...There had been tenant houses before, but they were not

Last updated: 7/30/2022

...There had been tenant houses before, but they were not built for that purpose. Nothing would probably have shocked their original owners more than the idea of their harboring a promiscuous crowd; for they were the decorous homes of the old Knickerbockers, the proud aristocracy of Manhattan in the early days. It was the stir and bustle of trade, together with the tremendous immigration that followed upon the war of 1812 that dislodged them. In thirty-five years the city of less than a hundred thousand came to harbor half a million souls, for whom houses had to be found....Their comfortable dwellings in the once fashionable streets along the East River fell into the hands of real-estate agents and boarding-house keepers...in it's beginnings, the tenant-house became a real blessing to that class of Industrious poor whose small earnings limited their expenses, and whose employment in workshops, stores, or about the warehouses and thoroughfares, render a near residence of much importance...their large rooms were partitioned into several smaller ones without regard to light or ventilation, the rate of rent being lower in proportion to space or height from the street... Neatness, order, cleanliness, were never dreamed of in connection with the tenant-house system... Chapter 1- Analysis Questions 1) Close Reading: What happened to the population of New York City in the thirty five years following the War of 1812 which resulted in the need for more housing? 2) Analysis: Was a lot of thought given to how the formerly large rooms were divided?