Heading west brings us into the hood known as Little Italy. It goes from Canal to Houston Sts between Lafayette St and Bowery. This hood is mostly residential. Originally, this was part of the area known as Five Points, which was seen as a slum for much of the time. In the 1850's, immigrants from southern Italy came to live here to find a new life, and reached the area itself in the 1880's. In the 1860's, the 2nd and 3rd Ave Els gave a massive push in the population, which lead to construction of housing for the new residents. By the start of the 1900's, the area had several cultures from southern Italy. In 1905, Gennaro Lombardi's opened as what is believed to be the first pizzeria in NYC. In 1926, the Feast of San Gennaro was celebrated for the first time in NYC. Unfortunately, some of the Italian immigrants kept their mafia backgrounds as they brough them over here. In the 1950's, the els came to down for being obsolete to the subways. Around this time Robert Moses did plan to have the LOMEX go through here but failed. As time went by, Little Italy lost some parts to Chinatown, though they are still claimed to be part of it. In the 1990's, the northern part became known as NoLita since it had a lot of new construction going on. It has lost some of its influence to Belmont over in The Bronx when rents were too high in Little Italy. Nevertheless, the Feast of San Gennaro is still a popular event with its games and fodd as people walk along Mulberry St between Canal and Houston Sts durring the second or third week of September. Another major site is the original St Patrick's Cathedral that was deemed obsolete when the parish decided to relocate uptown for a bigger church. You can get here by taking the subway to Canal St-Broadway (J, M, N, Q, R, W, Z, 6), Spring St-Lafayette St (6), Broadway-Lafayette St (B, D, F, V), and Bowery (J, M, Z). Here is what you will find in Little Italy.
26th June 2008, 01:50
NYC:Manhattan hoods-Little Italy 
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