by the rest of Harlem. Occasionally, a Harlemite might take a visiting friend from out of town for a stroll along the Row—to show it off, and to demonstrate that Harlem was not all a ghetto. But, for the most part, pedestrian traffic was low—much lower than in the rest of Harlem—and was limited to the comings and goings of the residents themselves, and their friends and to patients visiting the various doctors’ and dentists’ offices along the Row. Vehicular traffic was also light, which contributed to the quiet, parklike, turn-of-the-century atmosphere of the place. There was even a proposal to ban vehicular traffic from the two streets—residents with automobiles could always enter their houses and garages through the alleyways—but this plan was vetoed by the city on the grounds that the two streets provided necessary emergency access to nearby hospitals. By the mid-1970s, however, there were some disturbing signs of change. At night, the little streets were increasingly being used as dragstrips, as owners of “hot”
