The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Tom Meyers, Greg Young

The tides of American history flow through the streets of New York City — from the huddled masses on Ellis Island to the sleazy theaters of 1970s Times Square. Greg and Tom explore more than 400 years of action-packed stories, featuring both classic and forgotten figures who have shaped the world.

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563 episodes
Updated Friday

Episodes563

Newest first

May 12, 2023 · 1 hr 3 min
Rewind: The Birth of the Broadway Musical
The Broadway Musical is one of New York City's greatest inventions, over 160 years in the making! But why Broadway, exactly? And how did our fair city go from simple vaudeville and minstrel shows to Shuffle Along, Irene and Show Boat, surely the most influential musical of the Jazz Age?
Apr 28, 2023 · 1 hr 11 min
#409 The Great New York City Pizza Tour
Pizza lovers of all kinds will find much to enjoy in this show, tracing the early origins of American pizza and specifically how New York City-style pizza was born. (What even is New York style pizza? Even that answer is trickier than you think.)
Apr 14, 2023 · 1 hr 2 min
#408 The Titanic and the Fate of Pier 54
On the rainy evening of April 18, 1912, survivors from the Titanic disaster were brought to the berth of the Cunard liner Carpathia at Pier 54 at the Chelsea Piers in Manhattan. On that very spot today, a fanciful waterfront development juts out into the Hudson River called Little Island.
Mar 31, 2023 · 58 min
#407 New York by Gaslight: Illuminating the 19th Century
Enter the magical world of New York by gaslight, the city illuminated by the soft, revolutionary glow of lamps powered by gas, an innovative utility which transformed urban life in the 19th century.
Mar 17, 2023 · 54 min
Rewind: When The Irish Came To New York
One of the great narratives of American history — immigration — through the experiences of the Irish.
Mar 3, 2023 · 57 min
#406 How Wall Street Got Its Name
The story of how Wall Street, that short little street in Lower Manhattan, became synonymous with the American financial system and how it got that most interesting name.
Feb 17, 2023 · 59 min
#405 Mona Lisa at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci's stoic portrait and one of the most valuable paintings on earth, came to America during the winter of 1963 and was received as though she were a rock star. At the Met, thousands lined up outside in the freezing cold to catch a glimpse of the painting.
Feb 10, 2023 · 29 min
The First Woman Ever Photographed
Dorothy Catherine Draper was the first woman to ever sit for a photograph — a daguerrotype, in the year 1840, upon the rooftop of the school which would become New York University. What was her story?
Feb 3, 2023 · 1 hr 11 min
#404 Nighthawks and Automats: Edward Hopper's New York
In this art-filled episode of the Bowery Boys, Tom and Greg look at Edward Hopper's life, influence and specific fascination with painting New York City (albeit in his own unusual way).
Jan 20, 2023 · 1 hr 4 min
#403 The Fulton Fish Market: History at the Seaport
The Fulton Fish Market in downtown Manhattan was once to seafood what the Chicago stock yards were to the meat industry, the primary place where Americans got fish for their dinner tables. Today its former home is known by more familiar name -- the South Street Seaport. But you can still find ghosts of the market along these historic stone streets.
Jan 13, 2023 · 1 hr 3 min
Rewind: A Bar Named Julius', New York's Newest Landmark
New York City has a new landmark, a little bar in the West Village named Julius', where one moment of protest (the Sip-In of 1966) set the stage for a political revolution, “a signature event in the battle for LGBTQ+ people to gather, socialize, and celebrate openly in bars, restaurants, and other public places.”
Jan 6, 2023 · 1 hr 5 min
#402 Treasures from the World's Fair
There is much nostalgia today for the 1939-1940 World's Fair and its stranger, more visually chaotic 1964-65 World's Fair. And that nostalgia has fueled a thriving market for collectables from these fairs -- the souvenirs and other common household items branded with the two fairs' striking visual symbols.
Dec 30, 2022 · 42 min
Side Streets: Good Diners, Great Pizza and Mars 2112
Reflecting upon New York City restaurants from the 1990s (Mars 2112, anyone?), praising the strange wonders of Chez Josephine and Congee Village and revealing some great places for pizza in New York City.
Dec 21, 2022 · 59 min
#401 The World Before Wordle: Talking Puzzles With AJ Jacobs
A.J. Jacobs, author of "The Puzzler: One Man’s Quest to Solve the Most Baffling Puzzles Ever, from Crosswords to Jigsaws to the Meaning of Life," leads Greg and Tom down a maze of fascinating origins for the world's most popular puzzles.
Dec 16, 2022 · 52 min
The Mysteries of Absinthe: Dancing With The Green Fairy
Absinthe was one of the most popular and most mysterious drinks of the Belle Epoque and late Victorian and Edwardian worlds. Myths sprang up that the elixir created dramatic hallucinations and even provoked ghastly crimes.
Dec 9, 2022 · 1 hr 20 min
#400 Jacob Riis: 'The Other Half' of the Gilded Age
In 1890 Jacob Riis turned his eye-opening reporting about New York's tenement districts into a ground-breaking book called How The Other Half Lives, a book which awoke Americans to the plight of the poor and laid the groundwork for the Progressive Era.
Nov 24, 2022 · 1 hr 23 min
#399 The Changing Lower East Side: A View From Seward Park
In this special episode, we look at the history of New York City as seen through one corner of the Lower East Side, best known for its landmark Seward Park. Created by the intersections of several streets, it's a place that has gone by many names -- in the past and even today.
Nov 11, 2022 · 1 hr 19 min
#398 Marilyn Monroe in New York
In late December 1954 Marilyn Monroe came to New York City wearing a disguise. By then she was the biggest movie star in the world and she had come to the city to reinvent herself and her career. 1955 would be a year of discovery for Marilyn -- exploring the city, working on her craft and generally being the toast of the town.
Oct 28, 2022 · 55 min
Rewind: Birth of the Five Boroughs
The story of how two very big cities (New York and Brooklyn) and a whole bunch of small towns and villages — completely different in nature, from farmland to skyscraper — became the second largest city in the world on January 1, 1898.
Oct 14, 2022 · 1 hr 14 min
#397 Ghost Stories of the Hudson River
Tales of mystery and the supernatural have possessed the villages and towns of the Hudson River Valley since ancient times. In this episode, Greg and Tom explore several of the region's spookiest legends.

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Rewind: The Birth of the Broadway Musical

#409 The Great New York City Pizza Tour

#408 The Titanic and the Fate of Pier 54

#407 New York by Gaslight: Illuminating the 19th Century

Rewind: When The Irish Came To New York

#406 How Wall Street Got Its Name

#405 Mona Lisa at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

The First Woman Ever Photographed

#404 Nighthawks and Automats: Edward Hopper's New York

#403 The Fulton Fish Market: History at the Seaport

Rewind: A Bar Named Julius', New York's Newest Landmark

#402 Treasures from the World's Fair

Side Streets: Good Diners, Great Pizza and Mars 2112

#401 The World Before Wordle: Talking Puzzles With AJ Jacobs

The Mysteries of Absinthe: Dancing With The Green Fairy

#400 Jacob Riis: 'The Other Half' of the Gilded Age

#399 The Changing Lower East Side: A View From Seward Park

#398 Marilyn Monroe in New York

Rewind: Birth of the Five Boroughs

#397 Ghost Stories of the Hudson River