“You have to know the past to understand the present”

To many, the modern day history of the Lower East Side is reserved to a hazy recollection of screaming ‘Despactio’ in an Uber in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Houston, grinding in the basement of Hotel Chantelle to the aforementioned Bieber song two hours later, then savagely pummeling pastrami at Katz’s whilst in a fireball-induced twilight zone. So let’s dig a bit deeper:

Before the Revolutionary War, the Lower East Side was divided up into two major estates: one belonging to a British loyalist, James de Lancey (catch that…Delancey Street…), and the other to a staunch Revolutionary, Henry Rutgers, who oversaw recruitment in the army on behalf of the colonies. de Lancey had a farm that ran from Division to Houston and east of the Bowery. Orchard Street was actually a real orchard filled with cherry trees, which is why the uptown F train platform at Delancey/Essex boasts cherry grove mosaics.

The Lower East Side was regarded as the “gateway neighborhood”; as immigration began to kick into high gear in the 1800’s, ethnic regions took shape with the initial presence being predominately German. This wave was followed by Eastern European Jews and Italian immigrants about 30 years later. Chinese immigrants came soon after, trailed by newcomers from Puerto Rico and the D.R.

The main draw of the region during the 1800’s was the proximity to jobs. The industrial scene began with small-scale garment manufacturers, which quickly morphed into a mecca of over 23 factories.  By the 1990’s, the LES became the garment manufacturing capital, producing 70% of women’s clothing for our nation.

As in the 18th century the area was full of two-story wood-frame homes, the late 19th century presented a severe housing shortage, which prompted the rise of the eternally loved brick tenement buildings.  While these narrow and harrowing walk-ups were often filthy and cramped, they were cheap and could be efficiently divided up for newly arrived immigrant families.

Somewhat similar to the LES’ notorious “Hell Square“, the neighborhood was fraught with “Shock houses”, also known as disturbing bars and prostitute hangouts, full of the lowest rung of women, sailors and frequent suicide attempts. Liquor was mixed with all sorts of terrible things, like benzene, camphor and cocaine, and drinks were cheap. For a deeper look into the past and the reality experienced by so many of our ancestors, I highly recommend a visit to the Tenement museum.