Introduction
Lower Manhattan was where the Dutch originally settled when they established the colony of New Amsterdam in 1624. It was the first melting pot in the United States, with many of the settlers from countries other than the Netherlands. It is estimated that no fewer than 18 languages was spoken. Lower Manhattan is the original location where the British and later the American City of NY were originally centered. Lower Manhattan served as the nation's capital from 1785-1790. Manhattan as a city stemmed from Lower Manhattan and developed northward from there.
The Brooklyn Battery Tunnel
The first attraction that we saw was the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel. The Tunnel is a toll road that crosses under the East River and connects Brooklyn with Manhattan. The tunnel first opened to vehicular traffic in 1950. The tunnel was closed in anticipation of Hurricane Sandy. It was completely flooded. Brooklyn Battery Tunnel was reopened on November 13th after an extensive cleanup that was estimated to have removed 860 million gallons of water. It was really cool to walk over a small metal bridge that overlooks the entrance to the tunnel. We actually passed the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel twice.The overpass also provided a great opportunity to take some great pics. I also learned how to tell the difference between new skyscrapers and old skyscrapers. Old skyscrapers do not have set backs. That's pretty cool.
Battery Park City
Battery park City really didn't exist before 1976. Until the late 1950's, it was filled with piers that shoreman used to load and unload the cargo to and from the ships. The idea to create Battery Park City was from Governor Nelson Rockefeller. In 1972, the site began construction using the landfill from the WTC. We visited Robert Wagner Park first. On each side of the entrance to the Park, there is a Museum. On the left is the Museum of Jewish Heritage. This museum was opened in 1997 and one of it's main exhibitions is focused on the Holocaust. On the other side is the Skyscraper Museum. When we walked through Robert Wagner Park, I couldn't help but notice all of the greenery in the park. We ascended onto a pier, which had one of the most amazing views of the city. From there,you could see Governor's Island and the Statue of Liberty.
Battery Park
The next destination we visited was Battery Park. The Park was named after the artillery of batteries that protected the land from invaders. This was good because the harbor was easily seen and provided the first defenses against foreign attack, especially during the War of 1812. Within Battery Park, we visited Clinton Castle. Clinton Castle is historically important. It first served as a fort in the War of 1812. Then, it was one of the main Immigrant Processing Stations being used to accommodate the large influx of Immigrants to NYC. After that, it became an aquarium. Finally, it was restored to it's original fortress design by the National Park Service. It still stands today and is a popular tourist attraction. Clinton Castle was cool, but not my favorite attraction today.
Frauncis Tavern
- The Fraunces Tavern is probably the most historic landmark in Manhattan, if not one of the most important in the US. The tavern was originally built in 1719 by Stephen Delancey and it was his home until he moved uptown until 1730. In 1763, the building was passed to the Innkeeper Samuel Frauncis and converted into a tavern known as the "Queen Head." It was a popular meeting place for New York's Sons of Liberty. After the British evacuated, George Washington held a farewell dinner for his officers at the tavern. It was his favorite eating spot. he loved Samuel Frauncis' food so much that he asked Frauncis to become his personal chef when Washington was elected as President. In 1904, the building was purchased by the Sons of the Revolution and restored to some of it's original georgian-style structure. The ground floor is still a tavern and restaurant. The upper floors are the Museum where some artifacts from the British Evacuation, George Washington's farewell dinner, and the Sons of Liberty are located. The tour guide was actually a student who is completing her Master's degree in history. She was very nice and was very enthusiastic when she educated us on the history of the tavern. One of the rooms that I particularly enjoyed was the Flag room. It had different flag designs from the original colonies, and flags from other countries. It was really cool and all the different colors caught your eye right away.
9/11 Memorial
The 9/11 Memorial and Museum is located at the corner or Liberty and Greenwich Street in the World Trade Center Complex. The 16 acre commercial complex was built between 1966 and 1987 and contained 7 buildings, and an underground shopping mall. The Twin Towers were the centerpieces for the complex. the Twin Towers were completed in 1972 and were the tallest buildings in NYC for almost 40 years. They symbolized the city's economic grandiosity and it's role as the center for global capitalism. The Twin Towers stood at 110 stories and housed 430 companies with 35,000 workers. The World Trade Center was destroyed on September 11th, 2001 by the worst Terrorist Attacks in US History. 2,977 people were killed along with 400 firemen and policemen. Construction of the new World Trade Center building was designated to Daniel Libeskind and began in 2006. It was completed in May of 2013. The World Trade Center Builiding stands at 1776 feet and is now the tallest building in the US. It is often incorrectly referred to as "The Freedom Tower." The 9/11 Memorial was launched by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation in 2003 and was completed in 2011. The design was selected by a 13 member jury and was ultimately given to architects Michael Arad and Peter Walker. They named it "Reflecting Absence." The Memorial consists of two one-acre pools in the footprints of the original Twin Towers. The largest man-made waterfalls that are 30 feet deep descend into the pools and drain into a center void. The names of the victims are inscribed in bronze on the perimeter of the waterfalls. 400 Swamp Oak Trees have been planted along with the "Survivor Tree." The "Survivor Tree" is a pear tree that was planted at the original WTC and survived the terrorist attacks. The tree was nursed back to health and was replanted in the Memorial Plaza in 2010. This was my third time visiting the 9/11 Memorial. Each time I have been there, I always notice something different or new. This site is important to me because it was the place that my dad almost died, but he survived, he later worked on the Memorial and the new WTC building, and i visited the site shortly after he passed away in february of this year. When I visit the Memorial, it reminds me of the bravery he showed that day as he got as many people as he could out, it was one of the last projects he worked on before being diagnosed with Cancer, and it makes me feel close to him. It's a material object that I can see, even if i can't see him.
St. Paul's Chapel
St. Paul's Chapel was designed by Thomas McBean. The building itself is Georgian-style and is made out of Mike's favorite material, Manhattan Schist. The Church was inspired by the Church of St. Martin's in the field in London. the chapel was completed in 1766 and is NY's only intact pre-Revolutionary War Church and is the oldest surviving church in Manhattan. It is also the oldest building of continuing use of NYC. It is part of the same Parish as the Trinity Church and was originally built for the "uptown parishioners." In 1776, there was a massive fire that swept through and destroyed much of NYC. The Chapel of St. Paul managed to survive the fire. St. Paul's is also the place where George Washington worshipped when NYC was the capital of the US. We were lucky enough to see his private pew inside of the church. During the 9/11 attacks, the Church once again remained unscathed. Since then, it has become a memorial to the lives lost and has been a place that provides relief for rescue workers at Ground Zero. When you go inside of the chapel, there are numerous 9/11 exhibitions to see.
Manhattan Municipal Building
Manhattan's Municipal Building was designed by McKim, mead, and White and was finished in 1914. This is the firm's first skyscraper. It is a combination of Roman, Italian Renaissance, and Classic Styles. It is one of the city's most monumental buildings and houses 13 municipal agencies. Up until 2009, it housed the Manhattan Marriage Bureau where 18,000 people were married each year. At the top of the 40 story building is a statue called the "Civic Fame" that was designed by Adolf Weinman. The barefoot woman is balancing on a copper ball. In her left hand, she hols a five-pointed crown. The five points represents the 5 boroughs of NYC. The Civic Fame is the third largest statue in NYC. The building is pretty, but unfortunately, I think very boring. Nothing about that building is amazing or stands out to me.
City Hall
City Hall was another building that I felt was incredibly boring, but it was one of the stops during the day. The building itself is actually the Third City Hall. It was designed by French Architect Joseph Francois Mangin and New Yorker John McComb Jr. Mangin also designed the Old St. Patrick's Cathedral and McComb Junior designed Castle Clinton. City Hall was completed in 1811. The exterior is French-Renaissance style. The right wing holds the Offices of the City Council and the left wing houses the Mayor's Office. The dome on the top of the building dates back to 1917, but was actually the third one. The first 2 domes were destroyed by fires.
Tweed Courthouse
The last site we saw before ending our day was the Tweed Courthouse. It was built between 1861 and 1881 and created by William Boss Tweed. he was a very corrupt Political boss. He stood in at 6 feet tall and weighed over 300 pounds. He controlled the Taminy Hall political machine that ran all of NYC in the late 19th Century. His career as a corrupt boss came to an abrupt end in 1873 when he was tried and found guilty of his crimes. After Tweed's conviction, construction on the building stopped from 1872-1876. The Courthouse was finally completed in 1881. The building itself was used as a courthouse for the NY State Supreme Court and later the City Court until 1961. Today, the building houses the NYC Department of Education.
Williamsburg
I decided to stay and join some of the classmates on the journey across the Williamsburg Bridge. It was a a really nice walk and had the most amazing views I have ever seen. Williamsburg Bridge is also known as "Jews Highway" because of the traffic of Jewish People seen on the Sabbath. The Williamsburg Bridge connects Brooklyn and Manhattan. After exiting the bridge, we walked for a really long, unnecessary time, but we finally reached a spot that you could die for. The sun was setting, the air was crisp, and it was a perfect photo opportunity. Afterwards, we checked out the Brewery and stopped at a few bars on the way home. The area is full of young people. I could see myself visiting the area again. It was a really nice area and I liked the flamboyant atmosphere. A perfect end to a perfect day.