Lower East Side, Historic neighborhood in Manhattan, United States.
This neighborhood stretches east from the Bowery to the East River and sits between Canal Street to the south and Houston Street to the north, where five- to six-story tenements form most of the street rows. Iron fire escapes run down the brick facades while small shops, cafes, and restaurants display their goods on sidewalks at ground level.
Between the 1880s and 1920s millions of immigrants from Eastern Europe, Italy, and China moved into the area and filled the tenements, which often housed more than ten people in a single room. After World War II many families left the district for the suburbs, while from the 1980s onward artists and young professionals moved in and renovated vacant apartments.
The district's streets still show traces of many immigrant groups, from Jewish bakeries and kosher food shops to Chinese markets and Latin American restaurants. On weekends the sidewalks fill with visitors who crowd into small stores where vendors often speak several languages and sell goods from around the world.
Several subway lines stop at Delancey Street–Essex Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street stations, from where you can explore the district on foot. Most shops and restaurants open in the late morning and stay open into the evening, with streets noticeably fuller on weekends than during the week.
A museum on Orchard Street displays preserved apartments from the 19th century where you can see how narrow and dark the rooms were in which entire families lived and worked. The guided tours show original stoves, sinks, and furniture that illustrate the daily life of the first residents.
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