ca. 1890 The Newsboys Lodging Home depicted here by Jacob Riis was, in fact, the third incarnation of the Newsboys Lodging home. Also called the Duane Street Lodging House or the Brace Memorial Lodging House, it was set up for young boys (not necessarily newsboys) who would be otherwise homeless. The boys would pay a fee and in return, they would receive schooling, food, and a clean place to spend the night. A replacement for a smaller lodging house, the Duane Street Newsboys Lodging Home opened in 1873. Costing more than 200,000$, the Duane Street location was aimed at expanding it mission to serve the ever-increasing homeless child population of New York. It was managed, like most of the Children's lodging houses of the city, by the Children's Aid Society. With a gymnasium, school rooms, dining hall, and washrooms, the home attempted to provide an education to those that lodged with them. If a boy wanted to stay the night, the ensuing classes were mandatory. Those that could not afford to pay could defer the payments until they had the means. The rules at the home were strict, the boys had to be out by 7 am and were allowed in no later than 9:30 pm. Moreover, all were expected to pitch in with the upkeep of the house, with duties from cleaning to laundry to cooking. During the day, the boys were out, selling newspapers, shining shoes, and earning money. The mission operated until 1919.

On June 5th, 1870 Jacob Riis arrived in New York with 40$ and a revolver. Riis was one of the millions of immigrants arriving on the shores of the United States at the end of the 19th century. Seeking a better life, the immigrants were packed into the tenements and slums of New York. In the 1880s, the Lower East Side was the most densely populated place in the world. Riis's documentation of the inhabitants of these neighborhoods would make him famous and drive a reformist movement.