Little Italy: 1900

How I wish I could have been born that long ago. Times were much simpler and to be born here would be great seeing that I am half Italian.

My wife's family is originally from New York and part of the holiday ritual is a trip to Mulberry Street each Christmas Eve to procure the goodies for a proper Holiday meal. Alleva Dairy, one of the oldest stores in the city, is the first stop. Next door is a great pasta shop. There's a wonderful pork store near that, but the last three years we've been there the line is about 50 people long, so we skip it. Back to Mulberry and three blocks down is the last stop, Caffe Roma on Mulberry and Broome, for fresh pastries and desserts. Our surgical strikes into the city get us in at 9 a.m. and back home to central NJ by noon.

The throngs of people from the 1900 pictures is very alarming. I'm glad all of those folks weren't in the street Christmas Eve morning! Thanks for sharing this image.

They are all inside, at computers looking at pictures of what their streets used to look like with people on them.

that today every person here would have a cellphone. Thanks for this fascinating picture.

The same buildings, but now they look like mere tenements.

So much detail, a History major could write a PhD thesis on this photo alone.

What strikes me is the absence of people in the current view of the street. In 1900 the street is packed with people and life. In the 2009 view it's mostly a parking lot with a few people walking about.

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Facce di povera gente, facce da bandito e facce da guappo. Penso che molti italiani dovrebbero guardare meglio la loro storia. Bellissima fotografia, magnificent photo, thank you.

the New York Pizza?

Those fools on MTV wouldn't last five seconds in this crowd.

Detroit Publishing also had a Photochrom (colored) version of this scene. Click to enlarge.

At 86 Mulberry (here partly obscured by an awning) was my great-great grandfather's pharmacy.

Thank you.

The Banca Malzone was founded by Fausto Domenico Malzone. He was a banker, travel agent, wine seller as well as the Artistic Director of The Italian American Theatre club which was also at 88 Mulberry Street. Don Malzone was a respected member of the community.

There's even a young fellow holding a glass of beer in the middle of the street.

The New York Times said of Beneke Bros. Shoes:

"They carry an immense stock of varied styles, and claim they can fit any man whose pedals are not abnormal in shape, and for misshapen feet they make to order anything that a Knight of St. Crispin can accomplish by art or ingenuity."

Was down there this weekend. Basically all Chinese now, but still a lot of small Italian specialty shops for cheese, cured meat, etc.

The old "Mustache Petes" are all long gone.

This photo is the reason I am a member of the Shorpy family. A person can spend hours looking at the details of life in the early part of the century.

Corner building with the dark bands of ad copy.

So many little details. Wonder why so many people are looking at the camera? Did he attract that much attention or maybe call out to the crowd?

Looking north. The next cross street is Canal.

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