Tenement Historic District: A History of Housing in Yorkville

Church and tenements in Yorkville. Photo: James Russiello.

[In-person tour] Who in their right mind would choose to live in the Tenement Historic District? Apparently… no one. And today, the neighborhood is left almost entirely without designated landmarks. Join historian James Russiello on a stroll through a constantly developing enclave of the Upper East Side to view migration and development patterns in the East 80s. As the neighborhood became centers for many immigrant groups in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (including Irish, Germans, and Hungarians), tenements and ethnic missions sprang up from what were once bucolic farmland retreats of Old New York, leaving the neighborhood rich in cultural heritage. This area, rich in redevelopment since the 1920s and upzoned in the early 1970s, is scattered throughout a vast neighborhood that largely lacks landmark protection. Today, one can find illustrative examples of the development of working-class housing in New York and its replacement by modern, up-zoned luxury housing.

For all tours, there are no refunds, cancellations, or exchanges unless we cancel a tour. Online registration closes one hour prior to the tour start time.

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