Yankee great Lou Gehrig was born in Yorkville on June 19, 1903. But exactly where isn’t clear.
According to this plaque put up in 1990 by the New York Yankees organization, his first home—probably a typical city tenement building—was at or about 309 East 94th Street. Located there now is a branch of Mount Sinai Medical Center.
But other sources identify Gehrig’s childhood home at 1994 Second Avenue, near 103rd Street.
Apparently there was a plaque set up in memory of the Iron Horse here too, but the business that occupied the site, a garden store, moved out, and no plaque remains.
Wherever he spent his early years, Gehrig is definitely a son of New York City. He and his German immigrant parents moved to Washington Heights when he was a boy; Gehrig later attended Commerce High School, on the Upper West Side.
Then he was off to Columbia—where his mother happened to work as a cook in a fraternity house—to play football and baseball.
That’s where a couple of Yankee scouts discovered him, and the rest is baseball history.
Tags: Columbia, Commerce High School, famous residents of Yorkville, Iron Horse, Lou Gehrig, Washington Heights, Yankees, Yorkville
Ephemeral New York 
April 20, 2009 at 3:56 pm |
in my own neighborhood and i never knew! thanks!
April 20, 2009 at 11:48 pm |
I’m looking at a copy of his birth certificate (Manhattan 1903 #27387), courtesy of the Municipal Archives. Here it is in black and white: He was born Henry Louis Gehrig on June 19, 1903, to Henry William and Anna Christina Gehrig (nee Fack?), both of Germany. His father was listed as being an iron worker. The family resided then at 1994 Second Avenue, between E. 102nd St. and E. 103rd St., and that is where he was born.
April 21, 2009 at 1:12 am |
Thanks PizzaBagel–you’ve put the confusion to rest. I wonder why the Yankee organization got it wrong?
November 25, 2010 at 3:59 am |
The Yankees probably didn’t get it wrong.Usually , stories like these stay around because there was truth to them. People moved around alot back then because landlords offered them incentives to move into their building.Like a months free rent , or a fresh paint job.Also things such as electricity or a gas stove , or even a bathroom in an apartment caused people to move.Remember in 1903 , there wasa lot of old law tenements still around.
November 25, 2010 at 4:37 am |
also found them on the 1920 ( 1/21/1920 )census at 2079 8th Avenue. West 113th street? Also listed Henry the father as iron worker . Henry the son is 16 , the right age .
October 25, 2011 at 1:41 am |
I was told a plaque was in a laundry worked by Italian POWs during and after WW II. Plaque was lost when building was torn down. Tom Miller and friends tried to swipe it but was held by four rods. Back to the bar. Laundry was on 94th street. Richie
October 25, 2011 at 1:48 am |
PS manny people give false information on birth certificate to keep bill collectors away and the cops Richie
December 2, 2016 at 7:58 am |
There is a New York Times article from the 1950’s that mentions a Gehrig plaque ceremony that took place on east 94th street. In attendance was Gehrig’s mother. Also, the original plaque had the words “here marks the birthplace” This is why I favor the 94th street version. I could be wrong. I think the plaque was stolen and replaced a few times over the years. And president Obama lived a few buildings down the same street while attending Columbia in the 1980’s. Another debate? I also live on 94th street.
July 24, 2020 at 5:29 pm |
It is a long time since your post. I was there when a plaque was dedicated to Gehrig’s birth place. The building was Consolidated Laundry. I know that his mother was there, along with former ballplayers Hank Greenberg and Jimmy Ring. Mrs Gehrig looked frail and tired. I believe that family friend and sports writer Fred Lieb was also there.
April 13, 2018 at 10:48 am |
ME AGAIN. CHECK OUT WEBSITE moregehrig.tripod.com AND READ 8/21/1953 ARTICLE, IT MENTIONS INDUSTRIAL LAUNDRY COMPANY AND GEHRIG’S MOM IN ATTENDANCE AT PLAQUE CEREMONY. THOUGH 94TH STREET IS NOT MENTIONED, THE LAUNDRY CO. MAY BE CONFIRMATION IN FAVOR OF 94TH STREET BIRTHPLACE, AND THE FACT THAT GEHRIG’S MOM WAS THERE SHOULD BE PROOF IN SOLVING THE BIRTHPLACE MYSTERY. ALSO, BACK IN THE 1970’S I RECALL SEEING THE PLAQUE MOUNTED INSIDE THE ENTRANCE OF THE LAUNDRY CO. FOR SAFE KEEPING. IT WAS RUMORED THE ORIGINAL PLAQUE WAS STOLEN, OR ATTEMPTS TO STEAL IT WERE MADE WHEN MOUNTED OUTDOORS. ED
April 13, 2018 at 12:56 pm |
ADDITIONAL SITE INFO. FOR ABOVE MENTIONED:
moregehrig.tripod.com THEN CLICK ON “His Living Legacy” THEN CLICK ON “Memorials & Tributes” THERE YOU WILL FIND ARTICLE FROM 8/21/1953. ALMOST CERTAIN IT COMES FROM AN ORIGINAL NY TIMES ARTICLE.
May 28, 2018 at 9:03 pm |
I was at the short ceremony on August 21,1953. The plaque was placed on the building that was the Consolidated Laundry – East 94th Street. Mom Gehrig, Hank Greenberg, Jimmy Ring and I believe Fred Leib were there. Mrs. Lou Gehrig (Eleanor) was not there. Mom Gehrig looked frail and was thin in stature. I was not able to get her autograph. However, she was at Yankee Stadium several days later for Old Timer’s Day.
May 29, 2018 at 4:56 pm
THANKS JOE, YOU NAILED IT, WHAT A GREAT THING TO HAVE BEEN THERE. A FEW YEARS BACK THERE WERE TV NEWS BROADCASTS REGARDING THE 94TH AND 102ND/103RD DEBATE. THEY COULD HAVE USED YOUR INFO. WITH GHERIG’S MOM (AND YOU), HAVING BEEN THERE – IS STRONGER EVIDENCE THAT HE WAS BORN ON 94TH. I REMEMBER SEEING THE ORIGINAL PLAQUE, WITH DIFFERENT LANGUAGE, BACK IN THE LATE 60’S/70’S. IT WAS MOUNTED OUTDOORS. I WONDER WHERE THE ORIGINAL IS TODAY, IT HAD THE WORD “BIRTHPLACE” I USE TO STARE FOR MINUTES WHEN PASSING BY, STILL DO. CHEERS TO YOU AND LOU. ED
April 28, 2018 at 10:30 am |
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March 10, 2021 at 5:15 pm |
I lived at 1994 Second Avenue, Apartment #2, throughout the 1950s. Since most of the tenements on that east side of the avenue were built around 1900, it makes sense that the Gehrigs—among others—would have moved into that then relatively new building. Yet, I must confess that it was a very poor place to have lived in. To begin with, there was no boiler in the basement, nor radiators and steampipes in the flats. We had to heat the place with kerosene heaters, or the kitchen oven. The bathtub was in the kitchen and a toilet—with water tank and pull chain—in the bedroom. Yet, we survived as best we could, as did Lou Gehrig’s family. Hats off to PizzaBagel for settling the matter of the Iron Horse’s childhood home.
-Victor Rodriguez, author of Eldorado in East Harlem
February 17, 2022 at 9:17 am |
Henry Louis Gehrig’s birth certificate is the document that indicates the 1994 Second Avenue address as his place of birth. The family was still living at this address in the 1905 New York State census.
October 21, 2022 at 3:15 pm |
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