book to anyone that is not faint of heart, appreciates looking at life through a scientific lens and/or is interested is expanding their mind.

Great coffee table book. Obviously not great for small children or the weak of heart, but there are plenty of photos of old New York City that truly captures the imagination and helps immerse the reader into the setting. The crime scene photos are more like art than blood and gore. There is a story in each photo and I found myself fascinated with the entire photo, not just the victim. This is an excellent glimpse into 1920's NYC as well as early crime scene investigation.

Well done photo book. Nice size and weight. A few of the more dramatic crime scene images have been previously published before but the majority are fresh to market. Includes unrelated but very nostalgic views of New York City.

This is not a romance novel. This is a book of crime scene photographs dating roughly between 1914 – 1920, printed from a selection of negatives found during renovations at New York City police offices. The negatives, like the originals themselves, were supposed to have been destroyed once the court cases had wound their way to completion. These negatives were lost instead, they were found, and now we can see them for ourselves.Crime scene photographs are raw, they are gruesome, and they are horrifyingly real. Please don’t go and pick up this book thinking you’re looking at art. The people in these photos were real. They left behind families who cared for them. They died painfully and horrifically, and if you look at this book you will remember there is no actual “dignity” in death. There is less dignity in death when another human has chosen the time and place of your demise.Now, I am not criticizing the decision to publish these photos. Far from it. I’m simply stating some people will be disturbed by these images, and they are disturbing. Also, diving into this book isn’t something to be done lightly. The images are old enough that the victims and their immediate families are long gone. The value in sharing these images today lies in understanding the role and evolution of crime scene investigation and crime scene photography, and in understanding violent crime in modern society.Some of the images have accompanying newspaper articles. Some do not. Some of the victims are identified. Some are not. While this is frustrating, we have to remember that these images were intended to be destroyed. I personally do not label my trash. A lifetime ago, when I was an archaeologist, most of what I dealt with was other people’s trash and none of that came neatly labeled either.The people who will get the most use out of this book are authors – people like me, who write about murder but would prefer not to incorporate first-hand knowledge. Or not to get caught incorporating first-hand knowledge, whichever, no judging. My advice would be to get the eBook version, lest your small child pick up your copy and get ideas. (Go ahead, ask me about that forensics textbook…)People who write about historical murder will find this book exceptionally useful. I got a whole host of new ideas from this book, and I’m sure I’m not the only one.There is no shame in deciding this book is not for you. Only one of these photos is censored in any way. I had a hard time looking at some of these pictures myself.If you do choose to pick up this book, I ask that you please be respectful.

Brilliant Dimensional authenticity.One can smell the metallic. Crime Scenes done Property...

This book has much more than just crime scene photography. It also includes stories and lots of fantastic turn of the century photos of New York City. I highly recommend it if this is a topic that interests you.

A very well made book. I enjoyed the pictures and the information given

Maravilloso libro que te adentra en una época pasada y oscura de new York.

un pur plaisir a feuilleter

Nice book

Libro fotografico con foto particolari, di eccellente qualità. Per vedere come lavoravano alla polizia criminale un secolo fa e per vedere anche uno spaccato di vita e di morte di allora.

excellent book indeed - a fascinating insight into life and death in early NYC and it's as grim as you thought it was