Navigating New York with the “City of Women” Map

A chat with map co-creator Joshua Jelly-Schapiro about the process of creating “City of Women” and how maps help us see places in new ways

Cities are defined by the place, the people, and how they makes us feel. New York City is known as the “City that never sleeps,” the land of opportunity where you have to hustle to make your dreams come true. I have the privilege of calling this concrete jungle home. That means my lens for this city is dipped in nostalgia as I walk through midtown and point out all of the office buildings I worked in throughout the years or when I go check in on Central Park or Rockefeller Center and see how much has changed but remained the same.

Another city I like to explore is the one underneath — the subway. New Yorkers have a love-hate relationship with the subway with its constant delays but there is definite affection for it. For $2.75 you can travel across 665 miles of track and experience four of the five boroughs. You can start in the Bronx and end up in Coney Island, Brooklyn. The subway is truly the life blood for New Yorkers. We use the train to work, play, and catch up with friends. I couldn’t imagine life without the NYC Subway. The Subway IS New York.

I had the opportunity to check out NY Transit Museum’s Navigating New York exhibit. This exhibit celebrates NYC’s increased development paralleled by the growing transit systems through a collection of…