Our tour starts as we exit the subway at City Hall and wind our way to the surface via the Municipal Building.
Many of our city's government agencies are located here, including the marriage bureau for those quick "city hall" weddings.
(the ceiling tiles in the arch pictured above)
It was impossible for me to get far enough back to get all of this magnificent building into a photo so be sure to click on the link above for more detailed pictures.
The sign in the foreground is for Reade Street, the one further back is for Duane Street. Yes New Yorkers, these are the Duane and Reade of the ubiquitous pharmacy. Did you know that on 57th Street and Broadway you get a Duane Reade on both the South East and South West corners? And they do not have the same stock.
Shortly before the civil war, St. Andrew's Church, suffering a downturn in participation, received permission from Rome to hold a 2:30 a.m mass. This was known as the Printer's Mass and served as the catalyst for a renewal of the congregation. Later, St. Andrew's instituted a noon time mass to serve the growing numbers of municipal workers. The building shown above is not the original St. Andrews, that one was torn down to make way for the adjacent Federal Court House. The current structure was erected in 1939.*
The Sugar House was used to hold prisoners during the Revolutionary War. All that is left is some bricks and the barred window.
The Supreme Court of New York.
The Five Points -- one of the most infamous sections of early New York gang activity. Now a public park.
The site of the Collect Pond, originally a font of fresh water, later a contaminated cesspool drained via a canal which was later filled in to become ... you guessed it, Canal Street.
Our favorite billboard. Proof that Dumbo is not on the radar of a certain Mouse.
My only picture from Chinatown. For some reason I decided to turn New Yorker and put away the camera. Lunch was an assortment of dim sum from our favorite dim sum house. Yummy!
Little Italy
The building shown both above and below is a former police station, renovated and now an apartment building.
Some street art.
The original Grace Church across from the NYU dormitory where Mike once lived.
A bank building that is now used for a variety of itinerant commercial purposes. One day last summer it showcased the Ben and Jerry's milkshake in a bottle, this week, Meow Mix cat food.
* Wolfe, Gerard, New York A guide to the Metropolis Walking Tours of Architecture and History, Second Edition, McGraw Hill 1988
3 comments:
Know why there is that arch in the Muni Building in the first place?
I just love your tours through NYC! I love to come to the city for theatre, so I don't get out and wander the city very much. Thanks!
I miss "history of the city of ny" (best course i ever took as an undergrad).. while ktj was awesome, i am enjoying your walking/biking tours much more!
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