April is both the time of year when immigrant heritage week is celebrated in New York (commemorating the day in 1907 when more immigrants passed through Ellis Island than any other single day), and when we celebrate the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District in April of 1969, finally extending landmark protections to a […]
Launched in 2017, Village Preservation’s Civil Rights and Social Justice Map marks sites in our neighborhoods significant to the history of various civil rights and social justice movements, and now includes over 225 entries. Those sites are divided among six different groups, including one for social justice and other civil rights activism. Today we take […]
On Thanksgiving Day, 1902, Greenwich House opened its doors at 26 Jones Street. Founded by Mary K. Simkhovitch, this settlement house would soon become a pillar of social and cultural enrichment in Greenwich Village. Greenwich House offered its service to thousands of immigrants in the following years. Today we’re reflecting on the history of the house and […]
It’s Theater Thursday, and for the first time in a long time, we have good news to report on that front! In case you’ve been out of the loop, our beloved theatrical institutions have been closed for the past year and a half due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was an excruciating time for […]
It just never stops growing…Village Preservation’s Historic Image Archive, that is. The latest addition is the Pryor Dodge Collection, a collection taken between 1966 and 1967. They provide a wonderful snapshot (pardon the pun) into Greenwich Village and the East Village from this time. Featured are children playing, musicians collaborating, and life on the Bowery. […]
In 1900, the Social Reform Club hosted a lecture by labor leader Edward King.
Today marks the beginning of Immigrant Heritage Week. Immigration is a core theme in the history of New York City and especially our neighborhoods. People from all over the world come to Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo, adding to the vibrancy, creativity, and life. On April 29th, 2019, we launched our new interactive […]
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and celebrations. In 1909, Frances Perkins was living in Greenwich Village and pursuing a master’s degree in political science at Columbia University. She was, in her […]
This is one in a series of posts marking the 50th anniversary of the designation of the Greenwich Village Historic District. Click here to check out our year-long activities and celebrations. Aviatrix Amelia Earhart is a household name for shattering a record-breaking 18,415-foot glass ceiling in her airplane. Almost as famous is her mysterious disappearance […]
Each year, immigrant history week is celebrated in late April, commemorating the day in 1907 when more immigrants came through Ellis Island than any other day in history. More than a few of those immigrants came through Greenwich Village, which has a long and storied history of welcoming newcomers from across the city, country, and […]
“I am Spartacus!” That is what many people think of when they think of Kirk Douglas, in his role in the 1960 film Spartacus as the leader of a slave revolt in ancient Rome. But did you know he once made his home in Greenwich Village? While he was a struggling actor at the beginning […]
This past summer, Off the Grid posted a piece on Greenwich House, the community settlement house that brought education and social services to the community’s immigrant population at the turn of the 20th century. Today, Greenwich House continues to serve those in need, from its services for seniors and children to its arts programs for […]
For those familiar with the history of Greenwich Village, the name of author Jane Jacobs is quite familiar. Her book, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, is well known as revolutionary to the study of urban planning. There is, however, another book just as revolutionary that is a must for researchers of the […]
Founded 111 years ago by reformer Mary Kingsbury Simkhovitch, Greenwich House began as a place to help improve the lives of the expanding immigrant populations in the neighborhood. While times have changed, Greenwich House continues to serve seniors, children, and families with services such as arts education, after-school programs, substance abuse programs, and social and […]
