Book Row was the legendary six-block stretch of Fourth Avenue between Union Square and Astor Place that once held the densest concentration of used and antiquarian bookstores in America. From the 1890s through the 1960s, it served as a magnet for readers, scholars, collectors, and dreamers. The street became known as “the book lovers’ mile,” a pilgrimage route for anyone who loved the printed word.

Origins and Formation (1890s–1920s)

The district emerged naturally from New York’s late-nineteenth-century publishing hub. Cheap rents, sturdy brick buildings, and proximity to Cooper Union made Fourth Avenue ideal for storing thousands of books. Early dealers sold publisher remainders and estate libraries, displaying boxes and carts outside to lure passers-by. By the early 1900s, the synergy of clustered bookshops created an entire micro-economy of book trading and browsing.

The Golden Age (1930s–1950s)

At its height, Book Row contained forty to fifty shops stacked floor to ceiling, selling everything from ten-cent paperbacks to Shakespeare folios. Bargain tables lined the sidewalks, and narrow aisles inside overflowed with precarious piles of books. Proprietors were scholars, eccentrics, and raconteurs—people like Ben Bass of the Strand, Louis Cohen of the Argosy, and Samuel Weiser, who built a following among mystics and occultists. Their stores formed a living network of discovery and expertise, where one could spend entire days wandering from shelf to shelf.

Cultural Significance

Book Row was not merely commerce; it was community. Writers and editors frequented its shops, professors built reading lists there, and collectors honed their eye for rarity. It was New York’s answer to London’s Charing Cross Road—a democratic temple of print where the boundaries between high literature and the bargain bin disappeared. The dealers’ camaraderie and rivalry alike shaped American bookselling for decades to come.

Decline and Dispersal (1950s–1970s)

After World War II, redevelopment and rising rents began to squeeze the trade. The economics of used-book retail—dependent on large space and small margins—could not compete with office and apartment conversions. One by one, shops closed or moved uptown. The Strand relocated to Broadway and 12th Street in 1957; the Argosy found new life on East 59th Street. By the late 1960s, only a handful remained. A 1969 New York Times article mourned the loss of Book Row’s atmosphere; by 1984, the row had effectively vanished.

Legacy

Though the storefronts are gone, Book Row’s spirit endures. The Strand stands as its direct descendant, and the Argosy continues as one of the country’s great antiquarian firms. Collectors still evoke the magic of Fourth Avenue—its dust, its dim light, and the thrill of serendipitous discovery. The legacy of Book Row lives on wherever books are handled with curiosity and reverence.

Key Bookstores of New York’s Book Row

Bookstore	Founded	Original Address	Specialty / Character	Fate
The Strand Bookstore	1927 – Ben Bass	828 Broadway (originally on Fourth Avenue)	Used & new books, modern firsts	Survives on Broadway & 12th St.; still family-run
Argosy Book Store	1925 – Louis Cohen	Bible House, Fourth Ave & 9th St.	Antiquarian books, prints, maps	Moved to E. 59th St.; thriving today
Schulte’s Book Store	ca. 1920 – George Schulte	79 Fourth Ave.	Remainders & general used stock	Closed 1950s
Biblo & Tannen	1940s – Tannen family	63 Fourth Ave.	Scholarly & academic texts	Moved uptown; closed 1970s
Samuel Weiser’s Bookshop	1926 – Samuel Weiser	845 Broadway	Occult, mystical & metaphysical works	Moved to Greenwich Village; closed 1990s
Pageant Book & Print Shop	1946 – Sidney Bowers & Henry Stein	65 Fourth Ave. (later 109 E. 9th St.)	Illustrated books, art prints, modern literature	Moved to E. 4th St.; closed 1999; revived in East Village in 2000s
David K. Trinder Book Shop	1930s	77 Fourth Ave.	Americana, travel, modern firsts	Closed by 1970
Dauber & Pine	1910s	59 Fourth Ave.	Judaica & theology	Moved uptown; later closed
The Corner Book Shop	early 1900s	4th Ave & 10th St.	General used books	Closed mid-century
University Place Book Shop	1940s	821 Broadway	Scholarly texts & university books	Closed 1970s

Pageant Book & Print Shop

Founded in 1946 by Sidney Bowers and Henry Stein, Pageant Book & Print Shop bridged Book Row’s past and future. It specialized in illustrated books, fine printing, modern literature, and art prints. When rising rents forced its departure from Fourth Avenue, it moved to 69 East 4th Street and continued until 1999. A revival in the East Village in the early 2000s kept the Pageant name alive. Its blend of bibliophilia and art culture embodied Book Row’s enduring spirit.

Epilogue

Book Row’s story is a parable of urban change and literary culture. What began as a cluster of book peddlers became an intellectual landmark. Its disappearance marked the end of an era, but its influence still echoes in every bookshop, fair, and collector’s shelf where New York’s love for books lives on.

 

Content retrieved from: https://www.6sqft.com/a-history-of-book-row-nycs-long-time-downtown-haven-for-bibliophiles/

In the long, vanishing story of New York’s Book Row, one name continues to echo with quiet resilience — Pageant Book Store, now known as Pageant Print Shop. Founded in 1946 by Sidney B. Solomon and Henry “Chip” Chafetz, Pageant began as a modest secondhand bookshop on Fourth Avenue, a stretch once lined with dusty storefronts where bibliophiles hunted treasures and scholars unearthed forgotten texts. Over the decades, the shop’s story would mirror the rise, decline, and reinvention of New York’s antiquarian book world itself.

From Book Row beginnings

Pageant was born in a golden age of bookshops. After the Second World War, New York’s Fourth Avenue between Union Square and Astor Place became a legendary destination for book lovers. Dozens of stores, sometimes just a few feet wide, spilled their contents onto the sidewalk: literary remainders, first editions, rare bindings, and maps from another century. Amid this chorus of commerce and scholarship, Solomon and Chafetz opened their doors, combining a love of books with a practical sense for the trade.

Their shop quickly developed a reputation for reliability, intelligence, and range. By the 1950s, Pageant Book Company, as it was then known, was a hub for collectors, dealers, and academics. The New Yorker described it as “a sizable second-hand bookshop” and noted that the partners were already branching into publishing projects — including an ambitious facsimile of the Gutenberg Bible, a gesture that hinted at Pageant’s serious bibliographic spirit.

The transformation into Pageant Book & Print Shop

As the decades advanced, the neighborhood began to change. The cheap rents that had sustained Book Row started to climb, and many neighboring stores closed or moved uptown. By the 1970s, Pageant had shifted its focus to include maps, prints, and engravings — visual artifacts that spoke to the same audience of historians, travelers, and aesthetes who once came for rare books. The business renamed itself Pageant Book & Print Shop, signaling a broader scope but maintaining the scholarly integrity that had made its name.

Even as the city’s literary geography shifted and the last of Book Row’s bookstores disappeared, Pageant survived — not by resisting change, but by adapting to it.

Survival in a new century

By the late 1990s, the print and book trades faced a new challenge: the Internet. In 1999, Pageant’s final storefront as a full-scale bookshop closed its doors. Yet, in 2005, the business found new life. Reestablished as Pageant Print Shop, it reopened at 69 East 4th Street, in the East Village — a short walk from its original home. The new shop specialized in antique maps, prints, and engravings, offering carefully curated windows into the past for collectors, decorators, and historians alike.

Today, the store remains family-run, with Shirley and Rebecca Solomon, daughters of founder Sidney Solomon, continuing the legacy. The shop’s walls are lined with 19th-century lithographs, hand-colored maps, and early engravings — a paper museum of geography and art that feels more personal than institutional. It stands as both a survivor and a living link to New York’s once-fabled Book Row.

A legacy preserved

Pageant’s endurance is not just commercial; it is cultural. It preserves a way of seeing and handling knowledge that predates the digital age — when collectors felt the grain of paper and dealers remembered customers by name. The shop has even appeared in films, such as Hannah and Her Sisters, where its vintage character offered the perfect backdrop for Woody Allen’s Manhattan nostalgia.

More than a store, Pageant represents continuity: the bridge between the tactile world of rare books and the visual eloquence of historical prints. It reminds us that even as the city remakes itself, certain corners resist erasure. In the quiet rustle of a 200-year-old map, you can still hear the heartbeat of New York’s book trade — the sound of a world that refuses to vanish.

Content retrieved from: https://www.pageantprintshop.nyc/about-avenue and related historical sources.

Before the Internet connected every collector and dealer at lightning speed, there was AB Bookman’s Weekly — the thick, printed lifeline of the rare-book world. From 1948 until its final issue in 1999, AB Bookman’s stood as the central marketplace and bulletin board for antiquarian dealers, collectors, and librarians, earning its affectionate nickname: “a dinosaur of book-collecting.”

The birth of a trade classic

The publication was founded in 1948 by Sol M. Malkin, under the R. R. Bowker Company, as an offshoot of Publishers Weekly’s “Antiquarian Bookseller” column. It quickly evolved into a dedicated weekly periodical that served as a trade hub for the secondhand and rare-book community. Its pages overflowed with “books wanted,” lists of books for sale, bibliographic notes, and market gossip — everything that made the antiquarian book trade tick.

The golden era

Through the 1950s to the early 1990s, AB Bookman’s Weekly was the authority for rare-book professionals. Nicholas A. Basbanes later called it “the leading trade publication in the antiquarian world.” Dealers mailed in typed listings; collectors browsed through columns to find elusive titles; librarians tracked acquisitions; and scholars relied on its bibliographic essays. For decades, it was the heartbeat of the used-book ecosystem — a printed network before networking went digital.

The slow extinction

By the 1990s, however, the trade it served was rapidly changing. Online marketplaces and electronic databases replaced the weekly printed lists. The Internet offered instant global reach — something a paper-based publication, however beloved, could no longer match. By the end of 1999, AB Bookman’s Weekly ceased publication, marking the end of an era. A brief attempt to revive it online in 2004 never took hold.

The legacy that remains

To collectors who lived through its heyday, AB Bookman’s remains more than nostalgia — it is a symbol of the human side of the book trade: the handshake deals, handwritten letters, and serendipitous discoveries born from print lists and postal exchanges. Old issues today serve as rich historical records, capturing price trends, bibliographic discoveries, and the personalities who shaped the mid-century rare-book scene.

A world that once was

Calling AB Bookman’s Weekly a dinosaur isn’t an insult — it’s a tribute. Like the fossils that teach us about ancient worlds, the surviving issues of AB Bookman’s preserve the texture of an earlier, tactile age of book collecting — one where every wanted ad was a message in a bottle, and every discovery, a story worth telling.

Content adapted from historical sources including Wikipedia and bibliographic essays on AB Bookman’s Weekly.

 

Continue reading Book Collecting Trends in 2025

Overall, the market for used books has grown, with online platforms like Usiana.com leading the way in auctions for rare, collectible, and everyday used books. The increasing focus on sustainability and affordability, coupled with technological advancements, has transformed the secondhand book industry into a thriving sector that caters to diverse buyer needs.

The trend in book selling, particularly factoring in used books, has been shaped by several key shifts over recent years, largely driven by changes in consumer preferences, technological advances, and sustainability movements.
These trends indicate a robust and dynamic market for used books, blending the appeal of affordability, sustainability, and technology-driven convenience. The rise of digital platforms, in particular, has significantly transformed the way people buy and sell secondhand books, fostering a more connected and environmentally conscious marketplace.

Here are some of the most significant trends in the space:

1. Growth of Online Marketplaces like Usiana

• Platforms: The rise of platforms like Usiana, Amazon, eBay, AbeBooks, and ThriftBooks has made it easier for individuals to buy and sell used books online. These platforms have become the go-to option for many people looking to purchase books at lower prices or sell their old books.
• Convenience: Online book selling allows users to search for specific books and compare prices across various sellers, making the process convenient for both buyers and sellers.
• Algorithms and Pricing Tools: Advanced algorithms help determine fair pricing for used books based on supply and demand, book condition, and rarity.

1. Increasing Demand for Secondhand Books

• Sustainability: Many consumers are becoming more conscious of environmental impacts, leading to a growing market for secondhand goods, including books. Buying used books reduces waste and supports sustainable consumption practices.
• Affordability: Used books are generally much cheaper than new ones, appealing to students, avid readers, and collectors looking for out-of-print or rare editions at a lower cost.
• Eco-conscious movements: Organizations that promote book recycling or reselling have gained popularity, and the “circular economy” has started to influence book purchasing behavior.

1. Digital Marketplaces and Apps

• Mobile Integration: Apps like Depop, Mercari, and PangoBooks have started to focus on user-to-user sales, enabling people to sell used books directly from their phones.
• Social Commerce: There is also a rise in selling books through social platforms like Instagram and Facebook Marketplace. Sellers showcase their used books through stories, live streams, or posts and conduct transactions through digital payment options.

1. Textbook Resale Market

• College Textbooks: The market for used textbooks remains a significant segment, especially with students seeking more affordable options. Companies like Chegg, TextbookRush, and CampusBooks offer textbook rentals and reselling services.
• Shift to Digital Textbooks: While digital textbooks are growing in popularity, many students still prefer physical copies for their coursework, fueling the demand for used textbooks.

1. Rare and Vintage Books

• Collectors’ Market: There is also a strong and growing market for rare, antique, and first-edition books. Specialized online marketplaces and auction sites cater to collectors looking for unique and valuable used books.
• Increased Visibility: Many sellers of rare and vintage books have gained more visibility through niche online platforms or through digital cataloging services.

1. Buy-Back Programs

• Bookstores and Libraries: Some bookstores and libraries have started implementing buy-back programs, offering store credit or discounts on future purchases for customers who trade in their used books.
• Charitable Book Donations: Programs like Better World Books and Books for Africa encourage people to donate their old books. These organizations either resell the books to fund literacy programs or provide the books directly to communities in need.

1. Subscription Models and Book Swaps

• Book Subscription Services: Some companies, like Book of the Month and The Book Drop, focus on new books, but there’s a niche for subscription services that provide curated selections of secondhand books to customers.
• Book Swap Events: Online and offline book swaps are becoming popular, where participants exchange used books, fostering a community of sharing and sustainability.

1. Condition and Verification Tools

• Grading Systems: Buyers are increasingly concerned about the condition of used books, especially for valuable or collectible editions. Standardized grading systems for condition (e.g., “Like New,” “Very Good,” “Acceptable”) have become crucial for online listings.
• Verification of Rare Books: For rare and antique books, verification services are becoming important. These services ensure that books are authentic, properly valued, and in good condition.

1. Local Secondhand Bookstores

• While online marketplaces dominate the used book market, local secondhand bookstores continue to thrive, often focusing on community engagement, curated selections, and in-person experiences. Many of these stores now complement their physical presence with online sales to broaden their reach.

These trends indicate a robust and dynamic market for used books, blending the appeal of affordability, sustainability, and technology-driven convenience. The rise of digital platforms, in particular, has significantly transformed the way people buy and sell secondhand books, fostering a more connected and environmentally conscious marketplace.