Trenton’s ‘Valley of the Israelites.’Trenton’s ‘Valley of the Israelites.' Part 1

Bill Dwyer’s Bygone Days

Trenton Sunday Times, Oct 22, 1972

These are among the persons, places and things recalled by old-timers who grew up in Trenton’s ‘Valley of the Israelites.’

‘That,’ says 9one longtime resident ‘is what some say people called the area.

But, to what you would call the unsophisticated or the insensitive it was Jewtown. By whatever name, it was a great place and it produced some the brightest, some of the most artistic and most successful people the Delaware Valley has ever known.

The ammonia-scented icehouse on Bloomsbury Street where you could witch the ice come down the chute.

Levinson’s milk store where you bought eggs by the score.

Zorn’s butcher store with ta sawdust thick on the floor.

Brodsky’s hat store where you got your caps for the Jewish Holidays.

Harry Berkowtiz of 87 Liberty St. is one of those who remembers. In fact, he seems to have total recall of who and what were where in the area roughly bounded by Market St., S. Warren St., and Lumberton St.

Starting with Warren St., Harry says, ‘I can remember so many places that were landmarks a generation or two ago.

The American  Bridge Field, for example, where your best baseball teams (Cadets, Bashes, Morrisville Reds, etc.) played. The kinds called it the Greengrass.

The old farmers’ market where corn was ten cents a dozen and tomatoes one to three cents per pound, Net came the Round House where all the railroaders stayed, Then Elias’s store where we got our Buster Brown stockings.  Then up the street to Hymie Gerofsky’s bar and my father’s bar (big beer for a nickel and a free lunch with hot soup.)

Next the Trenton Shirt Factory where they made mens’ wok shirts . . . Randelman’s blanket factory, Litowitz’s fruit and Produce and the Turkish bath (where for 25 cents you could meet everybody in town on Saturday night.

Then Weinstein’s bicycle Store, Urken’s Glass Shop, he Sach Harness shop, and the Warren Grocery Store.

Then the home of the Josephson family (one son, Louis, became City Attorney of Trenton. Dave had a shoe store on Broad St and Barney Josephson owner the famous New York Nightclub, and the Café Society.