NYC Lower East Side Tenement Tours
The Lower East Side Tenement Museum isn’t just a museum, it’s one of New York City’s best historical sites.
Photo of The Lower East Side Tenement Museum, New York City © Shelley Panzarella
97 Orchard St was built in 1867 and was home to working class immigrants from all over the world. This building is the Lower East Side Tenement Museum.
Visitors are guided through the building and, depending on the tour you choose, see and learn how immigrants of the 19th and 20th centuries actually lived and the struggles they experienced.
Tenement Tours
There are a few different kind of guided tours to choose from: tour the building, meet the residents and walk the neighborhood.
Tour the Building
In the building tours, the apartments have been set up to look like they would have when immigrants lived there in the 9th and 20th centuries. Guided tours of the apartments are a great way to see and learn how people lived during these times as well as get a good feel for their way of life.
Meet the Residents
Meeting the residents’ tour has actors in costume playing residents of this time and the tour is very informative and is a fascinating look into the past. Right now this tour is of a Greek Sephardic family and visitors spend time in their apartment. There is an actor playing the daughter, 14 year old ‘Victoria’, who will tell you what it’s like living in a new country during this time. Visitors are encouraged to ask ‘Victoria’ questions about her life.
Walk the Neighborhood
Walking the neighborhood is a great way to get a feel for the sense of what they community was like in the 19th and 20th centuries. There are a few different neighborhood tours including Foods of the Lower East Side. Sample all kinds of foods while learning about how immigrants have shaped the food in America.
Virtual Tour
Want a preview of what 97 Orchard St looks like inside? Take a virtual tour of the museum!
The Lower East Side Tenement Museum can only been seen through a tour. Visit their website for tour times and reservations.
Click here for directions to the museum.
Museum Entrance Location:
103 Orchard St.
New York, NY 10012
Telephone:
+1 (212) 982-8420
