Harry T. Peter’s Collection of Pictorial Newspaper Illustrations, The First of May in New York City – Moving Out. Wood engraving. New-York Historical Society Library
Can you imagine the chaos in New York City if everyone’s leases expired on the same day, forcing everyone into the streets with all their belongings, jostling to find new apartments? Well, it happened, and it sounds like a nightmare. It used to be that on February 1, landlords would notify their tenants of what their new rent would be at the end of the quarter. They had until May 1 to search other residences for better deals, when at 9am all leases would expire simultaneously and everyone would start moving at the same time.
The practice proves that as long as there have been New Yorkers, there have been greedy New York landlords. One New York Times article from 1854 tells the story of Signor Cristadoro, a hairdresser at the Astor House: “He took the shop, during the hard times of 1842, on a lease of five years at $1,300 per annum. In 1847, the lease was renewed for seven years at $1,500. Notice was served on him a few days since that from and after the 1st of May, the rent would be $3,750!” Sound familiar?
The practice began to fade in the 1920s, as resistance to the lease laws grew, and by WWII many moving companies couldn’t even find enough men to keep up with demand. The post-war housing shortage and rent control laws ended May Day moving for good by 1945, though many commercial leases still run out on May 1, a remnant of the time.
Keep Reading
- Behind the ScenesSeptember 6, 2022
Confronting Hate 1937–1952: A Jewish Prayer Service in Nazi Germany
American radio listeners tuning into NBC at 9:30 am on Sunday, October 29, 1944, were met with something extraordinary—a 15-minute broadcast that was almost lost to history. - Behind the ScenesMay 19, 2022
V.K. Wellington Koo and the History of an International Attaché
Explore the life of Dr. V. K. Wellington Koo, an esteemed statesman, diplomat, and a judge of the International Court of Justice in the Hague, whose long and distinguished career shaped modern China and U.S.–China relations. - Behind the ScenesApril 26, 2022
New Acquisitions: Ballet Shoes in the Right Shade
- Behind the ScenesApril 5, 2022
New Acquisitions Highlight Bob Hope's Comedy Career and Immigrant Roots
The New-York Historical Society welcomes a number of new objects related to Bob Hope into our collection, all recently donated by the Bob and Dolores Hope Foundation.
