Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460461462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534535536537538539540541542543544545546547548549550551552553554555556557558559560561562563564565566567568569570571572573574575576577578579580581582583584585586587588589590591592593594595596597598599600601602603604605606607608609610611612613614615616617618619620621622623624625626627628629630631632633634635636637638639640641642643644645646647648649650651652653654 of 654

activities developed and flowed.

Apparently the Rookery was originally a great big building that had been a tenement house. Then another tenement house had been built backing up onto it and connected with bridges, extensions and so on. There must have been at least three houses there originally, but they had all kind of grown together. You entered into a kind of little inner court. It was mostly frame. There may have been some brick in it, but it was really a terrible thing. Greenwich House had been very active in getting it condemned by the city and torn down as a menace to life and health and safety.

When I first went to Greenwich House with Mrs. Simkhovitch about 1908 or 1909 that was one of the first things that she had shown me in walking me around the Village to show me the landmarks of her area. She also showed me at the same time the Minettas as they were then called - Minetta Lane, Minetta Place, Minetta Street. They still exist, but in a form which is changed. It's like the change in St. Luke's Court. It's a change from the terrible tenement to the artistic dwelling quarters with a little garden in the midst. The Minettas were known to the police as being exceptionally dangerous places. There had been a number of actual criminals who had hidden out there and the police had their eye on it all the time. They were very bad, very old, decrepit, dark and