Mulberry Street (Manhattan)

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Mulberry Street c. 1900
Mulberry Street c. 1900

In Manhattan, Mulberry Street, between Baxter and Mott Streets, is the north/south street along which Little Italy is centered, and where it meets Chinatown. During the Feast of San Gennaro each September, the entire street is blocked off to vehicular traffic to make way for the street fair.

The Puck Building stands at the southwest corner of Houston Street; this corner was the building's original entrance. Further south is Saint Patrick's Old Cathedral, standing in its churchyard. Below Prince Street (no, 247) is the former Ravenite Social Club, where federal wiretaps were made that sent John Gotti to prison.

Canal Street and Mulberry, where Chinatown meets Little Italy
Canal Street and Mulberry, where Chinatown meets Little Italy

Heading south into Chinatown, the street is lined with Chinese green grocers, butcher stores and fish mongers.[1] Further south past Bayard Street, on the west side of the street, lies Columbus Park (created 1897), the only park in New York's Chinatown.[2] This was the center of the infamous Five Points section of NYC. The east side of the street is now lined with Chinatown's funeral homes.

Mulberry Street is named for the mulberry trees that once lined Mulberry Bend.[3]

It was also the subject of Billy Joel's song "Big Man on Mulberry Street". The street is often identified as the setting of Dr. Seuss' story, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, but that distinction belongs to Springfield, Massachusetts, the birthplace of Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss).

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