Select Historical Events of the Lower East Side

Stonewall Riots:

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The Stonewall Inn is a bar known for its vibrant LGBTQ culture and history. Located in the Greenwich Village, it had an instrumental part in the fight for sexual equality in the sixties and seventies. In 1969, there were a series of riots that took place at Stonewall Inn, sparked by the zero tolerance of the NYC city police of homosexuality at that time. In fact, Stonewall Inn was one of the few establishments at the time that allowed LGBTQ drag queens, transgender people, prostitutes to show themselves openly the way they were. The Stonewall Riots brought the struggles of the LGBTQ to the forefront of the American mind forced the American public to truly grapple with what it meant and the struggles of being LGBTQ in America. The first Gay Pride Parade was inaugurated only one year after Stonewall in 1970.

The Murder of Mary Cecilia Rogers:

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The murder of Mary Rogers is one of the biggest mysteries of the 19^th century and embodied many of the struggles that faced women during that time. The Lower East Side in the 19^th century was not a good place, to say the least, for young women to be in. There are countless cases of rape, assault, and kidnappings of local women during this time. However, Ms. Roger’s case is especially sad because of the gruesome nature of her death. Ms. Rogers was a notable beauty in town. Every other day there was a suitor asking for her hand. They were taken in by her “starry eyes” and heaven-like smile. She eventually settled down with a fiancé, Daniel Payne. On July 25^th, 1841 she told her fiancé she was visited some relatives in the neighborhood. Three days later on July 28^th, her corpse was found floating in the Hudson River. Although, murders of young, beautiful women were not uncommon in the Lower East Side, her case was publicized by newspapers and sensationalized so much by the press that it led to new discussions on women safety, women well-being, and the rights of women. If all else, her murder caused people to lock their doors a little tighter at night.

The 1896 Eastern North American Heat Wave:

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In the late 19^th century, there were ten days of record humidity and temperatures often over 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Though affecting all people in New York City, the poor immigrants living in the tenements in the Lower East Side suffered the most. Tenements by definition did not have good ventilation and immigrants rarely have the resources to survive natural disasters. At the end of these ten terrible days, about 1500 men, women, and children lay dead, more than the NYC Draft Riots, more than 1871 Chicago Fire. The majority of the deaths were from the lower classes, and many were from the Lower East Side.