Here is a map of major forts and artillery batteries in Lower Manhattan during the Revolutionary War. In the Summer of 1776, George Washington’s 10,000-strong Continental Army fortified Manhattan Island, concentrating five Brigades below Houston Street. The only major road… Read More »Lower Manhattan During the Revolutionary War
The Telegraph-Herald (Dubuque, Iowa), April 19, 1920 In the spring of 1920, thousands of families were ordered to vacate their homes during one of the worst housing crises in New York City history. The combination of a severe housing shortage… Read More »The Housing Crisis of 1920
Rare image of the original Tombs Prison being dismantled to make way for a newer structure, c. 1898. Apparently nothing was spared. There was a push to rebuild the structure in Central Park for nostalgic purposes but the cost was… Read More »Tombs Prison being dismantled, c. 1898
August 31 marks the anniversary of the passing of pioneering social worker Helen Hall, who died of natural causes in 1982 at the tender age of 90 at her home on the Lower East Side. Known as a “second generation… Read More »Helen Hall, pioneering social worker
Eric FerraraEric is a 4th generation Lower East Sider, professional NYC history author, movie & TV consultant, and founder of Lower East Side History Project.