At the height of the pandemic, it seemed like New York, the city that never sleeps was finally going to bed. Streets once clogged with crowds and vehicles suddenly emptied. The startling stillness of the once-vibrant city felt eerily surreal.

Now, after 2 years, life is returning to some new semblance of normal. The city is bouncing back as it has before. Here, travel back in time to New York City from the early to mid-20th Century when the streets were crowded with people through these 20 fantastic pictures: