Best Kept Secrets of the Tenement Museum

Chances are good that someone in your family immigrated to the United States between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Maybe your family has passed down the stories of what it was like to enter the U.S. through New York City and begin a whole new life in a foreign land. To get a better idea of the real challenges these immigrants faced, though, you’ll want to head to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, which shows visitors how families in Manhattan lived when they started their new lives in the U.S.

 

A recreation of the kitchen of the Baldizzi family, who lived in the tenement at 97 Orchard St in 1935.

 

Tenement Museum Overview

The building at 97 Orchard St. was home to thousands of immigrants from 1863 to the early 1930s. In 1935, the tenants were kicked out and the building was boarded up when it did not meet fire and safety codes, and it wasn’t until 1988 that the building was used again. The tenement building was turned into the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, a four-floor museum that tells the stories of the families who once lived there, ranging from a German family that ran a saloon to Irish-Catholics that were trying to fit into a Jewish neighborhood. 

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Tenement Museum’s Standby Faves for Kids

Meet Victoria Confino is the most popular tour for young children and the only one that allows children younger than 6 (it’s recommended for ages 5 and older). Visitors meet a costumed interpreter playing Victoria, a 14-year-old Greek Sephardic Jewish girl who lived in the building in 1916, and learn what her life was like by handling objects, sitting on beds—activities that are prohibited on all other tours—and asking her questions.

Abbie Winkelmann, 16, from Philadelphia, found the tour informative and exciting. “It was very different from other museum tours,” she said. Her sister Lily, 9, thought the costumed interpreter playing Victoria took on the part well. “You could think she’s from Casteria because she spoke the language really well,” she said.

Children older than 6 might also enjoy the Shop Life tour, during which they can place objects on an interactive touch-screen table to learn more about the families that owned shops in the basement of the building.

Children ages 8 and older, and adults, can Walk the Neighborhood to discover how the immigrants helped shape the area in 1 of 5 tours. Learn how the residents of the neighborhood have fought to preserve the community in Then & Now; see the Lower East Side through the eyes of the immigrants in Outside the Home; taste dumplings, fried plantains, and other foods that have shaped American cuisine in Foods of the Lower East Side; compare the experiences of immigrant entrepreneurs in the past and present in Storefront Stories; or learn about the people who influenced the design and use of the neighborhoods buildings in Building on the Lower East Side.

In Snapshot, visitors can take pictures on every floor of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, and activity that is normally strictly forbidden.

 

Tenement Museum’s Best-Kept Secrets to Discover with Kids

Tenement Inspectors is an interactive tour that allows children older than 8 to take on the role of housing inspectors. Children walk around the first floor and decide whether the building is up to fire and safety codes, a task the building failed when the landlord refused to fireproof the staircases. Educators dress up as residents and walk around the floor to provide an immersive experience and help visitors with questions. This program is typically offered once a month.

SNAPSHOT, a program that began in 2014, allows visitors to take pictures on every floor of the museum. Usually pictures are strictly forbidden inside the museum, but this program—offered on a few special days during the year—allows visitors to take infinite pictures. SNAPSHOT is great for aspiring teenaged photographers who want to build up their portfolio or those looking to explore the whole museum at once. Call ahead or go online for more details.

Tastings at the Tenement allows visitors, ages 8 and older, to taste the variety of foods and flavors from the Lower East Side, past and present, while exploring the influence of immigrant culture on what Americans eat today. The 90-minute tour begins with a visit to 97 Orchard St. followed by a sit-down tasting meal in the museum’s private dining. Tastings at the Tenement occur Thursdays at 6:30pm and are $35 for adults and $30 for students and seniors.

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At the Lower East Side Tenement Museum’s Tastings at the Tenement, guests can taste a variety of foods from the neighborhood, and learn how immigrant culture influenced today’s American cuisine.

 

Parents, Know Before You Go!

Children younger than 6 are not allowed in the museum, and many tours are suggested for visitors older than 8. However, young children are allowed on walking tours that take place outside on Orchard Street.

Pictures and video are not allowed in the museum but can be taken on walking tours and in the Visitor Center and Museum Shop.

Strollers are not allowed inside, but smaller carriers are permitted.

Lockers are available at the Visitor Center and Museum Shop for shopping bags and backpacks.

The museum does not allow food inside (water is okay), but popular eateries Katz’s Delicatessen and The Meatball Shop are within walking distance.

Keep in mind that there are a lot of steep stairs that lead up to the fourth floor and elevators are not available, so children who get tired easily may not want to take tours that are on the top floor.
 

The exterior of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum’s location at 97 Orchard St., where visitors can get a glimpse into life as an immigrant in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

 

Want to Go?

Location: The Lower East Side Tenement Museum is located at 97 Orchard St. on the Lower East Side. Tickets and gifts can be bought at the Visitor Center and Museum Shop located at 103 Orchard St.

Prices: $25; $20 students and seniors (65 and older); free for members.

Hours: Friday-Wednesday, 10am-6:30pm; Thursday, 10am-8:30pm

For more information: 877-975-3786 or tenement.org

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Main photo: During the Meet Victoria Confino tour, visitors will meet a 14-year-old Greek Sephardic Jewish girl who lived in the building in 1916.

All photos courtesy The Lower East Side Tenement Museum