On Sunday October 30th at 3pm, Untapped Cities and the Museum at Eldridge Street invite you to join a Historical Walking Tour of Eldridge Street! Travel the length of Eldridge Street, and discover tales of the immigrant experience, architectural triumph, and the realization of the American Dream alongside corruption and even murder. Our micro walking tour of Eldridge Street tells the story of our Lower East Side neighborhood, from colonial times to the present, through a single city street – Eldridge Street from Division to Rivington. We will visit the site of a former prison, a synagogue turned-artist studio, a Chinese Hispanic grocery, and the clothing supplier of notorious gangster Monk Eastman. We’ll also discover the gruesome backstory to the man our street was named for: Lieutenant Joseph C. Eldridge.
Today Eldridge Street bears traces of over two centuries of New York City history. Year-old art galleries stand shoulder to shoulder with 19th century tenements; Fashionable new restaurants are doors away from the first settlement house in America. The block is home to a Buddhist temple, an Islamic center, several churches and two former synagogues that are now artist residences/studios, and our magnificent landmark – the 1887 Eldridge Street Synagogue.
