New York Banking and Stock Exchange Walking Tour

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The Museum of American Finance is the nation’s only independent museum dedicated to preserving, exhibiting and teaching about American finance and financial history. Housed in an historic bank building on Wall Street, the Museum’s magnificent grand mezzanine banking hall provides an ideal setting for permanent exhibits on the financial markets, money, banking, entrepreneurship, and Alexander Hamilton. With its extensive collection of financial documents and objects, and its seminars and educational programming, the Museum portrays the breadth and richness of American financial history, achievement, and practices. It occupies the former home of the Bank of New York, founded by Alexander Hamilton in 1784.

2. 23 Wall Street, Former Headquarters of J. P. Morgan

23 Wall Street, also known as "The Corner," is an office building situated in Manhattan's Financial District at the intersection of Wall Street and Broad Street. The structure was designed by the architectural firm of Trowbridge and Livingston. Completed in 1914 as the headquarters for the J.P. Morgan and Co., the four-story bank still stands today, although scarred by small pockmarks from the infamous anarchist’s bomb attack that killed 38.

3. Fearless Girl

Designed by sculptor Kristen Visbal, the bronze statue symbolizes female empowerment. Commissioned by State Street Global Advisors, an investment management firm headquartered in Boston, as part of its ongoing campaign to persuade other companies in the United States to add more women to their boards, the sculpture depicts a defiant young girl, roughly four-foot-tall, with her hands on her hips, shoulders back, and a confident smirk on her face. Originally installed as a temporary art piece opposite Arturo Di Modica’s iconic bronze bull in Bowling Green in Lower Manhattan, the statue was moved to its new, permanent home in front of the New York Stock Exchange in December 2018.

4. St. Nicholas Bank, 1854-1893

Remembered only by currency collectors who value its notes that featured Santa Claus, this historic bank operated on Wall Street throughout the second half of the 19th century. Historian Stephen Mihm found that the bank was established in 1853 with a capitalization of half a million dollars and operated until 1893. As a state-chartered bank, it issued its own currency notes in the years prior to the creation of federal notes. The bank was led by Caleb Barstow, who served as president from 1856 to 1874 and was remembered for his generosity. The bank's notes incorporate ships (the original Saint Nicholas was the patron saint of sailors), several images of Santa, and even one bill with early New York founder Peter Stuyvesant.

5. New York Stock Exchange

The NYSE trading floor is located at 11 Wall Street and is composed of four rooms used for the facilitation of trading. A fifth trading room, located at 30 Broad Street, was closed in February 2007. The main building, located at 18 Broad Street, between the corners of Wall Street and Exchange Place, was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1978.

6. Federal Hall

Federal Hall National Memorial is located at the former site of New York's city hall which was constructed in 1703 and later became the first seat of the United States government. The current building was completed in 1842 and is now operated by the National Park Service. The original city hall from the colonial era was the site of the famous trial of John Peter Zenger. In 1765, this was also where the Stamp Act Congress met with delegates from different colonies protesting their dissatisfaction with "taxation without representation." After the Revolutionary War, it was here that George Washington was inaugurated, and this is also the place where the Bill of Rights was proposed and ratified. Federal Hall served as the seat of government from 1789 until 1790 when the U.S. capital was moved to Philadelphia. The original building was demolished in 1812, and this building was constructed and opened for service in 1842 as a U.S. custom house. At the end of the Great Depression, the building began its transition to its current use as a heritage site. Federal Hall is now operated by the National Park Service with artifacts and tours that interpret the colonial era and early republic with an emphasis on the role played by the city of New York.

7. Liberty Tower (Sinclair Oil Building) New York City

Manhattan’s Liberty Tower, previously known as the Sinclair Oil Building, is a historic office building in Manhattan’s Financial District. Constructed between 1909 and 1910, the Liberty Tower was, for a time, the tallest building in the world. In August of 1982, it was designated as a New York City Landmark, and in September of 1983, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1979, architect Joseph Pell Lombardi converted the building into an apartment building, and it has served as such ever since then.

8. The Singer Building (1908-1968)

The Singer Building, built between 1906 and 1908, was the tallest building in the U.S. from 1908-1909. The building was located at the intersection Broadway and Liberty Street. This building housed the famous Singer Sewing Machine Company and was owned by the Singer Manufacturing Company. This record breaking building was demolished in 1968.

9. Zuccotti Park

Created in 1968 as part of an agreement between the Manhattan borough leaders and United States Steel, this public park was among the areas damaged by the September 11th terrorist attacks. The park, like the rest of the surrounding structures and plazas, was rebuilt and now offers a blend of tourists and business people enjoying the space together. The park was the site of numerous public ceremonies in the years following the attack, and it reopened in the spring of 2006 following an $8 million renovation project. The park was also the location of the Occupy Wall Street protests that saw activists encamped throughout the park until they were evicted by the city police in November 2011. The park is named in honor of John E. Zuccotti, the chairman of Brookfield Ofice Properties that acquired the real estate from US Steel. The park features the 70-foot tall outdoor sculpture Joie de Vivre by artist Mark di Suvero.

10. American Stock Exchange

The American Stock Exchange Building is the former headquarters of the American Stock Exchange. Previously known as the New York Curb Exchange Building, the American Stock Exchange Building was an early hub for stock and security traders in New York City until the New York Stock Exchange became the central trading center for the city in 2008. Since then, the building has remained unused and vacant.

11. Trinity Church and Cemetery, New York City

The current church is the third Trinity Church that was constructed in 1846. The history of this church dates back to the founding of its Episcopal parish in 1697. Trinity Church was established by royal charter and became the first Anglican Church in New York. Inside this historic church is the Trinity Museum with exhibits about the history of Trinity Church and St. Paul's Chapel, another historic church that is also a member of the parish. Trinity Church and St. Paul’s Chapel are surrounded by a number of historic monuments and burial plots.

12. Empire Building, Manhattan

The Empire Building is a historic skyscraper building located in Manhattan’s Financial District. The building is built on the site of an office building that was constructed in 1859. Completed in 1898, the Empire Building was the headquarters of the United States Steel Corporation from the founding of the corporation in 1901 until 1976. It was designated as a New York City Landmark in June of 1996, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in August of 1998.

13. Charging Bull

Created by Italian-American sculptor Arturo Di Modica following the stock market crash of 1987, the bronze statue symbolizes American resiliency and strives to inspire hope for the future. A piece of guerrilla art, the sculpture measures sixteen feet in length, eleven feet in height, and weighs seven thousand pounds. Late on the night of December 15, 1989, Di Modica and his accomplices transported the statue on a flatbed truck and placed it in front of the New York Stock Exchange in Lower Manhattan. The following day, the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange had it removed. Increasing public outcry over the statue’s removal, however, impelled New York City Parks Department commissioner Henry J. Stern to arrange for the bronze bull to be temporarily placed in Bowling Green, a small public park in Lower Manhattan and the closest one to Wall Street. On December 20, only four days after the statue was removed from the front of the New York Stock Exchange, city workers installed it in the park. The following day, Stern officially unveiled it. Despite the fact that Bowling Green was intended originally to serve as its temporary home, the bronze statue remains in the park to this day and has become one of the most significant tourist attractions in Lower Manhattan. Over the years, the sculpture has witnessed protests, suffered vandalism, and survived attempts by public officials to relocate it.

This Tour is a Walking Tour.

New York Banking and Stock Exchange Walking Tour

Created by Marc Wolloch on February 3rd 2017, 2:57:12 pm.

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Description

This short tour includes stops at historic banks, stock exchanges, and government buildings related to the city of New York becoming the center of American finance by the early 1900s. The tour includes iconic statues like Charging Bull and Fearless Girl as well as the Empire Building, Trinity Church, the American Stock Exchange, Liberty Tower, Federal Hall, the New York Stock Exchange, and the American Museum of Finance.

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New York Banking and Stock Exchange Walking Tour

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