Second Avenue (Manhattan)

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Second Avenue is an avenue on the East Side of Manhattan in New York City that extends from Houston Street to the Harlem River Drive. Vehicular traffic runs downtown. Second Avenue passes through a number of Manhattan neighborhoods including the Lower East Side/East Village, Gramercy, Murray Hill, Yorkville, and Spanish Harlem.

[edit] History

Downtown Second Avenue in the Lower East Side was the home to many Yiddish Theater productions during the early part of the 20th century, and Second Avenue came to be known as 'Yiddish Broadway'. Although the theaters are gone, many traces of Jewish immigrant culture remain, such as kosher delicatessens and bakeries, and until recently, the famous Second Avenue Deli(now closed).

The Second Avenue Elevated ran above Second Avenue from 1880 until 1942. It was torn down to increase automobile traffic flow and because it was considered by many to be a blight. The Elevated trains were noisy and often dirty (in the 19th Century they were pulled by soot spewing steam locomotives). This depressed land values along Second Avenue during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Partially because of the presence of the El, most buildings constructed during this era tended to be working class tenements. Second Avenue maintains this modest architectural character today, despite running through a number of high income areas.

The controversial Second Avenue Subway has been planned by the New York MTA since 1919. A subway line under Second Avenue would relieve congestion on the Lexington Avenue line (4,5,6), currently the only line running up the East Side of Manhattan. A few sections of the line have been completed over the years, with some serving other subway lines (the Grand Street Station is one example), and others simply sitting vacant underground.

edit Major Avenues of Manhattan
To the west (varies by location) Third Avenue Midtown Tunnel exit	Second Avenue	To the east First Avenue
WSH (12) | Riverside | 11 (West End) | 10 (Amsterdam) | Dyer | 9 | 8 or CPW | 7 | 6 or Lenox | 5 | Madison | Park (4) | Lexington | 3 | 2 | 1 | A or York | B or East End | C | D | FDR