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LOWER MANHATTAN-FINANCIAL DISTRICT

National Museum of the American Indian

Financial District

boundaries: Chambers St to Southern tip of Manhattan; East River to Broadway

 

Financial heart of the American economy

 

One of the central reasons for New York’s growth, from the beginning when it was New Amsterdam, is the Financial District. It was in this area where goods were traded, day laborer slaves were hired from the owners, the selling and trading of bonds. Wall Street was the northern boundary for New Amsterdam. Whether it was to stop encroachment from the English or protection from the Indians, it has become the center of all that is financial. Today this area is booming with a multi-use buildings, with condos and rentals, as well as office space.

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  • CITY HALL PARK- Broadway, Park Row & Chambers St.,

    • HORACE GREELEY STATUE- by Alexander Doyle

    • NATHAN HALE- by Frederick MacMonnies

    • CITY HALL FOUNTAIN by Jacob Wrey Mould

 

  • 9/11 MEMORIAL- National September 11 Memorial & Museum at the World Trade Center, One Liberty Plaza (212) 312-8800

 

 

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Guest Writer's/

Neighborhood of the month

South Street Seaport

boundaries: N- Dover Street/South Street; S- Front Street 

A designated historic district

 

From the Dutch settling to the English taking over, one of the major industries was shipping. New York was the entry point for millions of people, goods, products, and more. In 1812 Peter Schermerhorn built 12 Federal-style warehouses and this development became known as Schermerhorn Row. Goods from all over the world arrived on the East River and they were transferred to these warehouses. By the 1950’s shipping was no longer a major industry in New York and these buildings were abandoned. In the 1960’s a preservationist fought to have this area recognized as a historic district. Today, it has a mall, museum, ships, restaurants and much more for all to enjoy.

South Street Seaport

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South Street Seaport

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  • SOUTH STREET SEAPORT HISTORICAL DISTRICT- south of Fulton and along FDR Drive

     

  • SOUTH STREET SEAPORT MUSEUM, 17 Fulton Street, (212)748-8600- some exhibits at Bowne Printers (209 Water Street)

The Islands
The Islands

 

 

The National Parks Services is in charge of these three islands: Governors Island, where forts were built to protect the country: Statue of Liberty, a gift from France with the base which was built with the help of American children who collected pennies to build it. Ellis Island, where many immigrants were processed until 1954 when immigrants began to fly to our shores.

Liggett Hall at Governor's Island

Governor's Island

Castle Williams

Governor's Island
 

Located on the East River in New York Harbor. There are two forts on the island--Fort Jay and Castle Williams which were erected in 1796 and 1811.  They were built to fortify New York from any enemies to the United States.  Some canons are still on the fort and the National Parks department does a tour of Castle Williams which is superb.  Great views of Manhattan, historical landmark and there are still many of the original buildings, such as the South Battery, St. Cornelius Chapel, and a new city park which opened the summer of 2014.

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  • Ft. WILLIAMS

 

  • Ft. JAY

 

  • St. CORNELIUS CHAPEL

 

  • COMMANDING OFFICER'S HOUSE

 

  • THE GOVERNOR'S HOUSE

 

  • LIGGETT HALL

 

  • PERSHING HALL

 

  • GOVERNOR'S ISLAND'S NEWEST CITY PARK--30 ACRES ARE NOW OPEN FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT

Statue of Liberty

Statue of Liberty

Statue of Liberty National Monument

 

 

 

"Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

 

by Emma Lazarus.

 

 

 

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The Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial

Roosevelt Island
 

Located on the East River in between Manhattan and Queens, this two mile island has had numerous names. Going back to the Lenape Indians who first called it Minnehanonck, then the Dutch settlers called it Verkens Eylandt or Hog Island. When the English took over it was renamed Blackwell’s Island; then a name change to Welfare Island. This name stuck until 1971 when it was renamed Roosevelt Island after Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Today, you can reach it by one of the most intriguing ways of travel in New York City--the tram or by subway. It has great views of Manhattan’s East side.

Roosevelt Island

  • CHAPEL OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD, 543 Main St., (917) 843-3338

 

  • BLACKWELL HOUSE

 

  • STRECKER LABORATORY

 

  • THE LIGHTHOUSE

 

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SoHo

A Cast-Iron Historic District

boundaries: N- Houston St.; S- Canal St.; W- Sixth Ave.; E- Crosby St.

 

SoHo is the acronym for South of Houston. It was once farmland which was given to freed slaves of the Dutch West Indies Company. It was separated from lower Manhattan by Collect Pond which had been a source of water, but in time became very polluted. The Common Council had it drained and development began in this area. In the 19th century cast iron buildings were being erected. Today, one can see the beauty of these cast iron buildings since it is a historic district as you shop at some of the best known brands in the country.

SoHo

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TriBeCa

Triangle Below Canal

boundaries: N-Canal Street; S - Vesey Street; E- Broadway; W- Hudson River

 

 

Tribeca is the acronym for Triangle Below Canal Street. This is the location for the Tribeca film festival and some very good restaurants and shops.

The African Burial Ground

TriBeCa

 

 

 

  • PUBLIC THEATER, THE- Lafayette St. Between Astor Pl. and E. 4th Street

 

 

 

  • ALBERT CAPSOUTO PARK- Laight St. Canal St. & Varick Street

    • 114-foot long sculptural fountain- by Elyn Zimmerman

 

 Mohandas Gandhi

Union Square

boundaries: S- 14th Str.; W- Union Square West; N- 17th Street; E- Union Square East

The first commercial theater district in the1870's

 

Union Square, named by the union of Broadway (formerly Old Bloomingdale Road) and Fourth Avenue (formerly known as Bowery Road), runs from 14th Street to 17th Street. This was once a potter’s field and in 1831 became a public space and New York City acquired it. It opened to the public in 1839, but it was enclosed with an iron picket fence. In 1871 the park was redesigned by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux (they had created Central Park). Union Square has sculptures of George Washington (1856), Abraham Lincoln (1868), Marquis de Lafayette (1873) and the James Fountain 1881. In 1986 Mohandas Gandhi’s sculpture was added.

Union Square

  • UNION SQUARE PARK- 14th to 17th Streets; 4th Ave to University Place

    • ABRAHAM LINCOLN STATUE- by Henry Kirke Brown 

    • GEORGE WASHINGTON STATUE- oldest sculpture in NYC Parks collection by Henry Kirke Brown

    • INDEPENDENCE FLAGSTAFF- (or Charles F. Murphy Memorial Flagpole) commemorates 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence by Anthony De Francisci

    • JAMES FOUNTAIN OR UNION SQUARE DRINKING FOUNTAIN- by Karl Adolph Donndorf

    • MARQUIS DE LAFAYETTE- by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi

    • MOHANDAS GANDHI- sculpture by Kantilal B. Patel

 

 

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West Village

boundaries: W- Hudson River; E- Sixth Ave.; S- 14th St.; N- Houston St.

 

West Village is known as “Little Bohemia” for many artists lived on these streets, such as O. Henry, Edgar Allan Poe, e.e. cummings, and Sara Teasdale. West Village has been a neighborhood that has not changed, it still retains that “Bohemian” quality.

Gay Liberation by George Segal

West Village

  • JAMES J. WALKER PARK- Hudson Street, St. Luke’s Pl, Clarks

    • FIREMEN'S MEMORIAL SARCOPHAGUS dedicated to three fallen firemen of the Eagle Fire Engine Company No.13

 

  • WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK- 5th Avenue, Waverly Place, West 4th Street & Macdougal St.

    • WASHINGTON SQUARE ARCH- 5th Avenue by architect Stanford White

    • GEORGE WASHINGTON ACCOMPANIED BY FAME AND VALOR- by Hermon Atkins MacNeil

    • GEORGE WASHINGTON ACCOMPANIED BY WISDOM & JUSTICE- by Alexander Stirling Calder

    • ALEXANDER LYMAN HOLLEY STATUE-by John Quincy Adams Ward

    • GENERAL GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI- by Giovanni Tirini

 

  • CHRISTOPHER PARK- Christopher St., Grove St. W 4th Street

    • GAY LIBERATION- by George Segal

    • GENERAL PHILIP HENRY SHERIDAN- by Joseph Pollia

 

  • THE HIGHLINE- Gansevoort St. To W. 30 St. between Washington St. and 11 Ave. 

 

  • ABINGDON SQUARE - Hudson St. 8th Avenue, W. 12th Street

    • Abingdon Square Doughboy by Philip Martiny 

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Neighborhoods

For more in depth information on these neighborhoods, please check some of the resources that we used to write our content.

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