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Tag: Lower East Side

Frank Gonzalez: Champion of the Lower East Side Community

It takes a farsighted person to turn a crisis into an opportunity. That being the case, Loisaida has in Frank Gonzalez a veritable eagle, capable of discerning multiple ways of serving his local community during a time of great need. The story of these efforts begins with the COVID pandemic. At the time, Frank, a […]

    Naming a Neighborhood: The East Village

    The area now known as the East Village was historically part of the Lower East Side, which was one of the most densely populated and ethnically diverse neighborhoods in the city, especially during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At that time, it was primarily populated by immigrants, particularly from Eastern, and to a […]

      Second Avenue Station: The Hub that Never Was

      When it first opened in 1936, the Second Avenue station was supposed to become a hub for the subway system. Today, the station, located at Houston street and Second Avenue, though mammoth and meandering, feels almost unnecessary. It provides no subway transfers, and exists in close proximity to other stations along the same line. Notably, […]

        The East Village’s ‘Queen of Bohemia:” Zoe Anderson Norris

        If you’re ever on the Upper East Side or just strolling through Central Park and looking to immerse yourself in some literary history, the Grolier Club is the perfect place for that. The Grolier Club’s exhibitions are free to all visitors, making it an accessible space for bibliophiles or anyone itching to check out how literary history has evolved over time. 

        Beyond the Village and Back: Hamilton Fish Park

        In our blog series Beyond the Village and Back, we take a look at some great landmarks throughout New York City outside of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo, celebrate their special histories, and reveal their (sometimes hidden) connections to our neighborhoods. Explore our Beyond the Village and Back maps too. Sometimes we only have to go a […]

        The Evolution of Tenement Typologies in the East Village 

        The East Village is one of New York City’s most historically dynamic neighborhoods, as evidenced by its rich and diverse built environment. The neighborhood displays excellent examples of so many types of dense urban housing present in New York City, from single-family rowhouses to tenements of the “pre,” “old,” and “new” law typologies, to public […]

        2021 Village Preservation Public Programs Round-Up

        As we close the chapter on yet another wild and successful of year of public programs at Village Preservation, we wanted to take the time to reflect and highlight some of 2021’s best moments. Despite the twists and turns of this year’s ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic, we’ve hosted 80 different educational lectures, book talks, and walking […]

        More Historic Images: The Pryor Dodge Collection

        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. […]

        2020 Village Awardee: Ray’s Candy Store, 113 Avenue A

        Each year, Village Preservation honors the invaluable people, businesses, and organizations that make a special contribution to our neighborhoods at our Annual Meeting and Village Awards. On June 17th, 2020 we will be celebrating nine outstanding awardees at our— RSVP here to participate virtually. Have you ever meandered into the bright little shop at 113 Avenue […]

        How Greenwich Village and the East Village Launched the 19th Century Hebrew Free School Movement

        Nineteenth-century Jewish immigrant life in New York is well-documented, when massive waves of Jews, first from Germany and then from Eastern Europe, began to flood into the city.  This made New York the largest Jewish city by population in the world, which it remains to this day.  Like all immigrant stories, the Jewish community had […]

        Uncovering the stories behind downtown’s overlooked synagogues

        On August 8, 2008, Village Preservation and the East Village Community Coalition (EVCC) submitted a request to the LPC to landmark a little-known but remarkable survivor– Congregation Mezritch Synagogue at 515 East 6th Street between 1st Avenue and Avenue A.  The building was the last operating “tenement synagogue” in the East Village. A young, little-known developer named Jared Kushner was […]

        Hettie Jones, 2019 Village Awardee

        Hettie Jones is a talented writer, a loving mother and grandmother, a forceful activist, a nurturing teacher, and a friendly neighbor and preservationist. She is the stuff neighborhood dreams are made of. Showing no signs of slowing down at 85, she is easily one of the earth mothers of our community – and we’re thrilled […]

        Viewers Choice: Top 5 Village Preservation Program Videos of 2018

        Each year, Village Preservation hosts more than sixty public programs. They cover our neighborhoods from the western edge of Greenwich Village to the easternmost reaches of the East Village.  Topics cover a diverse range of areas including rock and roll, restoring artists’ studios, terracotta mosaics in the subways, street photography, women’s poetry, and so much […]

        The “East Village” Is Born, In Print

        On February 7, 1960 the New York Times wrote an article discussing changes in Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side.  Four years beforehand the El (above ground subway) had been removed from Third Avenue.  With that barrier dismantled, Villagers from the west began to move east as “new shops, luxury and middle-income housing, and […]

        The Lower East Side People’s Federal Credit Union

        The presence of banks in neighborhood retail spaces often elicit mixed feelings at best. Typically these tend to deaden the streetscape and are owned and operated by some faceless, distant multinational corporation. But banks also perform an incredibly necessary and important function for local residents.  According to americanbanker.com, only 18% of seniors use mobile banking […]

        Kleindeutschland Roundup

        In the late 19th and early 20th Century, the East Village and Lower East Side were home to a substantial German immigrant community.  As a result, this area became known as Kleindeutschland, or “Little Germany.”  Eventually the German community moved north to the Upper East Side and elsewhere, spurred on by the General Slocum Disaster, demographic […]

        The “East Village” Is Born, In Print

        On February 7, 1960 the New York Times wrote an article discussing changes in Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side.  Four years beforehand the El (above ground subway) had been removed from Third Avenue.  With that barrier dismantled, Villagers from the west began to move east as “new shops, luxury and middle-income housing, and […]

        Landmarks of New York: First Houses

        On December 3, 1935, First Houses were dedicated and opened, the first housing project undertaken by the then-recently established New York City Housing Authority and the first publicly-funded low-income housing project in the nation. The groundbreaking development was made a New York City landmark on November 12, 1974.

        Village Preservation East Village Oral History: Marilyn Appleberg

        Village Preservation is excited to share our oral history collection with the public, and hope they will shed more light on what makes Greenwich Village and the East Village such unique and vibrant areas. Each of these histories highlights the experiences and insights of long-time residents, usually active in the arts, culture, preservation, business, or […]

        Landmarks50: Children’s Aid Society, Elizabeth Home for Girls

        We continue celebrating Landmarks50 with a look at individual landmarks in our neighborhood. Yesterday we learned about the Children’s Aid Society, Tompkins Square Lodging for Boys and Industrial School. Today we read about the Children’s Aid Society, Elizabeth Home for Girls at 307 East 12th Street, which the LPC designated on March 18, 2008. The […]

        Ottendorfer Library Landmark Designation

        The Ottendorfer Branch of the New York Public Library (NYPL) at 135 Second Avenue was designated an individual New York City landmark September 20, 1977.  The library was built in 1883-4 by Oswald Ottendorfer, a wealthy German newspaper magnate, along with the adjoining Stuyvesant Polyclinic Hospital.  These buildings are both representative of Kleindeutschland, or “Little Germany,” […]

        A Night With The Andy Statman Trio at the Historic Eldridge Street Synagogue

        Renowned musician Andy Statman and the Andy Statman Trio will perform in the main sanctuary of the Eldridge Street Synagogue on Thursday, October 22, 2015. This special concert, presented by the GVSHP Brokers Partnership and benefiting GVSHP and the Museum at the Eldridge Street Synagogue, provides a unique opportunity to hear one of today’s best klezmer […]

        New York City’s First Public Nurse: Lillian Wald

        On September 1, 1940, Lillian Wald passed away.  While not a household name, Wald’s influence on public social services in New York City is exemplary, as she is the founder of the Henry Street Settlement, The Visiting Nurse Services of New York, and is the namesake for the Lillian Wald Houses on Avenue D in […]

        The HOWL! Festival

        Historically, the Village and East Village have always been the place for artists, writers, performers, and a slew of other creatives in New York City, a fact that is widely celebrated as one of the area’s defining characteristics.  The HOWL! Festival is a celebration of this history.  Founded in 20013 and named for long time […]

        Welcome Aboard, Sam Moskowitz

        We here at GVSHP are pleased to welcome Sam Moskowitz aboard, whose first day as GVSHP’s Director of Operations is today.  Sam replaced longtime GVSHP Director of Operations Sheryl Woodruff, who left GVSHP at the end of 2014.

        Preservation Includes Community Gardens, and More

        Not so long ago, there were 57 community gardens sprinkled along the streets of the East Village and Lower East Side – registered with the Parks Department’s GreenThumb program, that is; in total there were even more. Now there are 46. A coalition of gardeners, advocates and officials has just taken action to ensure that […]

        Rose of the Ghetto

        There are still a few seats available for our free public program this Thursday evening at the Jefferson Market Library. The subject is the life and times of Rose Pastor Stokes, known to our presenter, Kate Pastor, as “My Great Great Aunt Rose of the Lower East Side.” Kate herself is a Bronx-based journalist who […]

          Time & Space on the Lower East Side

          If you’ve gotten our program email or flyer you know that Time and Space on the Lower East Side is the title of one of our upcoming events.  But it’s also a wonderful book of photographs that looks backward and forward, positing the idea that places are not simply “then and now,” but exist in […]

          This Day in History: The Rosenberg Trial Begins

          It was on this date in 1951 that the infamous espionage trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg began.  The Jewish-American Communists, along with Soviet spy Morton Sobell, were accused of selling nuclear secrets to Russia. Ethel’s brother, David Greenglass, worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory and allegedly supplied Julius with information regarding the atomic bomb.  […]

          Russ & Daughters: An Extraordinarily Ordinary Place

          As GVSHP gears up for our benefit evening Much Ado About Noshing this evening with Village writer Calvin Trillin and two generations of the Russ & Daughters family, we decided to revisit our roots and explore the history of 179 East Houston Street, the building owned by the beloved appetizing store. Russ & Daughters has been […]

          Pastrami or Lox?

          Tough decision, I know.  Luckily, in the East Village/Lower East Side, you don’t have to travel far to stock up on both of these Jewish treats.  If you’ve ever stood on line for a pastrami on rye at Katz’s or grabbed a bagel with lox and a schmear at Russ & Daughters, you know what […]