Oppenheimer in New York: Upper West Side Walking Tour

Discover the New York story behind one of the 20th century’s most complex figures. This guided walking tour explores how J. Robert Oppenheimer’s years on the Upper West Side shaped his ideas, ambitions, and the world-changing science that followed. Walk through the neighborhoods, institutions, and meeting places where intellectual debate, politics, and innovation converged during the New Deal and wartime eras. Learn how the city’s energy, ideals, and contradictions influenced the man often called the “father of the atomic bomb.”

1. 1

   Upper West Side

   10 min

   We will visit the premarital home of Ella Oppenheimer, Robert Oppenheimer's mother, to discuss J. Robert Oppenheimer's immigrant ancestry.

2. 2

   Upper West Side

   10 min

   We will visit the site of Oppenheimer's birth to discuss his parents' life in New York.

3. 3

   Upper West Side

   15 min

   We will visit the former home of Edwin R. A. Seligman to discuss Oppenheimer's education at the Ethical Culture School.

4. 4

   Upper West Side

   10 min

   We will visit the Clarendon, the former home of William Randolph Hearst, who was the talk of Oppenheimer's childhood neighborhood and had ties with the world leaders who would be forever connected by WWII and Oppenheimer.

5. 5

   Riverside Drive

   15 min

   We will visit the childhood home of J. Robert Oppenheimer to discuss his childhood and adolescence.

6. 6

   Soldiers' and Sailors Monument New York

   15 min

   Visitors will learn about the history of Riverside Drive that coincided with Oppenheimer's formative years.

7. 7

   Riverside Drive

   10 min

   We will visit the Master Apartments to discuss FDR's New Deal and the various ideologies of that era that prospered and informed Oppenheimer as a young man.

8. 8

   New York Buddhist Church

   15 min

   We will look at the Shinran Statue to discuss the cause and the effect of the atomic bomb.

9. 9

   Riverside Drive

   10 min

   We will visit the home of Isidor Rabi, a pioneer in 20th-century physics, a Nobel Prize winner, and a close friend of Oppenheimer.

• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.