About
Cole Thompson
My name is Cole Thompson and I am both a writer and real estate agent. My most recent book, Portrait of a Monster: Joran van der Sloot, a Murder in Peru, and the Natalee Holloway Mystery is now available for sale.
Van der Sloot, you might remember, remains a suspect in the May 30, 2005 disappearance of Alabama teen Natalee Holloway as well as May 30, 2010 murder of Stephany Flores in Lima, Peru. For this project I spent part of last summer in Lima, spending time with Peruvian police and getting to know the most recent victim’s family. The research paid off. Peruvian investigators took a shine to myself and co-author Lisa Pulitzer and gave us full access to the investigation. (That’s right, she’s a real Pulitzer)
"Portrait of a Monster," by Inwood resident Cole Thompson and co-author Lisa Pulitzer.
So far, the book is getting wonderful reviews; Publisher’s Weekly calls it “…well-detailed…disturbing and haunting…” The New York Post also gave the book extensive coverage in their book column.
My newest creation, I also co-authored a New York Times #1 bestseller on the Scott and Laci Peterson case with former Court TV host Catherine Crier, is available for purchase on Amazon. It contains exclusive details which may surprise even those who have carefully followed the case.
As a former TV newsman I spent nine years working my way up from Producer to Chief of Story Development of Court TV, working closely with host Catherine Crier. As the son of an Emmy journalist who once produced for Mike Wallace, both journalism and writing are in my blood.
But writing isn’t always a full time job. I am also a real estate agent with Inwood’s oldest and family owned firm, New Heights Realty. The real estate side of my career comes from my dear mother in northern Virginia, who has been practicing the craft for most of my life.
Cole with his faithful dog, Murray
Flipping through this website you’ll also realize I’m a history buff. I love learning and writing about the history of northern Manhattan where I both live and work. I created this site to share another side of Inwood, one that lives now only in archival records, news clippings, books and fading photographs. As part of my effort to revive Inwood’s history I co-host regular Inwood history nights at the Indian Road Cafe on the first Tuesday of every month.
I hope you find this site useful and encourage you to email me your photos and memories of your Inwood through the years.
Sincerely,
Cole Thompson
Feel free to contact me directly:
Email: colethompson1@gmail.com or for real estate inquiries at cole@newheightsrealty.com
Cell: 646-425-0093
If you are thinking of buying or selling an apartment, click on the “Homes for Sale” or “Sell a Home” buttons on the top of the screen.
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
En Buenos Aires,Argentina,existio un programa de Television que se llamo ..60 Minutos…y fue
el programa de Noticias que marco toda una epoca…alla., por los años 80.-
Excelente la pagina.,muy bien redactada,compaginada y sobre todo con datos verdaderos., como no podia ser menos..con tan sacrificado ayudante.-
What an excellent array of photos!! I grew up on Academy Street and Post Avenue. From first to third grade I attended Our Lady Queen Of Martyrs on Arden Street and then went to Saint Judes the first year it opened. It was a great place to grow up. I was hoping you had some photos of the Dyckman Street Oval which was located where the Nagle Avenue housing projects are situated today. I had some work on Broadway and 218th Street around 2001 or 2002 where I was placing fiber optic cable in the roadway. We were excavating and found plenty of coblestone buried under the asphalt. To my surprise we also found some trolley tracks or old railway tracks 2 feet down
I’m glad you liked the slide show. I do have some images of the Dyckman Oval. Check the slide show in a day or so. I’ll put some up for you. I also noticed trolley tracks when they were tearing up Broadway in front of the C-Town this summer. I didn’t think to snap a photo.
I just posted a photo of the Dyckman Oval in the Now and Then section. You might have seen this one before. I’m trying to search out other images. Its proved harder than I imagined. You’d think there would be more images of a once thriving sports complex. The search continues…
Came across the two photos of Isham Gardens, WOW.
Just wondering if you had any more. I have tried in vain over the years to find photos of this building. By the way I currently reside in 221 Seaman Ave. I use to live in 41 PTW when I first moved in the building back in 1982.
Thank you so much for these wonderful pictures My family left Inwood in 1975-My sister and I grew up there and have many fond memories. We lived at 57 Park Terrace East and I was married in Good Shepherd Church-it has been great to see some of our old “hangouts”.
Patricia,
Thanks for logging on. Please feel free to write in with more memories. -Cole
Cole,
I can’t begin to tell you how much I enjoyed looking at the slides. You did an excellent job. It was absolutely fantastic.
Thank you.
Cole, in your ‘rotating’ photos in the upper right on this page, there’s one inside Isham Gardens (with the old fountain & bushes) in the center courtyard. To the right of the photo, under the ‘arches’ (beneath the walkway – portico – which is above it, is the apt. (w/’screen door’) where I grew up.
Hi Cole, I posted a question about John and Olive Heath, who lived in the Inwood area from about 1930-1972. It was said by a family member, that John had an auto dealership in the area. Is there any way to research this? Thanks for your wonderful website!
Regards,
Bonnie Duval
Bonnie,
With any luck someone ready this might remember the Heaths. Anyone?
Good luck. I’ll keep my eyes peeled. –Cole
HI COLE, YOU DID A WONDERFUL JOB. I SPENT THE EARLIER PART OF MY MARRIAGE ON VERMILEA AVE. AND THEN 204TH STREET. MY KIDS WENT TO GOOD SHEPHERD SCHOOL. NOW I AM A OLD LADY LIVING IN THROGS NECK. MY LATE HUBBY CAME FROM SEAMAN AVE. AND ALSO WENT TO THE SAME SCHOOL. IT REALLY BROUGHT BACK GREAT MEMORIES. THANK YOU AGAIN GEORGEANNA
Cole,
I just stumbled across the website and am so glad that I did. At first, when I saw your picture, you looked so familiar to me, but I couldn’t place you. As I began to navigate the site, I read your bio and discovered that you worked at Court TV. Do you remember me? I worked at Court TV, developing and supervising the channel’s original movies. Small world! Even smaller, because I grew up in Inwood! I lived on Sickles Street between Sherman and Nagle Avenues. I attended PS 152, JHS 52 and George Washington H.S. I loved growing up in Inwood! I couldn’t have asked for a better neighorhood in which to have grown up! The parks, the river, two movie theaters on Dyckman Street (in my day), Inwood Lanes, Trocadero, I could go on and on. Thank you for this great forum! Nice to reconnect with you. Best, Rosalie
HI Cole,
I am still amazed by your work with the photos and history of Inwood. The slide show is fantastic. I grew up n Inwood and played in all the parks as a kid. Looking back we were afraid to play in some parts of Isham Park, like it was haunted. I think now it was or is for sure after reading it’s history. Also the area near 212 213th street felt equally haunted.
My Grandparents lived on Sykel (I forgot how to spell this street)and Ellwood Street so we walked down Dykeman daily probably and I lived in the apartment by the L train when I was born. I can still hear the train rattling our apartment. I live in California now but I am so grateful I grew up in Inwood. During the 1950′s 60′s and 70′s it was great. I left in 1974 when I turned 17 never to return to live again. But I visited from Hawaii where I lived for 9 years. I still miss it and the way it was. I had great friends. Good Shepherd was a great School back then too.
Dear Cole,
Congratulations for this marvillouse site, mixing stories and pics from the back old times area spices the interests in visiting and mooving there. Keep up with your great work of historical resercher and realtor. Sincerely, Juan Manuel
Buenos Aires, Argentina.
I am so excited I found this website. I have been doing some research for a research paper for school that I’m doing on Inwood and came across this website from Wikipedia. I need all the information I can get. Reading all the comments I leaned a lot. I never even imagined that Dyckman had a movie theater. I am from the younger generation of Inwood residents. I live here all my life. I was born living on Academy and Post back in 1988, then 2-3 years later we moved to were we live now, 204Th Street between Vermylea and Sherman. I am going to continue to explore more of the website and i can’t wait to do so. Thanks Cole for taking the time to create this fantastic website about our neighborhood.
Hi Cole
Talk about your Kodak moments and memories. Kudos on your research and website. I lived on Sickles Street and upper Thayer Steet. Attended OLQM (class of ’66) GWHS(class of ’70) and Lehman College (class ’74). I have found memories of Inwood and her surrondings. Thanks for caring and introducing a great neighborhood to others
Thank you so much Cole for this website! I was raised on Post Avenue from 1975-1999 and seeing these pictures, brought back alot of good memories. I haven’t been moved like this in a very long time!
Lived at 618 Academy Street from the age of 3 to 16. Graduated from Good Shepherd
School in June 1954 and then spent four years at the Academy of the Sacred Heart of
Mary on Park Terrace East. This high school closed in 1978, but the drive to keep
Good Shepherd School was successful. Have so many happy memories of my growing
up years in Inwood. There were three movie houses in the 1950′s — Loew’s Dyckman,
the Alpine and another on 207th Street. Enjoyed the Saturday matinees — two full-
length movies, a newsreel and cartoons — all for a quarter. Loved playing and swimming in the pool in Fort Tryon Park. In my teens I spent many summer afternoons
at the Miramar Pool. I am 70 now and living in Wilmington, Delaware,but Inwood will
always have a place in my heart.
Fort Tryon Park.
Hi Larry we went to OLQM together i lived at 4580 Broadway
Cole,
You really are living an interesting life. I like how you have chronicled your city, and I’m looking forward to reading your book (my husband bought it for my birthday).
Regards,
Mara
Cole,
Today I went to the exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York and thought that you might be interested in a few items that were in it if you haven’t made it down there already.
There is a reproduction of a British Headquarters map from ca. 1782 that labels what is now Inwood Hill as “Lox’s Hill” and the area north of the creek as “Heights of Spikendevil”, neither terms have I ever encountered before. There was also a photo by William L Calver “Panorama of Inwood Valley” taken July 19, 1914 that was worth seeing. There was one whole area captioned “On Rugged Ground : Above 155th Street” that had a few local shots, including one of the 215th Street staircase (actually, now that I think of it, this may have been in another area about how the grid was sometimes followed or not). There was also the shot of W. 204th street facing toward the hill that shows where I live (110 Seaman) way back when there was one little wooden house and the milk house (I think that’s what it was called) that I have seen a few times before on your myinwood site and elsewhere.
My best,
Peter Hirsch
I’ve been meaning to check that exhibit out. Thanks for reminding me. Cole