7. Actually Packing Meat in the Meatpacking District

Photo by Jeff Rothstein

Amidst the meatpacking business’ downturn in New York, this shot captured by Rothstein in 1988 shows the Meatpacking District before the Whitney Museum of Art and the many high-end boutiques began invading the neighborhood. Beginning in the 1960s, many meatpacking businesses began to change as a result of the new supermarket culture which characterized the mid-sixties. As a result, in the 1970s, many of these abandoned meatpacking buildings became gay bars and nightclubs, changing the atmosphere of the neighborhood entirely. In the late 1990s, many of these clubs moved and high-end shopping boutiques opened up, thereby changing the atmosphere of the Meatpacking District again.

“I used to wander there with my camera early weekend mornings and  the area was really deserted,” noted Rothstein. “Usually just me and the transvestite hookers who hung out there.” Additionally in this photograph, you can see the High Line in its original state not being used. Although transformed into new tourist destinations, many of the buildings which held meatpacking businesses are still standing, today.