My novel is named ASTOR PLACE VINTAGE. So what is Astor Place and how did it come to be?

In my novel, ASTOR PLACE VINTAGE, the story hinges on a journal that is found sewn inside the lining of a fur muff. So it seems only right to present some background about fur muff fashion. Muffs were mentioned in text from the 1400s, and one of the earliest images of one is in an engraving from 1588. In the 1600s both men and women used muffs. Since fur was not as easily attainable, they were more typically made out of silk or satin and might...