These two documentary photographs by an unknown photographer show the hustle & bustle of the lively open-air pushcart marketplace conducted along Hester St. on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, ca. 1890. A sign advertising for Burger & Bower Lager Beer can be seen above the awning for the building shown in top photograph.  Records show this Brooklyn based brewery opened in 1887 and closed in 1892.

“Don’t let its relatively small size fool you, its cultural immigrant history extends far and wide, as more than two million Jews from Russia, Poland, Austria-Hungary and the Balkans who after arriving in the United States settled on the Lower East Side, specifically on Hester street. These immigrants lived in tenements that were produced quickly and at low costs, often noted for their living conditions including minimal pulling and inadequate sanitation. Hester Street became the one of many streets in the Lower East Side in which Jewish culture and religion thrived. This included the establishments of many synagogues, Yiddish theater companies,Yiddish newspapers, and Yiddish and Hebrew publishers. Many of these immigrants earned money by selling goods including fruit, fish, meat, shoes, and clothing from pushcarts that filled the street market to make for a real traffic jam.”—Hester Street: Take 1, Hester Street | mediahistoryny (WordPress Blog)