The History of Chinatown

One of the highlights of this course for me was our walking tour in Chinatown and learning about the history of Chinatown. We learned that not only are there many Chinese people who live in Chinatown but there also used to be many Jews and Europeans. When walking around Chinatown the impact that Jews had on that area was evident since there were several temples and Jewish stars on buildings. When Europeans came to America they oftentimes found themselves living in Chinatown and as a result, there was a strong sense of community. Many of which lived in tenements that we saw on our tour. I am able to relate to this because my great-grandparents were both Jewish Europeans who lived in tenements on the Lower East Side. It was amazing to see the exact area where my relatives were living and learn about their history firsthand.