Dear readers, we’ve only got 100 objects to go in the American 250! The rubber now begins to hit the road in earnest to make sure all the “must haves” I’ve been hoarding get included (the Edison bulb; Gee’s Bend quilts; the Hollywood sign, etc.). Now’s your chance: comment or message me if there’s something I’ve missed. Thanks, Rainey

It was an abandoned right-of-way in search of a purpose. Peter Obletz, an eccentric visionary who could see what others couldn’t, moved to the far western edge of midtown Manhattan in the late 1970s, when it was the fringe of Hell’s Kitchen and cab drivers wouldn’t go there after dark. The ultimate train enthusiast, Obletz lived in the railyards and kept two elegantly appointed antique rail cars where he would host dinner parties for friends in the dance and theater world.

In 1984, the New York Times called his exploration of the High Line a “discovery,” so little-known was the old elevated rail line. He found an outdoor metal staircase 17 feet high and climbed into a hidden world, a ribbon of wild grasses and trees floating above the streets below. “It was terra incognita up there. Unrestricted space. Unimaginable tranquility,” Obletz said. He envisioned returning the line to rail use, although in a 1987 interview, he presciently mused that it could be used as “a linear park or jogging paths... It’s an incredible environment for pedestrians.”

Obletz died of cancer in 1996 at age 50, and didn’t live to see the extraordinary park, with its busy art program, food stalls and performance spaces that have transformed the neighborhood. The High Line today has 15 different garden zones, several that were directly inspired by the wild grasslands that grew up during its years of disuse. A relic of noisy industrialization, quietly reclaimed by nature, has been reclaimed back.

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Special thanks to Tom McDonald for suggesting the High Line.

Links:

• Peter Obletz: The High Line’s Original Friend – Salmaan Khan, Friends of the High Line, July 28, 2009

  
  

• Rail Fan Finds Rusting Dream on West Side – Martin Gottlieb, The New York Times, January 16, 1984

  
  

• History of the High Line (official website)

  
  

• Secrets of the High Line on its 15th Anniversary – Jinwoo Chong, Untapped New York, 2015

This post is part of The American 250, a series featuring 250 objects made by Americans, located in America, in honor of the country's 250th anniversary. 250 words on 250 works, from January 1 to December 31, 2026.

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