The Bowery Boys: New York City History

On August 6, 1930, Supreme Court Justice Joseph Force Crater stepped into a taxi on West 45th Street and vanished without a trace.For 27 days, nobody reported him missing—not his wife waiting in Maine, not his Tammany Hall cronies, not the courts. When the story finally broke, it became the most famous missing persons case in New York history.Judge Crater was a rising star in the city’s legal world—a Tammany Hall insider who’d just landed a prestigious judgeship paying $23,000 a year (about $450,000 today). But he was also tangled up in corruption, office-buying schemes, and shady real estate deals. He had a taste for Broadway chorus girls, speakeasies run by gangsters, and envelopes stuffed with cash.His disappearance rocked the city and captivated the nation for decades. The phrase “to pull a Crater” entered the popular lexicon. Psychics came forward with tips. Grand juries investigated. Deathbed confessions emerged decades later.This week, Tom takes you through one of the city’s greatest unsolved mysteries—a story of Tammany corruption, Broadway nightlife, and Depression-era New York. What happened on that hot August night? Was it murder? Blackmail? A carefully planned escape?96 years later, the mystery endures.This episode was produced and edited by Kieran Gannon. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Explore the fascinating history of Brooklyn Heights, from its early Dutch settlements and Revolutionary War legends to the rise of stunning 19th-century architecture. Discover how Fulton's steam ferry transformed commuting, and how influential figures like Henry Ward Beecher helped put Brooklyn Heights on the map. Delve into the controversial planning of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway and its ultimate transformation into the cherished Promenade. Today, ongoing debates about the BQE's future reveal the clash between progress and preservation.

Discover the fascinating life of Chester A. Arthur, the 21st President, who rose from a New York political landscape dominated by Tammany Hall. Uncover his transformation from a street-smart operator to a surprising advocate for civil service reform. Delve into his partnership with Roscoe Conkling and how a series of events catapulted him to the presidency unexpectedly. Explore his legacy, including the impact of his final days and the influence of Julia Sand in guiding his presidency amidst political chaos.

Bowery Boys History Live is a live-show series at City Winery hosted by Greg Young featuring a variety of historians and tour guides. The last installment this summer featured author Liz Block and tour guide Keith Taillon. As live performances, they're a bit more loose and irreverent than the regular podcast and sometimes feature references to images being projected on stage.As a special holiday bonus, step into the season with this festive dose of “Hot Victorian” history, naughty-list edition.Join Greg Young of the Bowery Boys Podcast as he hosts this special holiday edition of Bowery Boys History Live!, recorded before a live audience at New York’s City Winery on Dec 12, 2025.Featuring an all-star lineup: Carl Raymond of The Gilded Gentleman Podcast, Aaron Radford-Wattley—creator and author of Hot Victorians: Meet Your Dream Man from the Past—and historian and tour guide Kyle Supley — aka the clock whisperer.So pour yourself some eggnog, cozy up by the fire, and enjoy live shenanigans full of holiday history and vintage comedy. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

New Yorkers have gotten around their cities by subways, buses, elevated trains, streetcars and ferries. And the ways in which they have paid for them have changed as well. And keeps changing!This month, the city is saying farewell to the MetroCard, the magnetic-stripe card that has gotten the town moving since the early 1990s. When the orange cards debuted, they replaced the strange physical tokens commuters had been using since 1953.Mass transit fares were also a key issue in the past New York mayoral race — and they’ve always been a key issue for voters since the late 19th century. That’s part of the reason that fares famously remained five cents for decades. But as the subway system expanded, stretching through Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx, it soon became evident that it was becoming too expensive to operate.But changing the price is one thing; going from currency to token to MetroCard to OMNI (our latest method) requires technical modifications of every station in the system. In 1953, that entire system changed — literally overnight — to accommodate the first tokens.Jodi Shapiro of the New York Transit Museum joins the podcast to discuss the museum’s latest exhibition, FAREwell MetroCard, which celebrates the newly retired fare system.This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In December 1835, a catastrophic fire swept through New York City, dramatically reshaping its landscape. The hosts explore the city's flammable wooden structures and the inadequacies of early firefighting efforts. Amid frozen conditions, chaos erupted, with crowds looting and drinking champagne as the disaster unfolded. Remarkably, the son of Alexander Hamilton played a crucial role in using explosives to halt the blaze. The aftermath prompted major changes in urban infrastructure, leading to the construction of a better water system and a reimagined financial district.

She stands in New York Harbor as America’s most recognizable symbol—but the story of the Statue of Liberty begins thousands of miles away, in the charming Alsatian city of Colmar, France.In this special on-location episode, Tom ventures to the picturesque town where sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was born in 1834. Walking through Colmar’s cobblestone streets and half-timbered facades, Tom sits down with Juliette Chevée, curator of the Musée Bartholdi, to uncover the French side of this iconic American monument.Who was Bartholdi? What did the statue originally mean to the French republicans who conceived it at an 1865 dinner party? How did a rejected Egyptian lighthouse design become the template for Liberty’s form?And how did two Frenchmen—Bartholdi and the historian Édouard de Laboulaye—manage to convince a foreign country to accept a colossal structure without any government assistance from either France or the United States?This episode was produced and edited by Kieran Gannon Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Stephen Ujifusa, an expert in maritime and immigration history, unveils the compelling story of over 2 million Jews fleeing Eastern Europe between the late 1890s and early 1920s. He reveals how three influential figures shaped this migration: Albert Ballin, Jacob Schiff, and J.P. Morgan. Ujifusa explores the emotional journey of these immigrants, the innovations in ship travel, and the challenges faced upon arrival in America. He also reflects on his personal connection to the story and draws parallels to current immigration debates.

Ellis Island is one of America’s great landmarks, a place in New York Harbor that represents the millions of people who arrived in this country during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The north side of Ellis Island, now operated by the National Park Service as the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration (part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument), saw nearly 12 million immigrants processed between 1892 and 1954. Part of the "processing" involved medical and mental health tests. Most people passed successfully, then boarded a ferry to the mainland — and a new life.But some were kept behind, those who did not pass those tests. They were then sent to the other side of Ellis Island.In this special episode, sponsored by Founded By NYC, Greg and Tom recount the history of immigration into New York during the 19th century and the founding of Ellis Island in the 1890s. Then they pay a visit to ‘the other side’ — the Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital — with Justin Southern and Jim Dessicino of Save Ellis Island.This non-profit leads hard-hat tours through these spectacular and unique ruins.Visit the website to see more images from today's show. This episode was edited and produced by Kieran Gannon.Read all about New York City during the holiday season and all the other exciting events and world-class institutions commemorating the five boroughs’ legacy of groundbreaking achievements, and find ways to celebrate the city that’s always making history at Founded By NYC. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree has brought joy and sparkle to Midtown Manhattan since the early 1930s. The annual festivities may seem steady and timeless but this holiday icon actually has a surprisingly dramatic history.Millions tune in each year to watch the tree lighting in a music-filled ceremony on NBC, and tens of thousands more will crowd around the tree’s massive branches during the holiday season, adjusting their phones for that perfect holiday selfie.But the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is more than just decor. The tree has reflected the mood of the United States itself — through good times and bad.The first tree at this site in 1931 became a symbol of hope during the Great Depression. With the dedication of the first official Christmas tree two years later, the lighting ceremony was considered a stroke of marketing genius for the grand new “city within a city” funded by JD Rockefeller Jr.The tree has also been an enduring television star — from the early years in the 1950s with Howdy Doody to its upgrade to prime time in the 1990s.Join Greg for this festive holiday history featuring kaleidoscopic lighting displays, painted branches, whirling snowflakes, reindeer and a very tiny owl.Please enjoy this newly edited and remastered version of our 2021 show on New York City's most famous Christmas tree and the surprisingly fascinating story of how its annual lighting became a national event.And check out this list of New York City holiday activities, provided by Founded by NYC Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.