Health and Living
Earth Day in New York City 1970
Mayor John Lindsay pulled out all the stops for the first official Earth Day on April 22, 1970, with such a show that one could be mistaken in…
Articles
History, stories, and deep dives from the Bowery Boys.
Latest Article
Bowery Boys Bookshelf‘Separate’: The origins of a catastrophic and disgraceful Supreme Court decision
April 24, 2019
The 1896 landmark Supreme Court decision Plessy v. Ferguson embedded and legitimized the practice of “separate but equal” into American life in the 20th century. The decision built racism into the fiber of everyday activities — schooling, housing, medical care, public transportation — and elevated…
→ Read ArticleBrowse by Category
Bowery Boys Bookshelf 91
Neighborhoods 81
Uncategorized 76
Landmarks 60
Mysterious Stories 57
Gilded Age New York 51
Amusements and Thrills 51
American History 49
Health and Living 48
It's Showtime 45
Writers and Artists 44
Those Were The Days 41
Holidays 40
Brooklyn History 38
Pop Culture 36
The Gilded Gentleman 34
More Articles
Bowery Boys Bookshelf
Why David Hosack, doctor of Alexander Hamilton, built America’s first public botanic garden
Congratulations to Victoria Johnson for being named a Pulitzer Prize finalist for her book American Eden, one of our favorite from 2018. Here’s our review from a few months…
It's Showtime
The World of Fosse/Verdon: Eight addresses in Midtown that helped make two Broadway legends
The New York City entertainment world was never the same after Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon met at a rehearsal space in Midtown Manhattan in 1955. Tonight FX Network debuts…
Neighborhoods
The naming of Times Square: Becoming the Crossroads of the World — 115 years ago today!
On April 8, 1904, the former horse-and-carriage district known as Longacre Square was renamed for a tenant who had just moved to the neighborhood.The New York Times was…
Bowery Boys Movie Club
Eyes of Laura Mars: The glamour of 1970s SoHo
Join the Bowery Boys Movie Club! Support us on Patreon at any level and get these Patreon-exclusive, full-length and ad-free podcast. Each month we talk about one classic…
Queens History
George Washington’s inauguration and the 1939 World’s Fair
Today (April 30th) is the 230th anniversary of the inauguration of George Washington, sworn in atFederal Hallas the first President of the United States. It is also…
Bowery Boys Bookshelf
Opening Day at Shea Stadium: A nostalgic trip to the New York Mets’ beloved old home
Shea Stadium has been gone ten years now. With mourning fans looking on, the final section of seats were torn out on the morning of February 18,…
Bowery Boys Bookshelf
When Brooklyn Was Queer: The forgotten history of gay existence on the periphery of urban life
Hugh Ryan’s When Brooklyn Was Queer embarks on a modern quest to find the roots of the LGBTQ community in the pages of history. A reader might hope…
Music History
Why New York City needs a tribute to Billie Holiday, our sweet Lady Day (UPDATE: They’re building it!)
UPDATE (March 11, 2019): The city has announced that it will commission a Billie Holiday memorial, joining new statues for Elizabeth Jennings Graham, Katherine Walker and Dr. Helen Rodríguez-Trías. Graham, the subject…
American History
WILD BILL: The real man behind a Western legend — and a reluctant Broadway stage star
“Hickok was a celebrity. He was famous. He was feared. He was already a legend. It is estimated that over fifteen hundred dime novels were written…
Holidays
Happy New Year! Photographs from over a century of Chinese New Year celebrations in Manhattan
Head over to Chinatown this Sunday afternoon (February 17, starting at 1pm) for the Lunar New Year Parade and Festival, topping off two weeks of celebrations in…
Bowery Boys Bookshelf
Romare Bearden: ‘An American Odyssey’ through the Harlem Renaissance and the SoHo art scene
Sometimes an artist’s biography can work on two levels, providing both the sweep of history within the subject matter of the artist’s own output and a…