7. Newspaper Row

Newsboys Sleeping in the Offices of the New York Sun, 1891-1892,” photo by Jacob A. Riis, Museum of the City of New York Collection

Newspaper Row was once located on Park Row, just alongside City Hall and City Hall Park. It was home to such institutions as The New York Times, The New York Tribune and The New York World who were building some of the tallest buildings in the world as their headquarters. The city’s newspapers were originally distributed primarily by newsies – poor or homeless city children – who purchased newspapers from the publishers and sold them on the streets. Riis documented the newsies inside the New York Sun building, and the above is one of several showing them sleeping.

In 1899, the newsies staged a boycott against Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, maching onto the Brooklyn Bridge and stopping traffic for hours. In the end, the publishers agreed to buy back any unsold papers.

Next, check out 10 Highlights of the Exhibit Jacob Riis: Revealing New York’s Other Half at Museum of the City of NY and read our walkthrough of the exhibit with MCNY Curator Bonnie Yochelson. On your visit to the museum, also check out “Affordable Housing: A New York Legacy.” .