Historical Sites

y The (former) Municipal Bath House (133 Allen Street, 212-254-3886)
Open to the Public on Monday thru Saturday, 9am-5pm
One of 15 free public bath houses in the city. Built to provide tenement dwellers, most of whom had no bathtubs in their homes, with a place to bathe. It now hosts the Church of Grace Fujianese.

y Essex Street Market (120 Essex Street, 212-388-0449)
Monday-Saturday from 8am-6pm
The market has been serving the community for over 50 years selling fresh meats, produce, and other products. The market was created by Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia to bring pushcart vendors together. The City's New York City Economic Development Corp., recently completed $1.5 million of renovations.

y Beth Hamedrash Hagadol (60 Norfolk Street)
Call the Lower East Side Conservancy at 212-374-4100 for an appointment
A Gothic Revival structure erected in 1852; a New York City landmark. Originally a Baptist church, the synagogue houses the oldest Russian Jewish congregation in the United States.

y The Lower East Side Tenement Museum (97 Orchard Street, 212-431-0233)
Tours start from 1pm: Tues-Fri 11am: Sat-Sun
No public tours on Mondays except in July and August
Recreates life in the tenements in its restored building with apartments typical of the turn of the century. The museum also offers exciting tours, dramas, "urban explorations," children's programs and exhibitions. Note: Admission tickets, gallery and gift shop at 90 Orchard Street.

y Ridley's Department Store (319/21 Grand Street)
Once the largest retail establishment in the world, was originally located in this building, which has been subdivided into a number of individual stores.

y The Eldridge Street Synagogue (12 Eldridge Street, 212-219-0903)
Tours available Tuesdays, Thursdays & Sundays
Boasts one of the finest facades on the Lower East Side. An ornate and eclectic mix of Moorish, Romanesque, and Gothic styles, this national historic landmark was erected in 1886, and is currently being restored.

y Jarmulovsky's Bank Building (54/58 Canal Street)
Erected in 1895. It was the tallest structure on the Lower East Side at the time. Founded by Sender Jarmulovsky who, literally, went from rags to riches (he began his "career" on Hester Street, selling rags from a pushcart), the bank collapsed after the pre-World War I panic, when depositors rushed to withdraw funds to help relatives in Europe.

y St. Teresa's Church (16/18 Rutgers Street, 212-233-0233)
Call Monsignor Dennis Sullivan for appointment
Built in 1841 as a Presbyterian church, but has been used as a Catholic church since 1863. Today, masses are held in all three of the area's main languages--English, Spanish, and Chinese.

y Sunshine Theater (143 East Houston Street, 212 358-7709)
Originally constructed as a Dutch Church in the 1840's, the building later housed a boxing venue and a Yiddish vaudeville theater. Closed to the public for 70 years, the movie house now includes five screens and features art house films.

y The Forward Building (175 East Broadway)
Once home to the most successful Yiddish language newspaper, The Jewish Daily Forward. Founded in 1897, the paper brought a wider vision of American life into the homes of the as yet unassimilated Jewish population, and had a circulation of nearly 250,000 readers at its peak.

y The Educational Alliance (197 East Broadway, 212-780-2300)
Call for tour appointment
Established in this 1889 Romanesque Revival structure under the original name of the Hebrew Institute. Its mission was to help "Americanize" newly arrived immigrants, and it offered classes in English, as well as the only free library in the city at the time.

y The Seward Park Library (192 East Broadway, 212-477-6770)
Constructed with funds donated by Andrew Carnegie in 1909, was designed with a rooftop garden reading area, because land for building was so scarce. It houses a large collection on Lower East Side history.

y Angel Orensanz Center (172 Norfolk St., 212-529-7194)
Call for an appointment
The center is housed in the oldest synagogue building in New York. Built in 1849, the historic structure was built in the German Romantic tradition. The structure has 54-foot ceilings and now serves as a spiritual and cultural center.

y Kehila Kedosha Janina Synagogue and Museum(280 Broome Street, 212-431-1619)
Open to the Public on Sundays 11am-4pm or call for appointment
Opened in 1927 to serve individuals of Greek-Romaniote descent. The Landmark synagogue is the only one of its kind in the Western Hemisphere.

y Henry Street Settlement (265 Henry Street (212) 766-9200)
www.henrystreet.org
info@henrystreet.org
Since its founding in 1893 by social work pioneer Lillian D. Wald, Henry Street has met continuously the needs of its Lower East Side neighbors. Today, Henry Street offers a wealth of social service and cultural programs, including educational and recreational opportunities for youth, shelters and transitional housing, workforce development programs, mental health services, services for seniors and home-bound individuals, and a multi-disciplinary arts programming at its Abrons Arts Center.

Henry Street's Abrons Arts Center is one of the first arts facilities in the nation designed for a predominantly low-income population. Located at 466 Grand Street, the Center hosts year-round classes for children adn adults, as well as arts-in-ducation programming in public schools, artists-in-residence opportunities, and regular performances and gallery exhibits.

y The Henry Street Settlement Abrons Arts Center(466 Grand Street, at the corner of Pitt Street, 212-598-0400)
Offers a great mix of performances, exhibitions, workshops, and classes in drama, music, dance, and the visual arts. For more information, call (212) 598-0400.

y The Lower East Side Conservancy (235 East Broadway, 212-374-4100)
The Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy features fully and professionally guided, story-filled itineraries (2.5-3 hours) tours which take visitors both inside the sacred sites, and on to the history filled streets of the Lower East Side and East Village. Tours are punctuated by regular 'nosh stops,' and tailored to fit your interests.

y St. Augustine's Episcopal Church (290 Henry Street, 212-673-5300)
Originally constructed by the All Saints Free Church congregation, this landmark Greek revival church was completed in 1828. Above the balcony there are two small "Slave Galleries," designated seating areas for slaves that the church is presently restoring.

y St. Mary's Church (440 Grand Street, 212-674-3266)
St. Mary's Parish began in 1826 on Sheriff Street. In 1832 the cornerstone was laid for the present Church location. St. Mary's is the third Catholic Church in New York City after St. Peter's and the old St. Patrick's. The Church is open for mass and prayer between 9am and 5pm each day and has services in both English and Spanish. The Church also has a religious articles shop inside the vestibule.

Back to top

y Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand St., (212) 598-0400
www.henrystreet.org
Housed within the historic Henry Street Settlement, the Abrons Arts Center is home to the national historic landmark Harry De Jur Playhouse and an outdoor sculpture garden, and hosts a range of art exhibits, dance and musical performances, and theatre productions.

Back to top

Galleries

y Galleries
Big Cat Gallery, 154 Orchard St. (212) 982-6210
Artists Alliance/Cuchifritos Art Gallery, 120 Essex St. (212) 598-4124
Mark Miller Gallery, 92 Orchard St. (212) 253-9479
Miguel Abreu Gallery, 36 Orchard St. (212) 995-1774
NakedEye, 192 Orchard St. (212) 253-4935
Orchard Street Gallery, 60 Orchard St. (212) 966-2720
Participant, 95 Rivington St. (917) 488-0185
The Reed Space, 151 Orchard St. (212) 253-0588
To Make a Better Place, 70 Orchard St. (212) 228-2131
Transplant Gallery, 139 Orchard St. 2nd Floor (212) 5050-0994

Back to top

Theatres

y Theatres
Immigrants Theater Project, 90 Orchard St. (212) 431-0233

Back to top