On the Sidewalks of New York

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On the Sidewalks of New York is a memoir by Richard Paul Poethig, who was born in 1925 into a working-class, German-American family in the Yorkville neighborhood of Manhattan. It tells the story of Richard’s journey from an “old law” tenement on 80th Street, to Good Will Sunday School (Madison Avenu…

Richard Paul Poethig


    • Nov 10, 2012 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 21m AVG DURATION
    • 52 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from On the Sidewalks of New York

    Chapter 26 – Leaving New York Behind

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 10, 2012 23:48


    Richard introduces Eunice to the Poethig clan at a raucous feast at his aunt and uncle's apartment in Yorkville. Eunice introduces Richard to her mother and brother at Christmastime in Dayton, Ohio. They begin plans for a June wedding. All the time Richard is writing his senior thesis on “A Christian Doctrine of Work for a Modern Technological […]

    Chapter 26 – Leaving New York Behind

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 10, 2012 23:48


    FB.Event.subscribe('edge.create', function(response) { _gaq.push(['_trackEvent','SocialSharing','Facebook - like button',unescape(String(response).replace(/+/g, " "))]); }); Richard introduces Eunice to the Poethig clan at a raucous feast at his aunt and uncle’s apartment in Yorkville. Eunice introduces Richard to her mother and brother at Christmastime in Dayton, Ohio. They begin plans for a June wedding. All the time Richard is writing his senior thesis on “A Christian Doctrine of Work for a Modern Technological […]

    Chapter 25 – Starting A New Chapter

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2012 15:41


    As seniors at Union, Richard and his roommate, Jim MacNaughton, are responsible for welcoming the incoming students through “round robins” hosted in the homes of faculty. Richard takes notice of an attractive newcomer in Jim's group. He conspires with Jim (who owns a car) to drive Eunice Blanchard back to her residence at the James […]

    Chapter 25 – Starting A New Chapter

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2012 15:41


    As seniors at Union, Richard and his roommate, Jim MacNaughton, are responsible for welcoming the incoming students through “round robins” hosted in the homes of faculty. Richard takes notice of an attractive newcomer in Jim’s group. He conspires with Jim (who owns a car) to drive Eunice Blanchard back to her residence at the James […]

    Chapter 24 – An Adirondack Summer

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2012 23:06


    Richard decides he needs a change of pace for his second summer field assignment and signs up to work amidst the lakes and falls and trees in Upstate New York. He and his roommate, Jim MacNaughton, team up for a project in the Adirondacks larger parish. But first, during their second year at Union, Richard […]

    Chapter 24 – An Adirondack Summer

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2012 23:06


    Richard decides he needs a change of pace for his second summer field assignment and signs up to work amidst the lakes and falls and trees in Upstate New York. He and his roommate, Jim MacNaughton, team up for a project in the Adirondacks larger parish. But first, during their second year at Union, Richard […]

    Chapter 23 – On the Line

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 20, 2012 15:42


    Beyond their jobs in the steel mills, Richard and the other the Ministers-in-Industry participants take part in evening discussions and study visits to deepen their understanding of the church's responsibility with industrial workers. At work, they continue to shield their identities as seminarians to keep the situation real. The seminar discussions are alive with the […]

    Chapter 23 – On the Line

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 20, 2012 15:42


    Beyond their jobs in the steel mills, Richard and the other the Ministers-in-Industry participants take part in evening discussions and study visits to deepen their understanding of the church’s responsibility with industrial workers. At work, they continue to shield their identities as seminarians to keep the situation real. The seminar discussions are alive with the […]

    Chapter 22 – The Summer of 1950

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2012 22:16


    In the summer of 1950 Richard goes to work in the steel mills of Pittsburgh. The job was both necessary to help pay the tuition at Union Seminary, and also part of his theological education. Through Richard's first “field work” experience with the youth at Arlington Avenue Presbyterian Church in East Orange, he puts together a program […]

    Chapter 22 – The Summer of 1950

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2012 22:16


    In the summer of 1950 Richard goes to work in the steel mills of Pittsburgh. The job was both necessary to help pay the tuition at Union Seminary, and also part of his theological education. Through Richard’s first “field work” experience with the youth at Arlington Avenue Presbyterian Church in East Orange, he puts together a program […]

    Chapter 21 – Reinie

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 6, 2012 26:22


    At Union Seminary Richard decides to study Christian social ethics under Reinhold Niebuhr. In his first semester, Richard immediately audits a seminar being co-taught by John Bennett and Reinhold Niebuhr on “Christianity and Communism.”  The seminar is prompted by the victory of the People's Army of China in driving the Nationalist Army out of mainland China […]

    Chapter 21 – Reinie

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 6, 2012 26:22


    At Union Seminary Richard decides to study Christian social ethics under Reinhold Niebuhr. In his first semester, Richard immediately audits a seminar being co-taught by John Bennett and Reinhold Niebuhr on “Christianity and Communism.”  The seminar is prompted by the victory of the People’s Army of China in driving the Nationalist Army out of mainland China […]

    Chapter 20 – Beginning at the Beginning

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 30, 2012 23:42


    As he enters Union Theological Seminary, Richard looks forward to his studies under Reinhold Niebuhr, one of the most challenging theological thinkers of his generation. In his last summer at the Dress Joint Board of the ILGWU, he discovers Niebuhr's name is well known among the garment worker officers. Educational Director Will Herberg, a former Communist, has been […]

    Chapter 20 – Beginning at the Beginning

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 30, 2012 23:42


    As he enters Union Theological Seminary, Richard looks forward to his studies under Reinhold Niebuhr, one of the most challenging theological thinkers of his generation. In his last summer at the Dress Joint Board of the ILGWU, he discovers Niebuhr’s name is well known among the garment worker officers. Educational Director Will Herberg, a former Communist, has been […]

    Chapter 19 – Saying Good-bye

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 23, 2012 20:05


    Richard gets together with old New York friends Jerry Pospisil and Dick Frothingham at a rathskeller in the midst of the Christmas snowfall of '48 that leaves New York at a total standstill. Before leaving for his final semester at Wooster, Richard is elected national chairperson of the National Student League. He travels to Ottawa to represent […]

    Chapter 19 – Saying Good-bye

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 23, 2012 20:05


    Richard gets together with old New York friends Jerry Pospisil and Dick Frothingham at a rathskeller in the midst of the Christmas snowfall of ’48 that leaves New York at a total standstill. Before leaving for his final semester at Wooster, Richard is elected national chairperson of the National Student League. He travels to Ottawa to represent […]

    Chapter 18 – The Election of 1948

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 16, 2012 28:28


    Richard's Saskatchewan experience opens him to join the Young People's Socialist League on his return to New York. He spends the 1948 Fall election season organizing student chapters of the League for Industrial Democracy on college campuses. The presidential election campaign brings on the prominence of the Progressive Party and Henry Wallace's candidacy. Richard is impressed with the […]

    Chapter 18 – The Election of 1948

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 16, 2012 28:28


    Richard’s Saskatchewan experience opens him to join the Young People’s Socialist League on his return to New York. He spends the 1948 Fall election season organizing student chapters of the League for Industrial Democracy on college campuses. The presidential election campaign brings on the prominence of the Progressive Party and Henry Wallace’s candidacy. Richard is impressed with the […]

    Chapter 17 – Up on the Co-op Farm

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 9, 2012 19:30


    After the CCF convention in Moosejaw, the students move on to the provincial government in Regina, where they visit offices responsible for universal health insurance, universal auto insurance, and new industrial ventures. The study tour officially ends, but the “Model T Four” sign up to work on the newly organized Carrot River Co-Op Farm in […]

    Chapter 17 – Up on the Co-op Farm

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 9, 2012 19:30


    After the CCF convention in Moosejaw, the students move on to the provincial government in Regina, where they visit offices responsible for universal health insurance, universal auto insurance, and new industrial ventures. The study tour officially ends, but the “Model T Four” sign up to work on the newly organized Carrot River Co-Op Farm in […]

    Chapter 16 – The Shaping of a Socialist

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 2, 2012 24:55


    In June 1948, Richard prepares for his upcoming study trip to Canada to see “democratic socialism” in action. The governing Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) party in Saskatchewan was holding its convention in Moosejaw. Before he leaves on his journey, Richard accepts an offer from the League for Industrial Democracy to serve as Student Secretary in the fall. Richard hitchhikes 1,000 miles […]

    Chapter 16 – The Shaping of a Socialist

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 2, 2012 24:55


    In June 1948, Richard prepares for his upcoming study trip to Canada to see “democratic socialism” in action. The governing Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) party in Saskatchewan was holding its convention in Moosejaw. Before he leaves on his journey, Richard accepts an offer from the League for Industrial Democracy to serve as Student Secretary in the fall. Richard hitchhikes 1,000 miles […]

    Chapter 15 – A Turning Point

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 26, 2012 19:18


    Richard’s leadership of the Student League for Industrial Democracy on the Wooster campus has not gone unnoticed. Dr. Ver Steeg of the Geology Department, one of the faculty’s conservative members, confronts Richard about information he has received from the House Committee on Un-American Activities in Congress about the Student League in the 1930s. Richard deflects Dr. […]

    Chapter 15 – A Turning Point

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 26, 2012 19:18


    Richard's leadership of the Student League for Industrial Democracy on the Wooster campus has not gone unnoticed. Dr. Ver Steeg of the Geology Department, one of the faculty's conservative members, confronts Richard about information he has received from the House Committee on Un-American Activities in Congress about the Student League in the 1930s. Richard deflects Dr. […]

    Chapter 14 – A Union Summer

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 22, 2012 16:11


    During the summer of 1947, Richard works for the Dress Joint Board in New York City’s Garment District. The experience heightens his liberal sensitivities toward the issues of working people. His fellow student summer workers clue him in on the ideological struggles within the union, including the affiliation between some garment manufacturers and the mob in […]

    Chapter 14 – A Union Summer

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 22, 2012 16:11


    During the summer of 1947, Richard works for the Dress Joint Board in New York City's Garment District. The experience heightens his liberal sensitivities toward the issues of working people. His fellow student summer workers clue him in on the ideological struggles within the union, including the affiliation between some garment manufacturers and the mob in […]

    Chapter 13 – Reclaiming A Heritage

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2012 29:10


    Richard returns to Wooster after his mother’s death emotionally drained. With the encouragement of his friends, he runs successfully for the Student Senate, wraps up the school year, and returns to New York. Richard’s job as director of  a Y.M.C.A. summer camp for 12- year-old boys keeps him busy; nevertheless, he witnesses one of his father’s […]

    Chapter 13 – Reclaiming A Heritage

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2012 29:10


    Richard returns to Wooster after his mother's death emotionally drained. With the encouragement of his friends, he runs successfully for the Student Senate, wraps up the school year, and returns to New York. Richard's job as director of  a Y.M.C.A. summer camp for 12- year-old boys keeps him busy; nevertheless, he witnesses one of his father's […]

    Chapter 12 – A Time to Live, A Time to Die

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2012 25:00


    In September 1945, the war is over and former students, now veterans, return to the dynamics of rebuilding the post-war world. Richard learns the value of a liberal education at the College of Wooster, where the study of science and religion are complementary. He holds down three jobs on campus to cover expenses. In December, […]

    Chapter 12 – A Time to Live, A Time to Die

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 5, 2012 25:00


    In September 1945, the war is over and former students, now veterans, return to the dynamics of rebuilding the post-war world. Richard learns the value of a liberal education at the College of Wooster, where the study of science and religion are complementary. He holds down three jobs on campus to cover expenses. In December, […]

    Chapter 11 – Going West!

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 29, 2012 19:47


    Boarding the Broadway Limited at Penn Station in January 1945, Richard begins a new venture. Descending the train in the gloom of winter in Wooster, Ohio, is a sobering experience. Richard faces the uncertainty of college life and its requirements. There was housing and work to find and the intense pace of academic learning to […]

    Chapter 11 – Going West!

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 29, 2012 19:47


    Boarding the Broadway Limited at Penn Station in January 1945, Richard begins a new venture. Descending the train in the gloom of winter in Wooster, Ohio, is a sobering experience. Richard faces the uncertainty of college life and its requirements. There was housing and work to find and the intense pace of academic learning to […]

    Chapter 10 – A Turn in the Road

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 21, 2012 15:49


    Richard’s attempt at working during the day and going to night college at the City College of New York fails. Restless in his effort to further his education, Richard determines to attend college full-time. But he is caught between two philosophies of life: his father’s hard work ethic which saw Richard’s responsibility to help meet […]

    Chapter 10 – A Turn in the Road

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 21, 2012 15:49


    Richard's attempt at working during the day and going to night college at the City College of New York fails. Restless in his effort to further his education, Richard determines to attend college full-time. But he is caught between two philosophies of life: his father's hard work ethic which saw Richard's responsibility to help meet […]

    Chapter 9 – Facing a World at War

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2012 30:34


    The late 1930s was a period of mounting tension in the world. People in Yorkville were on tenterhooks waiting for the next explosion in Europe. Richard rapidly advances through junior high and into the High School of Commerce in 1939. One Monday in December, 1941, the students are called into the auditorium to listen to […]

    Chapter 9 – Facing a World at War

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 8, 2012 30:34


    The late 1930s was a period of mounting tension in the world. People in Yorkville were on tenterhooks waiting for the next explosion in Europe. Richard rapidly advances through junior high and into the High School of Commerce in 1939. One Monday in December, 1941, the students are called into the auditorium to listen to […]

    Chapter 8 – Moving on Over

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 4, 2012 17:43


    Good Will Sunday School prepares working class children in the Yorkville neighborhood for future membership in Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church.  When the time comes for Good Will students to make the transition from their home neighborhood to the church on Madison Avenue and 73rd Street one mile away, many do not make it. The psychological distance […]

    Chapter 8 – Moving on Over

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 4, 2012 17:43


    Good Will Sunday School prepares working class children in the Yorkville neighborhood for future membership in Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church.  When the time comes for Good Will students to make the transition from their home neighborhood to the church on Madison Avenue and 73rd Street one mile away, many do not make it. The psychological distance […]

    Chapter 7 – Getting Religion on the East Side

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 27, 2012 21:38


    Richard’s grandfather, Richard Poethig, emigrated from Saxony, Germany, during the anti-Socialist campaign of Otto von Bismarck.  He sees organized religion as antagonistic to the cause of working people. For Richard’s mother, a religious upbringing was essential to life. Her tenement neighbor, Emily Masek, encourages Henny to enroll Richard in Good Will Sunday School, an East […]

    Chapter 7 – Getting Religion on the East Side

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 27, 2012 21:38


    Richard's grandfather, Richard Poethig, emigrated from Saxony, Germany, during the anti-Socialist campaign of Otto von Bismarck.  He sees organized religion as antagonistic to the cause of working people. For Richard's mother, a religious upbringing was essential to life. Her tenement neighbor, Emily Masek, encourages Henny to enroll Richard in Good Will Sunday School, an East […]

    Chapter 6 – A Summer to Remember

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 17, 2012 13:43


    Richard’s mother, Henny, pays constant attention to protecting Richard and his younger sister, Erna, from her tuberculosis. One summer, through the help of a tenement neighbor, Henny sends Richard to live with the McCreery family on a farm outside of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. At the McCreery’s, Richard learns quickly about farm life. Children who grow up […]

    Chapter 6 – A Summer to Remember

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 17, 2012 13:43


    Richard's mother, Henny, pays constant attention to protecting Richard and his younger sister, Erna, from her tuberculosis. One summer, through the help of a tenement neighbor, Henny sends Richard to live with the McCreery family on a farm outside of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. At the McCreery's, Richard learns quickly about farm life. Children who grow up […]

    Chapter 5 – Making a Day of It

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 10, 2012 12:20


    Plagued by her tuberculosis, Richard’s mother yearns to raise her children outside the city. On special days, she takes Richard down to Penn Station in the early morning to board a train for Newark, New Jersey, where her Rehling cousins live. In downtown Newark they take the trolley ride to the outer suburbs. Then a […]

    Chapter 5 – Making a Day of It

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 10, 2012 12:20


    Plagued by her tuberculosis, Richard's mother yearns to raise her children outside the city. On special days, she takes Richard down to Penn Station in the early morning to board a train for Newark, New Jersey, where her Rehling cousins live. In downtown Newark they take the trolley ride to the outer suburbs. Then a […]

    Chapter 4 – The Games We Played

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 3, 2012 18:01


    Friendships on New York City streets are made and solidified by the games young Richard plays after school and on Saturdays. Games are played on the numbered side streets where traffic is less intense. The games are mostly street versions of baseball and are played with a “spaldeen”–the street name for Spalding, whose trademark is […]

    Chapter 4 – The Games We Played

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 3, 2012 18:01


    Friendships on New York City streets are made and solidified by the games young Richard plays after school and on Saturdays. Games are played on the numbered side streets where traffic is less intense. The games are mostly street versions of baseball and are played with a “spaldeen”–the street name for Spalding, whose trademark is […]

    Chapter 3 – Life Leaves Grooves on Windowsills

    Play Episode Listen Later May 29, 2012


    Richard’s family lives in a front apartment on the top floor of a five-story “old law” tenement. Shared toilets are in the hall, the kitchen is heated by a coal stove, and clothing is washed in the kitchen tub and dried on the roof. The front apartment windows look out onto First Avenue. The windowsill […]

    Chapter 3 – Life Leaves Grooves on Windowsills

    Play Episode Listen Later May 29, 2012


    Richard's family lives in a front apartment on the top floor of a five-story “old law” tenement. Shared toilets are in the hall, the kitchen is heated by a coal stove, and clothing is washed in the kitchen tub and dried on the roof. The front apartment windows look out onto First Avenue. The windowsill […]

    Chapter 2 – The Sidewalks as Playground

    Play Episode Listen Later May 29, 2012


    Richard’s first ten years on First Avenue lay the foundation for life ahead. Within a three block radius of his tenement is a whole world. Eightieth Street and the sidewalk are his playground—where he makes “hot mickeys” with a lump of coal and a purloined potato. The shops on the block provide everything his family […]

    Chapter 2 – The Sidewalks as Playground

    Play Episode Listen Later May 29, 2012


    Richard's first ten years on First Avenue lay the foundation for life ahead. Within a three block radius of his tenement is a whole world. Eightieth Street and the sidewalk are his playground—where he makes “hot mickeys” with a lump of coal and a purloined potato. The shops on the block provide everything his family […]

    Chapter 1 – The Making of a Political Consciousness

    Play Episode Listen Later May 27, 2012


    Born in 1925 in the Yorkville neighborhood of Manhattan’s East Side, Richard grows up in a working class German-American family surrounded by immigrants from the now defunct Austro-Hungarian Empire. Scenes of the Great Depression, the rise of Hitler in Germany, and anti-Semitic sentiment become etched in his memory. Richard receives an early political education from […]

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