Biography of a Tenement House in New York City: An Architectural History of 97 Orchard Street (review)

Dolkart begins the introduction to his history of 97 Orchard Street with "I trace my ancestry back to the Mayflower. Not the legendary ship that brought the Pilgrims to Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620, but to the more prosaic tenement on the southeast corner of East Broadway and Clinton Street named the Mayflower, where my father was born in 1914 to Russian-Jewish immigrants." The book then proceeds to chronicle the architectural and social history of this tenement building, originally constructed in 1864, during the first major period of tenement building construction in New York City. As a rare survivor from this period, 97 Orchard Street was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (1992), later designated a National Historic Landmark (1994), and opened as the Lower East Side Tenement National Historic Site and Affiliated Area of the National Park Service in 1998. The structure currently serves as a house museum that interprets a way of life not usually seen in such sites.

Focusing on the social and cultural history of the immigrant residents, Dolkart profiles the occupants of 97 Orchard Street from 1864 until the last resident left in 1935. Working from a basis in the history of the occupants, he provides a thorough documentary of changes to the building, which were most often made because of changes in tenement laws resulting from the efforts of different housing reform movements. Because the chief aim of the tenement owners was profitability, these architectural changes were incurred as cheaply as possible each time. The book leads readers through the interior, discussing architectural elements, wall coverings, and other features as they relate to the people who lived among them. A rich array of photographs accompanies the text. The result is a vivid picture of these spaces.

By chronicling 97 Orchard Street, Dolkart has successfully provided a context for tenement housing throughout the Tenth Ward of New York City, in which the building is located. Included within the contextual history are changes to laws and the resultant changes made in later tenement house construction within the same area of the city. Dolkart's history also addresses social aspects of how the units were used, family size, sweatshops within the tenement quarters, and the various ethnic groups associated with that specific part of town through the later nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Dolkart's writing style is engaging and precise. The story of 97 Orchard Street provides a living narrative of people and their households and how the building shaped them. The detailed descriptions of the architecture allow the reader to imagine the experience of tenement house living, with its crowded quarters, low-lit spaces, and outdoor plumbing. Dolkart's explanations of sanitary conditions, garbage collection, lighting, and population per square mile, as provided by contemporary newspaper accounts and other sources, makes for an enlightening telling of the tenement house experience.

In the last chapter the author addresses the making of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, as it is now known. In a brief discussion, the book looks at the process followed to research the structure and those for whom it served as home.

This book is a must read for anyone interested in the history of vernacular domestic architecture in the United States. The content would be useful as well for those in the museum and cultural history professions. Quoting Ruth Abram, Dolkart writes, "most Americans have their roots in urban America and the tenement is the quintessential embodiment of this experience." His book provides a fascinating case study and analysis of how one group of people experienced that time and place.