Little Italy, Manhattan

From Mulberry Bend's foul core to a five-block tourist veneer.

Little Italy is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City, once defined by its Italian American population. The Italian-born population peaked around 1890 with nearly 10,000 residents, and the total Italian-American population peaked later, before residents began moving out to more spacious digs in Brooklyn and Queens. While East Harlem boasted a larger Italian population, Little Italy was described as perhaps the city's poorest Italian neighborhood.

Today, the area is reduced to five blocks on Mulberry Street north of Canal St., functioning largely as a veneer of restaurants catering to tourists over a dense neighborhood shared by recent Chinese immigrants and young Americans. The history of this shrinking enclave is marked by the mass immigration from Italy during the 1880s, which created an influx of Italian immigrants leading to a commercial gathering of their dwelling and business.

Quick Facts

Historical era: Late 20th Century

Lore & Background

The neighborhood originated at Mulberry Bend south of Canal, formerly part of the Five Points area described by Jacob Riis as "the foul core of New York's slums." By 1896, The New York Times characterized the residents not just as laborers and junkmen, but as a commercial colony including bankers, lawyers, and merchants. Ignazio "The Wolf" Lupo operated from late 1890s to the 1920s, followed by Paolo Antonio "Paul Kelly" Vaccarelli of the Five Points Gang in the early twentieth century.

The Genovese crime family maintained a presence through figures like Michele "Big Mike" Miranda (1950s–1970s), Peter DeFeo (illegal lottery, 1960s–1970s), and Matthew "Matty the Horse" Ianniello at Umberto's Clam House in the 1970s. John Gotti operated from the Ravenite Social Club in the mid-to-late 1980s. Bill Tonelli noted that while it was an insular Neapolitan village with its own language and customs, real-estate prices zoomed before 2004, making it tough for old-timers to hang on.

Reader's Guide

Visitors today find Little Italy bounded by Tribeca and Soho to the west, Chinatown to the south, the Bowery and Lower East Side to the east, and Nolita to the north. Historically, it stretched from Lafayette Street to the Bowery, Kenmare Street to the north, and Worth Street to the south. The Feast of San Gennaro began in 1926 as a one-day religious commemoration by immigrants from Naples; today it is an 11-day street fair along Mulberry Street.

The Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Italian-American Christmas Eve tradition, is thought to have originated here in the late 1800s. E. Rossi & Company remains the historic neighborhood's oldest gift shop since 1910. Demographically, the 2000 census recorded 1,211 residents claiming Italian ancestry (8.25% of the area), while the 2010 U.S. Community Survey found none of the people living there were born in Italy and only 5% identified as Italian American.

In 2010, Little Italy and Chinatown were listed together in a single historic district on the National Register of Historic Places.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Little Italy, Manhattan?

It is a historic neighborhood in Lower Manhattan that serves as a recurring setting for Martin Scorsese's exploration of Italian-American identity. Originally defined by its immigrant population, it now exists largely as a tourist destination on Mulberry Street.

How did the population change historically?

At its peak in 1910, the district held almost 10,000 Italians before residents moved to more spacious areas like Brooklyn and Queens. This demographic shift is reflected in the nostalgic tone of films depicting the community's decline.