1919: Two sites along Seventh Avenue between West 36th and 38th Streets are developed by the Garment Capitol Co., an association of 38 women’s apparel manufacturers. This would soon revitalize the vice-ridden area known as the Tenderloin.
1921-1926: More than $125 million is invested in constructing buildings such as 1372 Broadway — the first manufacturing site in what was being called Garment Town — as well as 498 and 500 Seventh Avenue.
1931: The Garment District has the largest concentration of apparel manufacturers in the world.
1950s and 1960s: Buildings become specialized — 1385 Broadway is the bridal building, 498 and 530 Seventh Avenue house dress companies and 500 and 512 Seventh Avenue are the coat buildings.
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1973: Apparel production peaks at about 400,000 jobs in New York City, with erosion soon to come from the onset of the import era.
1987: Zoning law dedicates half of the space in the Garment District to apparel companies.
1993: The Council of Fashion Designers of America create 7th on Sixth, erecting tents in Bryant Park to centralize the seasonal runway shows.
1993: A group of property owners form the Fashion Center Business Improvement District, with the goal of promoting the positive development of Midtown Manhattan’s Fashion District.
2000: The FCBID reports that, for the first time, fashion firms are the minority of tenants in the district, as outsiders from industries including advertising, technology and health, legal and educational services seek out the neighborhood’s affordable rents and convenience to public transportation.
2009: The “Save the Garment Center” campaign gets under way to reform Midtown Manhattan zoning laws to encourage manufacturing.
2010: The tents move out of Bryant Park, decamping to Lincoln Center for the New York ready-to-wear shows.