New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1850-06-05
THE DENS OF DEATH. No. [.
sUBTERRANEAN CITY-CELLAR POPULATION
EXTENT, CHARACTER AND EFFECT UPON
THE PUBLIC HEALTH.

At the request of Dr. JAMES STEWART, the Chief
Of Police lately completed a Census of Inhabited
Cellars in this City, the number OF Rooms in each.
and the number Of Occupants. The document is one
of great length, extending TO hundred pages Of
manuscript, and develops startling facts in regard
TO what we might characterize as q Subte-ranea
City from whose damp and filthy portals oozes up
the foul and poisonous miasma which continually
polues the air and sows the seeds Of disease
broadcast among the inhabitants Of the Upper City,
The document is too long 10 publish entire, but ws
will 20 over it by Wards and point out some Of its
most important facts
In the First Ward there are 1879 Easements, d.
vided into IA rooms and occupied by $50 persons,
or 4 to each room. Nearly half 1859 persons) are
reported "Dirty." Tho ratio Of underground dwell
ers is about l in 25 Of the whole population. At
No. IS Wsshingtonst are II persons in one dirty
room at l42 Greenwich, IA ia one room; at 10
Trinity place, in one room at Soonest. In
rear cellars, 10 persons in two rooms. The dir
test SECTORS are at the foot Of 5tDness; in rear
houses in Trinity place, back Of Trinity Church;
and in Warrington. st. from Morris 20 Cedar. Tho
population Of this Ward in 1876 was I2 230; it is
probably considerably less now, business having
rooted out great number Of dwellings since that
time. Population probably nearly twothirds for
eigners, mostly German.
In the Second Ward there are ~ inhabited eel
lars divided into 90 rooms with total Of 1876 dem
censor about 81 to each room. All the cellars
are reported "clean; = the greatest number in ono
room is 7, at No 100 Nassaust We think We
should scarcely have reported the whole of these
dean" but it may be so the Second, Ward has
good character for cleanliness. Population in
1915, 6,962-l in IS dwelling in easements Resi-
dents nearly all American
The Third Ward shows a less agreeable report
There ere 81 easements, l43 rooms, 1874 families.
in 81 al persons, or nearly persons to eacl
room. At9 WestBroadway IRE i2 persons in 4
dirty room; az SO Robinson, l2 in rooms ct 81
Dey, IS persons in rooms; as 5si Cortland, 10 in
. rooms at zS2 Greenwich, II In 2 rooms; All
these rooms are "diry' The worst sections Of
this Ward are, rear of I43 ReadesI and in Wash.
ineton nesr Cortland. Population 1000; l Ia Is
10 cellars Not great many foreigners in this Ward
The Fourth Ward may well dispute with the
Sixth for their disgrace of being the dirtiest Of
the lower Wards. The number Of inhah-
tied Easements ia leo; Of rooms, 2l7. Of
inhabitants, so0--or, more than persons 20
each room Specimens Of heavy population may
be found at $40 Water street Q in \ room; 21f
Water IA in 2rOOms Sc Cherry, 10 in room;
is proper 10 state that this Census WA taken 4.
D0rA Since that nne and especially ahcuf tbs lst "a
hsy. many Grams &c were noeesssy maze 10 tbs locality
Of ine norsdc and ereg.ops tribes Of snbtsTr
Some cellars have bern cleared out ennrely and onsr.
have teen relieved Of poroo Of helr inhsbtsot bat
Il u scarcely prcbsbe that there bss been gssera l.
progemepi