8. Fulton Street Smells a Little Fishy

Photo by Jeff Rothstein. This image is not in Rothstein’s book.

The Fulton Fish Market, previously located in Downtown Manhattan’s South Street Seaport, was home to the world’s second largest fish market in the world—second only to Tokyo’s Tsukiji Fish Market. The market was allegedly owned and operated by the New York mafia until 2001, when the City of New York’s Business Integrity Commission took control of the site to fight organized crime in the city. The rich history of the market dates back to 1822 and still continues today in their new location in Hunts Point in the Bronx, which became the new Fulton Fish Market in late 2005.

At the time of this photo in the 1980s, the fish market was still going very strong in downtown. Although the businesses may have left, much of the original buildings still remain in their iconic styles. Though now behind construction barriers, the old Fulton Fish Market can still be seen from under the FDR Drive.