The History of Lower East Side Housing & Knickerbocker Village

Learn little-known housing history of the Lower East Side, such as how the Knickerbocker Village projects came about due to an ambitious, eccentric millionaire and his secret builders’ club where participants swore oaths of silence!

Since the Colonial period of Dutch New Amsterdam, the Lower East Side has seen a variety of homes to meet the needs of its ever-changing immigrant population and the demands of a growing metropolis. From farm estates to row houses, and tenements to housing projects like Knickerbocker Village, we will explore the evolution of housing on the Lower East Side, the tricks of the Roaring Twenties real estate market, and what “affordable” housing meant in the past and today.

Join Scott Brevda of the Museum at Eldridge Street and Andrew Fairweather of the Seward Park branch of the New York Public Library on Wednesday, February 28th at 6pm  on Zoom for this deep dive into our neighborhood’s dynamic housing history.

Registration for this program collaboration is FREE.

You will receive the Zoom link in your confirmation email.