Description
The site of the Lichtenstein Bros. Cigar Factory building is today part of the Bowery Historic District of the National Register of Historic Places, though the only building shown in this poster that remains today is the Italianate stone-faced building at 268 Bowery, minus the pediment and with the addition of fire escapes. It was originally designed by D. & J. Jardine and constructed in 1871. The National Register of Historic Places registration form for the Bowery Historic District puts the date of construction of the Lichtenstein Bros. Cigar Factory as 1876.
Lichtenstein Bros. was a major cigar manufacturer during the second half of the 19th century, employing 1,000 workers in their Manhattan factory at the end of the 19th century. They were in business from at least the 1860s. The firm later merged into the United Cigar Manufacturing Co., which in turn became the General Cigar Co.
Full text (lower left): Office and Salesroom/ 270 Bowery between Houston & Prince Sts.
Full text (lower right): Factory/ 266 1/2, 268, 270, Bowery. 224, 226, 228, 230, 232, 234, 236 Elizabeth St. 187, 198, 191, 193, 195 Eldridge St.
Condition: A bright, colorful image with only minor toning and wear. Nonetheless, it has a horizontal tear through the word cigar, as well as some marginal tears, all well restored as to be unobtrusive, and reinforced as laid on foam core.
References:
The Bowery Historic District. Washington, DC: National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. c. 2013. Section 7, pp. 38-39. https://twobridges.org/wp-content/uploads/bowerynrn.pdf (2 February 2018).
Rosenberg, Chaim M. Child Labor in America: A History. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2013. p. 88. Online at Google Books: https://books.google.com/books?id=Cf1tAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA88 (2 February 2018).
