John's of 12th Street

302 East 12th Street | East Village | built 1900

The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.

Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.

1867
James Mulry builds a row of tenements on the old cemetery site
Developer and architect James Mulry built 302 East 12th Street in 1867 as part of a row with numbers 304 to 308, on the site of the former St. Mark's cemetery. Tax records show the row was four stories at first and five stories by 1870.
Source: buildingblocks.villagepreservation.org
1908
John Pucciatti opens John's Restaurant
In 1908 John Pucciatti, an immigrant from Umbria, opened John's Restaurant at 302 East 12th Street, serving traditional Italian "red sauce" cooking. The Pucciatti family owned it until 1972, and the restaurant has changed hands a few times since.
Source: buildingblocks.villagepreservation.org
1922
Joe Masseria survives a point-blank shot at John's Restaurant
In 1922 the mobster Joe Masseria survived a shot fired at point-blank range at John's Restaurant. Revenge was taken right outside on Rocco Umberto Valenti, with Lucky Luciano among those involved. The episode is described as a major power shift within the Mafia that raised Masseria to leader of his family. Television productions later noted that the restaurant had been a speakeasy during Prohibition.
Source: buildingblocks.villagepreservation.org

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