New York Songlines: Stanton Street

The Bowery | Chrystie | Forsyth | Eldridge | Allen | Orchard | Ludlow
Essex | Norfolk | Suffolk | Clinton | Attorney | Ridge | Pitt | Columbia








S <===               THE BOWERY               ===> N

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11: Pancho's Cafe

15: F&M Grocery

17: Seventeen Home, trendy bar

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In 1897, there were seven bars on the north side of Stanton between Bowery and Chrystie.










S <===               CHRYSTIE STREET               ===> N

Sara D. Roosevelt Park

Named for FDR's mother, a formidable woman who took credit for her son's political success, and who was something of a terror to her daughter-in-law Eleanor. The park is the result of massive slum clearance in 1929; it was supposed to be replaced with public housing, but corrupt city land deals made the price prohibitive.

Second African Burial Ground

The playground between Stanton and Rivington streets is on the site of where African-Americans were interred after the closing of the more famous downtown cemetery in 1794. At the time, this was unwanted part of the ruined Delancey estate. In 1853, as the city grew uptown, this burial ground was closed, and the bodies (supposedly) relocated to a churchyard uptown.

S <===         FORSYTH STREET         ===> N

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53: Stanton Street Settlement, founded in 1999, continues the century-old settlement house tradition.

57: Shalom Neuman's FusionArts Museum has a remarkable front door.


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Alternative Education Complex

Corner (198 Forsyth): Includes the Jeffrey C. Tenzer Learning Center, Auxiliary Services for High Schools, Cascades High School and the Lyle Center Satellite Academy.









S <===               ELDRIDGE STREET               ===> N

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Corner (189 Allen): Rafael Hernandez Houses


S <===               ALLEN STREET               ===> N

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85: Machine, goth and industrial clothing and jewelry. Building from 1887.

The Slipper Room

Corner (167 Orchard): Burlesque venue was founded by two dot-com millionaires from Razorfish. Building dates to 1940.

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82 (corner): Epstein's Bar, burger-and-beer joint named for the Welcome Back Kotter character (and not for the Epstein-Barr virus). Was The Living Room, acoustic-music club now on Ludlow.

80: Original address of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, founded in 1881. It was later housed in what is now the Public Theater.




Corner (173 Orchard): Rosario's Pizza, since 1964--popular for a post-barhopping snack.


S <===               ORCHARD STREET               ===> N

South:

Corner (170 Orchard): Orchard Epicerie





Arlene's Grocery

95: Hip music venue, formerly an actual grocery. Features Rock 'n' Roll Karaoke.

99: Barrio 99

101: WK 101 Gallery

Corner: Vlada NYC

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Corner (172 Orchard): Carl & Sons Clothing

90-96: Stanton Tailor Shop












100 (corner): Todd Merrill Antiques


S <===               LUDLOW STREET               ===> N

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105 (corner): Shop





111: San Loco

113: Siglo XX Furniture ("20th Century")

117 (corner): El Nuevo Amanacer ("The New Dawn"), Latin restaurant

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The Hat

108 (corner): Longstanding Spanish diner, more properly known as El Sombrero.

110: Foley & Corinna








S <===         ESSEX STREET         ===> N

South:



125: Silver Monument Works, the last survivor of a number of gravestone-cutting shops in the neighborhood, has been in the Silver family since about 1946.

127: New York Hardcore Tattoos, co-owned by members of local bands Agnostic Front, Murphys Law and Rancid. Used to share this address with Dulcinee Vintage Clothing.


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Anna Silver School (P.S. 20)

166 (block): Named after the mother of a former board of education president, P.S. 20 was educating the children of immigrants since 1898--mostly Eastern European Jews like George Gershwin, Edward G. Robinson and Jacob Javits. It's been on this block since 1964--now most of the students are from families that come from China, Latin America or Bangladesh--though there's also a new wave of Eastern Europeans.




S <===               NORFOLK STREET               ===> N

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140 (corner): Was State Drug, c. 1960. Owned by Ben Durst.













S <===               SUFFOLK STREET               ===> N

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Corner (35 Clinton St): Lotus Club, low-key bar/cafe

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Corner: Was Stafford Hats.


S <===               CLINTON STREET               ===> N

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179: Musician Leonard Cohen lived in a loft here with Marianne Ihlen, the subject of the song "So Long, Marianne." His famous blue raincoat was stolen here. Marlon Brando also reportedly lived at this address.




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172 (corner): Was Shaber's Lunch Counter and soda fountain.











S <===               ATTORNEY STREET               ===> N

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S <===               RIDGE STREET               ===> N

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219 (corner): Our Lady of Sorrows School, Catholic school associated with a church that originally served German immigrants, then became mostly Italian and today offers mass in Spanish and English.

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S <===         PITT STREET         ===> N

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Samuel Gompers Houses

Corner (100 Pitt St): These NYCHA houses, named for the founder of the American Federation of Labor, made an effort to be racially and economically integrated--apparently a rare thing in New York City public housing.








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Hamilton Fish Park

Fish (1808-1893), a descendant of Peter Stuyvesant, was governor, a senator and secretary of state under U.S. Grant. He was named for Alexander Hamilton, a friend and ally of his father Nicholas. A long line of Hamilton Fishes have been active in politics, culminating with the original's great-great-grandson, who is the publisher of The Nation.

The park was designed by Carrere & Hastings in 1898-1900, along with the Hamilton Fish Park Play Center (No. 130), which was modeled after the Petit Palais in Paris.


S <===         COLUMBIA STREET         ===> N


What am I missing on Stanton Street? Write to Jim Naureckas and tell him about it.

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