Explore the French enclave that is Little Paris NYC

Bonjour tout le monde de Little Paris, NYC!

Yes, you read that right. There is a tiny, new enclave called Little Paris in NYC, the same way there is Little Italy, Koreatown, Little Africa and other enclaves and neighbourhoods of the various ethnicities that make up the salad bowl that is New York City.

Little Paris NYC is a petite enclave on Center Street in Nolita, nestled between Grand and Broome Streets in Lower Manhattan, and is a 2021 new establishment by French expats to create a specific identity that feels like Paris in New York and reclaim a space to make it feel like a home away from home, hence – Little Paris NYC.

DYK that there are 60,000 French expats in NYC but no dedicated neighbourhood for them or Francophiles? Click To Tweet

But first… where did the idea for Little Paris, NYC, originate from?

 

Paris of North America: A Quick Jaunt Through Montreal

Little Paris NYC: The Origin

In 2019, Coucou French classes, a French-language and cultural activities community of Francophiles in Nolita, originated the idea of Little Paris NYC for French expats and Francophiles alike in Lower Manhattan. Leah and Marianne Perret are French cousins and female founders of Coucou French classes.

Coucou spearheaded an initiative to Manhattan’s Community Board 2 to officially designate a sliver of Nolita as Little Paris NYC but with the travails of pandemic 2020, that effort slowed. In an effort to not give up on the goal of establishing an anchor for people to explore and learn about French culture in NYC, they commissioned hand-painted street signs made in Paris to install on the exterior of buildings on Center St. Now that outside is open again, Coucou will reach out to residents of the Beaux Arts style former police headquarters across the street, get them to sign the petition, then contact the Community Board again.

If you’re eager for the real deal, check out these architecture and historical Paris activities to enjoy below:

 

 

“What has a former police station got to do with Little Paris NYC?”, you ask.

 

Well, read on for interesting French history in New York City…

 

Little Paris NYC: Area History

The Lost French Quarter of SoHo

Do you know that there was once a French Quarter of New York?

It was in SoHo – west of Broadway, south of Washington Square and north of Grand Street – where French exiles and emissaries in various occupations lived and worked in the late 1870s. Scribner’s Monthly, the article where this history is from, mentions that the French occupants of this tenement quarter were “of the lowest and poorest class” but “industrious, thrifty, and honest”, spoke French and retained motherland customs, and had French signs everywhere.

Trades mentioned include cafes, laundresses, charcuteries, le marchand de vin, le bottier, boulangeries, and numerous restaurants that really do not seem out of place in any Parisien quartier. Additionally, there were learned people of music and languages who “carried themselves with an air of shabby gentility on a slender income.”

Hang on…did the French originate the style of “shabby chic”? Merci pour ca.

The French Quarter had four churches, a wealthy benevolent society called “Societe Culinaire Philanthropique“, and a large French language paper called the Courier. In addition to the thriving French community, there were a few Italians, Greeks, and Americans, and the Scribner author describes the Americans as the “lowest element in the quarter.” Yikes!

If this is making you nostalgic for Paris, browse below and plan ahead for safe things to do in the City of Lights!

 

Bayard’s Mount

There is so much colonial history in the area surrounding Little Paris NYC, from the Dutch, French, British and their collaborations (and sometimes not) in the era leading up to the Revolutionary War and after.

For example, Bayard’s Mount – named for Nicholas Bayard of the prominent New York Bayard family – used to be one of the highest points in Manhattan on present day Grand and Mott Streets but it has been gone for over two centuries and is neither visible on old topography maps nor mentioned on grid maps of the day. It is immortalized in watercolour paintings and reading immersive history on it (I read numerous articles so you didn’t have to. You’re welcome), it seems that Bayard’s Mount may have been referred to as Mt. Pleasant and/or Bunker Hill.

There is French history atop this mount where in 1787, a duel between two Frenchmen occurred, where one of them, Charles Julian de Longchamps, was said to be “an adventurer with a shady record”.

He was a French cavalry officer come to America to marry a Philadelphia Quakeress, whose friends detested him because of shady allegations against him. If you’re wondering what next, read a bit more in this scholarly article.

Beaux Arts Architecture

Remember the old police headquarters mentioned a few paragraphs above?

Designed by Hoppin, Koen and Huntington in Baroque style, this Landmark building was built between 1905 and 1909 and was the headquarters of the NYPD from 1909 until 1973. It spans a whole block on Center Street and is now a luxury apartment building.

Hoppin studied architecture in Paris and met Koen as a draftsman at a prestigious law firm in America. Their work echoed the French Ecole des Beaux-Arts architectural style reminiscent of the times and Hoppin designed the building not to look like a police station, but to imbue the dignity of City Hall, which Hoppin called “the handsomest building on Manhattan Island.”

The building also borrows from the famous Hotel de Ville in Paris because they are both located within a confined urban space. Click To Tweet

Little Paris NYC: Present

Returning to present pandemic times, Little Paris and its surrounding area has French businesses for expats and Francophiles alike to enjoy on Center Street between Grand and Broome, such as:

• The popular Maman SoHo
• Coucou French classes to practice for the City of Lights
• Compagnie des vins surnaturels – wine cafe
• J’adore Clic – bookstore and gallery

 

 

A few blocks away are popular French restaurants, boutiques, galleries, and shops namely:

Jean-Philippe Piter Gallery, Cire Trudon, Maison Kitsuné, Atelier Cologne, Le Labo, Ceci Celà Pâtisserie, Diptyque, French Cheese Board, L’Occitane et al.

Explore the history of Little Italy, SoHo and Nolita with these fun and interesting walking tours below:

 

I cannot wait to see what else Little Paris has in store as the petition for this historical French area unfolds.

Hope you’ve enjoyed a walk through time to an unknown French Quarter in NYC that is giving rise to Little Paris today. Don’t forget to comment, save and share for your next visit to NYC or your next subway ride to Lower Manhattan.

See you on the social streets. Bisous!

*Heartfelt thanks to Victoire Lester and Betsy Carlson of Coucou French Classes for info on Little Paris in this post*

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