Like the Lower East Side, which it abuts, the East Village, stretching between Houston and 14th streets and Broadway and Avenue D, was once a refuge of immigrants and solidly working class. It became home to New York's nonconformist intelligentsia in the early part of the twentieth century, and ever since has hosted its share of celebrated artists, politicos and literati.

W.H. Auden lived at 77 St Mark's Place, the neighborhood's main artery. In the 1950s, the East Village was the New York haunt of the Beats - Kerouac, Burroughs, Ginsberg, et al - who would get together at Ginsberg's house on E 7th Street for declamatory poetry readings. Later, Andy Warhol debuted the Velvet Underground at the now-defunct Fillmore East , which played host to just about every band you've ever heard of - and forgotten. Still kicking, however, is the infamous CBGB club on the Bowery , where the likes of the Ramones, Talking Heads, Blondie and Patti Smith made their indelible marks in the Seventies.

During the nineties, escalating rents forced many people out, and the East Village is no longer the hotbed of dissidence and creativity it once was. Nevertheless, the area remains one of downtown Manhattan's most vibrant neighborhoods, with boutiques, thrift stores, record shops, bars and restaurants, populated by a mix of old-world Ukrainians, students, punks, artists and burn-outs feeding continuous energy through the streets 24 hours a day. Despite the vaudevillian circus of St Mark's Place and corporate attempts to turn the whole neighborhood into a Starbucks , principled resistance to the status quo can still be found.

To reach the East Village, take the #6 train to Astor Place, or the #N or the #R to 8th Street and Broadway

Community Gardens
Over the past three decades, East Village residents have begun reclaiming neglected and empty lots of land, turning burnt out rubble into some of the prettiest and most verdant spaces in lower Manhattan and providing a focus for residents in what was traditionally a down-at-heel part of Manhattan. Though the city decreed that these spaces should be used for real estate, several have survived. In summer, there is no nicer way to while away an evening than to relax, eat a sandwich or read a book surrounded by lush trees and carefully planted foliage.

New York City
Highlights
When to go
Arrival
Transportation
Walking
Eating and drinking
Kids New York
Kids activities
Kids toys, clothing
Kids cultural activities
The Giuliani years
September 11, 2001
World Trade Center
Best of New York
Gays and Lesbian
G & L accommodation
G & L bars
G & L Clubs
Media
N Y tours: bus/copter
N Y tours: water/walking
Free museums hours
Staten Island ferry
Parades and Festivals
Shops and markets
Clothes, fashion
Diamond District
Food and drink
Liquor stores
Music
Music-special interest
Art galleries

Google maps

Exploring New York
v 42nd Street and around
v Central Park
v Chelsea
v Chinatown
v City Hall and TriBeCa
v East Village
v Fifth Avenue & around
v Financial District
v Garment District
v Harlem and N Manhattan
v Little Italy and NoLita
v Lower East Side
v Metropolitan Museum of Art
v Midtown East
v Park Avenue (Midtown)
v United Nations
v Midtown West
v Murray Hill
v Outer boroughs
v Bronx
v Brooklyn Heights
v Queens
v SoHo
v Statue of Liberty & Ellis Is
v Union Sq & Gramercy Park
v Upper E side
v Upper W side
v Walking Tours
vWest Village