The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Our second in a series of podcasts about New York City and American immigration history. 

Between the late 1890s and early 1920s, over 2 million Jews from Eastern Europe fled their homes and made the long journey to America, escaping persecution and violence in their native countries. Many were fleeing state-sanctioned antisemitism in Russia.

This mass immigration effort was, in large part, brought about by three entrepreneurial men:...

Ellis Island is one of America’s great landmarks, a place in New York Harbor that represents the millions of people who arrived in this country during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The north side of Ellis Island, now operated by the National Park Service as the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration (part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument), saw nearly 12 million immigrants processed between 1892 and 1954. Pa...

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree has brought joy and sparkle to Midtown Manhattan since the early 1930s. The annual festivities may seem steady and timeless but this holiday icon actually has a surprisingly dramatic history.

Millions tune in each year to watch the tree lighting in a music-filled ceremony on NBC, and tens of thousands more will crowd around the tree’s massive branches during the holiday season, adjusting their p...

The aviation hero Amelia Earhart, who became one of the world's most famous women during the Great Depression, is one of those historic figures that people think they know quite well.

But during her lifetime, much of her public image was the product of a New York book publisher. And even today, Earhart's legacy is reduced down to seemingly strange disappearance over the Pacific Ocean in 1937.

Laurie Gwen Shapiro, author of The Aviato...

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II are two of the greatest entertainers in New York City history. They have delighted millions of people with their unique and influential take on the Broadway musical — serious, sincere, graceful and poignant. In the process they have helped in elevating New York’s Theater District into a critical destination for American culture.

In this episode, we tell the story of this remarkable duo — from...

For this year's annual Bowery Boys Ghost Stories podcast, Greg and Tom take a road trip to Long Island to explore the region's most famous haunted tales from legend and folklore, 'real' reported stories of otherworldly encounters that have shaped this historic area of New York state.

When you think of Long Island and scary stories, your mind might immediately go to the Amityville Horror houseor perhaps even the Montauk Monster. But ...

On October 26, 1825, the fate of New York City – and the entire United States – changed with the opening of the Erie Canal, a manmade waterway that connected the Hudson River to Lake Erie.

It was the most significant engineering project of its time, linking the ocean to the nation’s interior -- a 363-mile route from Albany to Lake Erie. Without even knowing where the Erie Canal is on a map of New York state, you could probably guess...

Dominicans comprise the largest immigration group in modern New York City, and Dominican culture has become embedded in the city's rich fabric of immigrant history. And in one place in particular -- Washington Heights.

This historic neighborhood of Upper Manhattan is named for George Washington, who led the Continental Army in an early, pivotal battle here during the Revolutionary War. Today, it's also known to some as Little Domini...

Today's New York neighborhood called NoHo, wedged between Greenwich Village and the East Village, holds the stories of many people and places that then went on to become deeply associated with the great Gilded Age.

The Astor family began their dynasty here in both investment and real estate as did the well-known Dutch-American merchant family the Schermerhorns.

Caroline Schermerhorn, who became the famed Mrs. Astor, grew up right her...

As New York City enters the final stages of a rather strange mayoral election in 2025, let’s look back on a decidedly more unusual contest over 110 years ago, pitting Tammany Hall and their estranged ally (Mayor William Jay Gaynor) up against a baby-faced newcomer, the (second) youngest man ever to become the mayor of New York City.

John Purroy Mitchel, the Bronx-born grandson of an Irish revolutionary, was a rising star in New York...

On January 3, 1924, 25-year-old George Gershwin was shooting pool in a Manhattan billiard hall when his brother Ira Gershwin read aloud a shocking newspaper article: "George Gershwin is at work on a jazz concerto." There was just one problem—George had never agreed to write any such piece.

What happened next would change American music forever. In just five weeks, the son of Russian-Jewish immigrants raced to compose what would beco...

We love the podcast History Daily, a co-production from award winning podcasters Airship and Noiser, so we're presenting two episodes with a very similar theme -- pirates!

-- July 6, 1699. The arrest of Captain William Kidd ends the reign of plunder of one of history's most infamous pirates and sparks rumors of buried treasure

-- November 16th, 1720.  The trials of notorious pirates Anne Bonny, Mary Read, and John Rackham began in Sp...

On the evening of December 5, 1876, the glorious Brooklyn Theatre caught fire, trapping its audience in a nightmare of flame and smoke. The theater sat near Brooklyn City Hall (today's Brooklyn Borough Hall), and the blaze which destroyed it could be seen as far away as Prospect Park.

The terrible truth emerged by the morning -- almost 300 people died in this disaster. To this day, it remains the worst disaster in Brooklyn's history...

The ultimate bar crawl of Old New York continues through a survey of classic bars and taverns that trace their origins from the 1850s through the 1880s.

And this time we're recording within two of America's most famous establishments, joined by the people who know that history the best.

In Part One, we introduced you to the origin story of New York City tavern life in the Dutch and colonial periods, and we ventured into Fraunces Tave...

We’ve put together the ultimate New York City historic bar crawl, a celebration of the city’s old taverns, pubs, and ale houses with 18th- and 19th-century connections. And along the way, you’ll learn so much about the city’s overall history — from its changing shoreline to the everyday lives of its working-class immigrant populations.

Being an old historic bar isn’t just a novel curiosity for history lovers. It can be good for busi...

Once upon a time New York City oysters were not only plentiful and healthy in the harbor, they were an everyday, common food source. The original fast food!

For that reason, the oyster could be an official New York City mascot. Oyster farming was a major occupation. Oyster houses were an incredibly common place for people to eat. The greatest restaurants in the city served oysters, as did the small basement dives.

In many ways, they ...

A special presentation of our live show Bowery Boys History Live, recorded at City Winery, July 2, 2025

Bowery Boys History Live is a storytelling cabaret of all-true tales and spellbinding secrets from the past, hosted by Greg Young of the Bowery Boys Podcast and brought to you by a rotating roster of the city’s greatest historians.

And for this show, Greg’s has invited a premier lineup of special guests, including author Elizabeth ...

Ready for a little summertime spookfest? This week we're thrilled to present to you a podcast appearance Greg made back in April on the Spirits Podcast. Hosted by Amanda McLoughlin and Julia Schifini, the Spirits Podcast is a weekly conversational show about all things ghosts, mythology, folklore and urban legends. If you like fun spooky things, add the podcast to your regular rotation! 

And as a sample, here is Greg's appearance on...

TERROR ON THE BEACH! Seaside resorts from Cape May, New Jersey, to Montauk, Long Island, were paralyzed in fear during the summer of 1916.

Not because of the threat of lurking German U-boats and saboteurs. But because of sharks.On July 1, 1916, Charles Epting Vansant was killed by a shark while swimming at a resort in Beach Haven, a popular destination on the Jersey Shore.

At first, this terrible tragedy received only limited attenti...