9th part of Drama cultural routes - 19th MAY STREET - Greece

9th part of Drama cultural routes - 19th MAY STREET

2500 YEARS OF HISTORY IN ONE HOUR

19th MAY STREET (formerly Kennedy Street)

Drama municipality

Drama Old Town

Drama municipality

Drama Old Town

Culture Centre_Elepherias

Drama municipality

Culture Centre_Elepherias

Drama Municipality

Classical Building in Drama

Drama municipality

View of Drama

9h part of Drama cultural routes - 19th MAY STREET

19th MAY STREET

(formerly Kennedy Street)

“19th MAY STREET” (formerly called Kennedy Street) is an important commercial street of the town, created following the decision to cover the Monastiraki riverbed in the 1960s. It is also called “Tsai” or “Rema”. When Evliya Çelebi travelled through Drama in the 17th century, mentioned that along the river there were at least three hundred shops. Quite a few of these buildings were used both as shops on the ground floor and as living quarters on the upper floor. The riverbanks were at various times joined by wooden, stone, iron or concrete bridges, largest of all being that of Venizelos Street (which is believed to be the “bridge of Drama” mentioned in a famous Ottoman folk song). Lining the river, there were stone buildings with shops selling mostly fur, farming tools and copper cooking utensils. Most of them were built in the late 19th century, yet only a few have been saved. Very often the “Tsai” would overflow and flood the surrounding shops. This is why the river was covered in the 1960s to become Kennedy Street, which later was renamed in “19th May Street” in memory of the genocide of the Greeks of the Pontos. At the crossing of Armen and Sahinis Streets there is a small square surrounded by pedestrian alleys. Today, on 19th May Street, the popular market of Drama is held every Thursday.