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The New York neighborhood bordered by 14th and 52nd Streets, and Eighth Avenue and the waterfront, has a rich history of crime and bloodshed. And now it has it's own web site -- Hell's Kitchen Online. We found some great historical information there. During the latter half of the 19th century, Hell's Kitchen was a notorious haven for gangs who prowled "the tenements, grog shops, slaughter houses, railroad yards, and gas works" that employed it's huge immigrant population. Men with names like Dutch Heinrichs, Owney Madden, and Bully Morrison ruled the streets. Cops walked in pairs, if at all. The term "Hell's Kitchen" first appeared in
print on September 22, 1881 in a New York Times piece covering a grisly multiple murder in the neighborhood. The writer refers to a tough tenement as "Hell's Kitchen," and calls the surrounding block "probably the lowest and filthiest in the city." Today's Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, is a vibrant neighborhood currently battling encroaching gentrification. That's right, the neighborhood is worried about becoming too nice. At least they'll always have the name.
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