Customer Reviews

Frankfurt on the Hudson: The German Jewish Community of Washington Heights, 1933-82, Its Structure and Culture

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This book will most likely appeal to NYC history buffs, more specifically, to those who are interested or who grew up in( myself ) Manhattan's northernmost neighborhood. Frankfurt on the Hudson aka The Fourth Reich was at one time the epicenter of German/Jewish community. It never garnered the recognition of Yorkville, which was more a GERMAN and not JEWISH nabe, but without question Washington Heights is where German Jews moved before and during WW2. Author Lowenstein grew up in this area during it's German/Jewish time. Today, as with most NYC neighborhoods, German Jews are not the majority, that distinction would go to Dominicans. since the early 80's The Heights has been "Quisqueya on the Hudson" rather thatn Frankfurt. Being 28 i can remember back to the time when it was still predominantly German/Jewish...so the book is a trip down memeory lane for myself. the book is a very well researched book and it deserves to be back in print. i was lucky enough to come across the LAST COPY last year on amazon, but I notice it is sometimes unavailable, and sometimes goes for upwards of $30. So if the oppurtunity arises, get this! Many NYC nabes are famous for their ethnic foundings such as the Eastern Europeans of the Lower East Side or Puerto Ricans in Spanish Harlem. Not much is known about pre-dominican Washington Heights. Today Broadway above 155th St is almost entirely hispanic, so it is fascinating to think of the area in the 30's and 40's as an entirely Jewish area. White flight and crime relocated most of the then elderly Jews up towards the "nicer" Hudson Heights, the highest natural point on the Island, which retains still to this day an old world German/Jewish flavor. most of the German?Jews are either dead or elderly, but their prigeny still holds down it's part in this beautiful neighborhood, which i proudly call my home. My grandfather came from Austria during WW2 and put down roots here. The ethnicity may have changed, sheesh where has it NOT changed in NYC...but the neighborhood known as Hudson Heights has a rich and underlooked history which is why i love this book so much. The only time tourists really venture this far uptown is to visit the Cloisters or Ft Tryon Park. In recent years, skyrocketing rents have moved quite a few people up here. it's a shame if people move here and not realize the history associated with the area. Great book about a great neighborhood and a practically extinct group of people.

If you'r curious about or grew up in Washington Heights NYC from the 1920's 1970's You'll really like the book. Great historical info. A Must for your book shelf.