YU's Mendel Gottesman Library celebrates a new book uncovering a forgotten chapter of New York's Jewish history.
There was history, intrigue, a vanished New York City judge鈥攁nd, fittingly, knishes.
On October 15, more than 50 guests gathered at 麻豆区's Mendel Gottesman Library for a lively discussion of The Ritz with a Shvitz: The Rise and Fall of the Lower East Side's Libby's Hotel in Tammany Era New York, the newly published book by Shulamith (Shuli) Berger, curator of the library's Special Collections, and Jai Zion, artist and historian.
The evening marked the library's first in-person book talk in several years, a welcome return after a long stretch of virtual programming. The event was organized by Shulamis Hes, E-Collections & Reference Librarian and coordinator of the YU Libraries Present series.
Up for discussion was a remarkable鈥攁nd largely forgotten鈥攃hapter of New York Jewish history. In 1926, immigrant entrepreneur Max Bernstein opened Libby's Hotel and Baths, a magnificent 12-story, $3 million establishment that towered over the tenements of the Lower East Side. Conceived as a haven for Jewish New Yorkers and a response to antisemitism, the hotel was Bernstein's extraordinary vision for his community made real.
Located at the corner of Chrystie and Delancey streets, Libby's featured a gym, swimming pool, lounges, a library and lavish Russian and Turkish baths, with amenities available to the wider community. It also hosted Yiddish-language concerts, including performances by Joseph Cherniavsky's Yiddish American Jazz Band, and the nation's first regularly scheduled Yiddish-language radio program.
But the dream was short-lived. By 1930, just four years after its celebrated opening, Libby's was demolished, brought down by predatory lending and corrupt Tammany Hall politicians. Among the figures connected to the scandal was Judge Joseph Force Crater, whose mysterious disappearance remains one of New York City's most enduring unsolved mysteries.
For authors Berger and Zion, uncovering the hotel's history became a decades-long labor of love, taking them through archives ranging from the Library of Congress and the American Jewish Historical Society to the New York City Department of Records and Information Services. Berger emphasized how essential these institutions鈥攁nd the historical documents they preserve and make accessible鈥攚ere to piecing together Libby's remarkable story.
鈥淲e felt like we had stumbled on a mystery and we were the detectives,鈥 Berger recalled. 鈥淭he more we found out, the more interesting it became.鈥
As the two followed the trail, they uncovered a story of ambition, greed and betrayal, reform and political corruption. In short, a microcosm of New York City in the Roaring Twenties. At its core was Max Bernstein's vision and the powerful political and financial interests that brought his dream to an end.
The audience had plenty of questions. Who stayed at Libby's? Was the hotel profitable? And why did the politicians who seized control of the property demolish such an extraordinary building rather than put it to another use?
To help guests visualize the hotel's grandeur, library staff member J.B. Holderness created a detailed model of the building using the library's 3D printer. The evening ended with a taste of the old Lower East Side: deli fare, knishes and soft pretzels.
For the authors, the turnout was a gratifying surprise, drawing YU faculty, members of the university community and visitors from beyond campus.
For everyone who attended, the evening offered something more than a book talk: a chance to rediscover a forgotten piece of Jewish New York and celebrate the painstaking research that brought it back to life.
Authors Berger and Zion will continue their discussion of The Ritz with a Shvitz at the New York Jewish Book Festival on November 15 at the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
