The Two-Mile Pulse of Lower Manhattan I Houston Street

Houston Street is a major 2-mile east-west thoroughfare in Lower Manhattan running from the FDR Drive to the West Side Highway, divided by Broadway. Pronounced "HOW-stun", it is named after lawyer William Houstoun—not the city in Texas—and acts as the historic southern anchor of Manhattan's 1811 grid system. The letters "Ho" in several iconic Downtown Manhattan neighborhood abbreviations stand directly for Houston Street, serving as the foundational geographic anchor for naming the surrounding areas. SoHo: Stands for South of Houston Street. It is bounded by Houston Street to the north, Canal Street to the south, Lafayette Street to the east, and Sixth Avenue to the west. NoHo: Stands for North of Houston Street. It sits directly above SoHo, stretching from Houston Street north to Astor Place. NoLiTa: Stands for North of Little Italy, but its southern boundary is defined by the streets running just below East Houston Street. This naming convention was popularized by urban planners, artists, and real estate developers in the mid-to-late 20th century to rebrand former manufacturing districts into vibrant residential and arts hubs. Notable Landmarks & History Katz’s Delicatessen: The iconic historic deli Nikola Tesla’s Lab: The site of Tesla’s former 1891 laboratory #Houston #HoustonStreet #EastVillage #LowerEastSide #NewYork EastVillage #NYC Subscribe:    / @explorewalkingtours   Instagram:   / explorewalkingtours   TikTok:   / explorewalkingtours   Contact: explorewalkingtours@gmail.com 🏆 Donate here: https://ko-fi.com/explorewalkingtours