About four blocks south of the Tenement Museum [1] is the 1886 Eldridge Street Synagogue (12 Eldridge St., between Division and Canal Sts.). The first synagogue in New York City [2] built by Eastern European Jews, it’s a large and startlingly elaborate building with beautifully carved wooden doors.
Due to a dwindling congregation, the main sanctuary was sealed in the 1930s and not entered again for 40 years. In the early 1990s, restoration work began, and the synagogue now houses The Museum at Eldridge Street (12 Eldridge St., 212/219-0302, www.eldridgestreet.org [3], tours offered 10 a.m.– 5 p.m. Sun.–Thurs., adults $10, students and seniors $8, children $6).
The museum can only be seen by guided tour which tells the story of the synagogue and the Jewish immigrants of the area.
Links:
[1] http://www.moon.com/destinations/new-york-city-long-island/manhattan/lower-east-side/lower-east-side-tenement-museum
[2] http://www.moon.com/destinations/new-york-city-long-island/discover-new-york-city
[3] http://www.eldridgestreet.org