Tenement Museum and Katz's Delicatessen

The Tenement Museum's mission is to teach about immigrant history.At the Tenement Museum we learned how two different immigrant families survived in two different eras. Beginning in 1935, the tenements at 97 Orchard Street were shuttered for over fifty years. This happened because the apartments within were no longer meeting city code and the cost of upgrading them exceeded what the landlord could afford. Consequently, these apartments became time capsules, presently allowing us to see the dark, ramshackle conditions immigrants to New York City endured in the past as they chased the American Dream.

While at the museum we watched a video recounting the history of tenement life in the lower East Side. From their we walked up to 97 Orchard Street.

First we entered the 1880 apartment of Natalie and Julius Gumpert and their children. The apartments of this time had no plumbing. Water had to be pumped out of a well located in the backyard where the outhouses were also located. Even in those days officials knew this arrangement was a way of spreading diseases, but since the law permitted it, it was common practice. Hauling water was just one of many hardships while living in a tenement. With people packed so closely together, noise and odors were a fact of life.
    Julius undoubtedly tried to earn enough for his family, but that became increasingly hard. Things became so hard for Julius that he left one day and never returned. Natalie was left to raise her young family on her own. Using her talent as a seamstress, and relying on her neighbors who looked out for her, she was able to meet her children's basic needs. However, since Julius never returned, she was eventually able to get the court to declare him legally dead. Much after her family's time, it was determined that Julius went to Ohio after he had abandoned his family.

The second apartment we visited belonged to Adolpho and Rosario Baldizzi. They lived there in the early 1930s. This couple had two young children. Adolpho was a day laborer which meant he would stand on a street corner early each morning soliciting work. Many days he would get work, but not always. The Great Depression had left 25% of the working population unemployed, so when Adolpho worked his wages were meager.
    Rosario, who was born in Italy, worked hard as a housewife, and according who her daughter she was always busy cooking or cleaning.  Based on the artifacts in this apartment, this family relied on their strong Catholic faith to endure during difficult economic times when they had few material riches. Around 1935 their fortunes worsened again when the landlord chose to evict all his tenants rather than make the improvements to the apartments a new law required. That's when 97 Orchard Street became a virtual time capsule, helping to preserve the conditions of a bygone era for us to learn about today.

At lunchtime we went to Katz's Delicatessen on Delancy Street. I enjoyed a pastrami on rye bread, dill pickles and a Pepsi; a classic New York lunch. The walls of Katz's Deli are lined with photos of celebrities and politicians. Bill Clinton, Michael Bloomberg, Jerry Jones, and Marisa Tomei were just a few of the notables. Also, the famous scene from "When Harry Met Sally" was filmed at a table here.