Union Square

Union Square was created in the early 19th century at the convergence of what is now Broadway and Fourth Avenue. The square is a popular place for political rallies and public protests. It is also known for its Greenmarket, an outdoor market where local farmers sell fresh produce.

History

Union Square

Originally used as a potter's field, the history of the current square goes back to 1811 when the gridiron plan of Manhattan, originally conceived in 1807, was approved. The area was named Union Place since it was the site of the 'union' of two major streets: Broadway and Fourth Avenue (then Bloomingdale Road and Bowery Road). It was officially designated as a public space in 1831.

Riverside Park

Located on the Upper West Side, this narrow strip of parkland makes you think you've left the city!

The Design of the Park

Extending for four miles (6 km) from 72nd to 158th Street along the 

Riverside Park

Hudson River, Riverside Park is truly one of the nicest spots in Manhattan. A New York "Designated Scenic Landmark", the park has long provided respite for those looking to escape the crowds of the city.

Designed in 1873 by Central Park's Frederick Law Olmsted, who is responsible for many NY parks, Riverside Park boasts a variety of different landscapes, from colorful flower gardens to rocky precipices.

Cathedral of St. John the Divine

In 1887, the Episcopalians decided to build a grand cathedral in New York City dedicated to St. John the Divine. It isn't quite finished yet!

In the Beginning

Cathedral of St. John the Divine

In response to the construction of the Catholic Church's amazing St. Patrick's Cathedral at 50th and Fifth Avenue, the Episcopal Diocese of New York decided to build one of its own. Thus began the plans for The Cathedral of St. John the Divine.

Brooklyn Heights

Considered to be America's first suburb, the neighborhood known as Brooklyn Heights offers a look at stunning brownstones and quiet tree-lined streets, not to mention killer views of Manhattan.

History

Brooklyn Heights was one of the first areas outside the city of Manhattan to be settled. Wealthy city investors

chose this neighborhood along the East River so that they could watch the new skyscrapers as they were constructed, eventually creating the most famous skyline in the world.

Lever House

At only 302 ft, the Lever House is a small building by Manhattan standards, but the glass-walled skyscraper marked a turning point in American office architecture.

A Squeaky Clean Building

The Lever House was constructed in 1952 as the new headquarters for the Lever Brothers Company, the biggest manufacturers of soap and detergents.

They commissioned Skidmore, Owings and Merrill to build a modern, clean and American building. Gordon Brunshaft, the leading architect, based its design on earlier ideas from European modernist architects such as Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier, but it was the first time their radical ideas were implemented in a corporate office tower.

World Financial Center

The World Financial Center is a complex of four postmodern buildings designed by Cesar Pelli.

What's There?

Situated in Battery Park City, just across 

World Financial Center

the street from the site of the former World Trade Center towers, the World Financial Center (WFC) was built between 1985 and 1988. Designed by Cesar Pelli and overlooking the Hudson River, the center was built on the same landfill that was used to construct the rest of Battery Park City. The landfill included dirt excavated from the site of the World Trade Center, which was cleared to make room for the towers.

Seagram Building

Built as the corporate headquarters for Canadian distillers Joseph E. Seagram and Sons, the innovative Seagram Building set the stage for the design of New York skyscrapers for many years to come.

Situated on New York's famed Park Avenue between 52nd and 53rd Street, the Seagram 

Building was a pioneer in its time. Designed by well-known German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in collaboration with American Philip Johnson, this building was to become a model for the next 40 years of NYC skyscrapers.

Architecture

Most skyscrapers in the 1950s and prior had a decorated facade built around a structural frame. However, van der Rohe was hoping for a different look. He wanted the building's structural elements to be visible. Unfortunately, building codes forbid that, demanding that all structural steel be covered with some sort of fireproofing material, usually concrete.

New York Public Library

It's certainly fitting that one of the grandest cities in the world would boast one of the grandest libraries in the world! The New York Public Library has long been a magnificent educational and architectural landmark in Manhattan, a city known for doing everything on a large scale.

Public Library

This beautiful library is situated in Manhattan's midtown section, on ritzy Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Street. Several million people travel through the doors of the New York Public Library each year and an amazing 1.8 million individuals are NY library card holders.

Tudor City

Tudor City is a historic district in Midtown Manhattan developed in the 1920s by Fred F. French. It comprises 12 buildings in Tudor style.

In the 1920s, the Fred F. French company started to buy lots on the east side of Midtown Manhattan for a large housing project. 

The run-down area consisted mostly of tenements and brownhouses, bordered on the east by a gas company, breweries and slaughterhouses, causing filth and an unbearable smell.

SoHo

New York is full of exciting and quirky neighborhoods, and SoHo certainly fits both of those descriptions. A true example of urban gentrification, SoHo delights visitors with excellent restaurants, fun shops, interesting architecture, and enticing art galleries.

The Birth of SoHo

The name SoHo is an acronym for "SOuth of HOuston Street". The neighborhood stretches down to Canal Street and is sandwiched between Sixth Avenue to the West and Lafayette

Street (just east of Broadway) to the east.

Early SoHo was an industrial zone, full of cast-iron warehouses and cobblestone streets. Large upscale companies used the warehouses to store their extra merchandise and made use of the ornate window fronts to display some of their finest wares.