By Lisa Kitchens
The Eco-History of Abrons Arts Center and Henry Street Settlement
Where you are right now is part of Lenapehoking, which is the Lenape name for the Lenape homeland (this includes all of NYC). Abrons Arts Center sits on the original homeland of the Munsee Lenape Nation. They have lived on and stewarded this land for thousands of years. In the 17th century during the colonization of America, European settlers inhumanely forced them out of their homeland leaving them displaced across the country. While reparations are still needed, over the years some Lenape people have moved back to their homeland and live here in NYC.
In the late 19th century, many immigrants moving to NYC were living in tenement housing in the Lower East Side. In 1893, humanitarian and nurse Lillian Wald moved to the LES with a mission to help care for the impoverished. Two years later, with the help of benefactor Jacob Schiff, Wald established Henry Street Settlement, offering social services to the neighborhood. One of Wald’s core beliefs was that the arts were essential to an individual’s well-being and should be accessible to all, regardless of income.
Guided by Wald’s mission, originally founded in 1975 and known as the Arts for Living Center, Abrons Arts Center offers LES residents high-quality, affordable artistic experiences grounded in the immigrant and working-class history and culture of the neighborhood. Abrons is the only comprehensive arts and culture center embedded within a social service agency in NYC and is truly a beloved part of NYC.
History | Abrons Arts Center. (2026). History | Abrons Arts Center. https://www.abronsartscenter.org/about/history
About - Henry Street Settlement. (2016). In Henry Street Settlement. https://www.henrystreet.org/about/