Considered by many to be one of the most beautiful buildings in NYC, the&nbsp;Woolworth Building is also one of the most architecturally significant buildings in the city.&nbsp;&nbsp;The ornate cruciform lobby is particularly significant and features veined marble floors, vaulted ceiling, mosaics, stained-glass ceiling light and bronze fittings. The&nbsp;building is an homage to the work of architect, Cass Gilbert, and the artisans and artists he employed.Frank Winfield Woolworth (April 13, 1852 – April 8, 1919) made his fortune by founding the F.W. Woolworth Company, one of the world's most successful five-and-dime stores.&nbsp;Despite having numerous buildings in his chain store empire, Woolworth had aspirations to build a skyscraper to immortalize his name, and the idea for the Woolworth Building was born. In 1910, Woolworth commissioned architect Cass Gilbert to design the Woolworth Building, which was to serve as the central corporate headquarters and office space for the Woolworth Company. Construction on the building began that year, and in 1913, it was completed and ready to be inhabited. Not only was the building an architectural marvel, but it was also, at the time of its completion, the largest building in the world. It remained so for 17 years.

On November 13th, 1966, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places and Designated as a National Historic Landmark, and on April 12th, 1983, it was designated as a New York City Landmark. The Woolworth Building was owned by the Woolworth Company until 1998, when it was sold to the Witkoff Group. Since the sale of the building, it has undergone numerous renovations, and plans have been in the works to convert parts of the building into office space, as well as luxury apartments. &nbsp;The building has been the scene of many Hollywood movies, including 2016's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them." The only way to see inside the Woolworth Building is to work there or take a&nbsp;guided tour of the lobby, mezzanine,&nbsp;and cellar. Many of the tours are led by the architect's great-granddaughter, Helen Post Curry.&nbsp;&nbsp;

A view of the Woolworth Building in 1913.

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NY Times Article about the building reopening for tours 

The Woolworth Building is an early North American skyscraper, and one of the 100 tallest buildings in the United States. Completed in 1913, the Woolworth Building was the dream building of Frank W. Woolworth, head of the Woolworth Company, which occupied the building for 85 years. It has been designated as a New York City Landmark, a National Historic Landmark, and has been added to the National Register of Historic Places. Now owned by the Witkoff Group, the Woolworth Building is still in use and tours are available. 

Woolworth Building

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This short walk starts at New York's City Hall and winds its way around the surrounding park with stops at iconic landmarks such as the Woolworth Building and Tweed Courthouse. The tour includes several statues that surround City Hall, Tweed Courthouse, the Municipal Archives, the Manhattan Municipal Building, and a little-known place where visitors can catch a glimpse of the former City Hall Subway Station that closed 75 years ago. 

Before there was the City Hall we see today, the work of the government of New York City was done in the original city hall. Built in 1700, it was located at the corner of Wall Street and Nassau Street. It was determined that the building needed to be replaced, and a competition was held to select an architect to design the new City Hall. In 1802, the designs of John McComb, a native New Yorker, and Joseph Francois Mangin, a French émigré, won the competition.     Work began immediately. Construction took nine years, beginning in 1803 and continuing into 1812. However, it took several more years until the building was ready to be inhabited. By blending the international flavor of both men's influences, the interior can be described as American Georgian while the exterior is French Renaissance. The new City Hall is three stories high with a central pavilion that is flanked by two projecting wings with large arched windows, delicate ornamental swags, and decorative Corinthian and Iconic style columnns and pilasters.     You enter City Hall by ascending a large stone stairway leading to the main entrance that has been the scene of many important events throughout the last two centuries. Upon entering City Hall, a grand marble staircase sweeps up to the one-story portico fronting the building. The roof of the portico is capped by a balustrade, forming a balcony outside the Governor’s Room where five large arched windows soar to impressive heights. The rotunda dominates the interior and is dramatically encircled by a keystone-cantilevered staircase. Ten columnns on the second floor support the coffered dome that is modeled after the one in the Pantheon in Rome. A cupola rises above the attic where a copper statue of Justice majestically watches over the city below.     City Hall's most notable room, the Governor's Room, has served as a museum and reception room. It houses one of the most important collections of 19th century American portraiture as well as a collection of historic furnishings, including George Washington's desk and pieces by Charles Christian and Honoré Lannuier. Many distinguished guests have visited City Hall, including the Marquis de Lafayette, Albert Einstein, President James Monroe, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Abraham Lincoln whose body lay in state there for two days. Over the years, it has been refurbished and restored many times including a redecoration by Bernstein and Bernstein from 1905 to 1907.

New York City's City Hall houses the city’s government offices, such as the Mayor of New York City and the chambers of the 51 New York City Council members. It is the oldest city hall in the nation that still serves its original purpose, and is considered one of the finest architectural achievements of its period. Tours are offered to the public; however, they must be scheduled in advanced. It is located at the center of City Hall Park between Broadway, Park Row, and Chambers Street.    

New York City Hall

Nathan Hale was born to a wealthy family in Coventry, Connecticut on June 6, 1755. At the age of fourteen, he enrolled at Yale College (now Yale University). An exemplary student, Hale graduated in 1773. That same year, he commenced a career in education, teaching first at a small school in East Haddam and then the following year at a private academy in New London.  In April 1775, the first shots of the American Revolution were fired at Lexington and Concord. The following month, two of Hale’s brothers marched to Massachusetts with the Connecticut Militia. Despite being enrolled in the Connecticut Militia, Hale remained behind to complete his teaching duties before traveling to Massachusetts a few weeks later to join his unit. That same year, he joined the Seventh Connecticut Regiment of the Continental Army, received a promotion to the rank of first lieutenant, and participated in the Siege of Boston. When his regiment’s enlistment term expired at the end of 1775, Hale joined the Nineteenth Connecticut Regiment and later received a promotion to the rank of captain.  Following their victory at the Battle of Brooklyn in late August 1776, the British completed the first step in their quest to capture New York City by taking control of Long Island. Camped across the East River in Manhattan was George Washington and the outnumbered Continental Army, with Hale in its ranks. Desirous to obtain information on his enemy’s next move, Washington created a battalion of rangers, whose purpose was to perform scouting and reconnaissance. The unit’s commander, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Knowlton of Connecticut, selected Hale to serve with the rangers. Soon after, in early September, Washington asked for a volunteer from the battalion to sneak behind enemy lines on Long Island to gather intelligence on troop movements and fortifications. When the rest of his brothers-in-arms hesitated, Hale stepped forward and volunteered. He then left Manhattan and traveled to Norwalk, Connecticut. There, Hale secured passage across Long Island Sound. Dressed as a Dutch schoolteacher, he slipped behind British lines and collected information. On the evening of September 21, while Hale was attempting to sail across Long Island Sound and return to American-controlled territory, the British captured him. That night, British General William Howe interrogated Hale and, after being informed that incriminating documents had been found hidden under the soles of his shoes, sentenced him to death for spying. The next morning, the British hanged him. He was twenty-one years old. After leaving Hale’s body up for a few days as a warning to passersby, they buried it nearby. Legend has it that before his execution, Hale declared, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” However, no evidence exists to support this claim. Sometime around 1889 or 1890, the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York sponsored a design competition for a statue of Hale the organization hoped to dedicate in Manhattan. Frederick MacMonnies, a twenty-six-year-old Brooklyn-born sculptor, won the competition and received the commission. MacMonnies’ work depicts an over-life-sized interpretation of Hale standing shackled and bound awaiting execution. Dedicated on November 25, 1893 (the one hundred and tenth anniversary of Evacuation Day), the bronze statue rests on a pink granite pedestal designed by architect Stanford White. Since its unveiling, the statue has been moved several times within City Hall Park. Most recently, in 1999, it was relocated from the edge of the park near the intersection of Broadway and Murray Street to the lawn in front of the entrance to City Hall, where it remains today.

This statue honors one of the first American spies of the Revolutionary War, Nathan Hale (1755-1776). In early September 1776, the Connecticut native and captain in the Continental Army volunteered to sneak behind British lines on Long Island to gather intelligence on troop movements and fortifications. On the evening of September 21, while Hale was attempting to sail across Long Island Sound and return to American-controlled territory, the British captured him and sentenced him to death for spying. The next morning, the British hanged him. Legend has it that before his execution, Hale declared, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” However, no evidence exists to support this claim. Sponsored by the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York and designed by sculptor Frederick MacMonnies, the bronze statue depicts an over-life-sized interpretation of Hale standing shackled and bound awaiting execution. Dedicated on November 25, 1893, it rests on a pink granite pedestal designed by architect Stanford White. Since its unveiling, the statue has been moved several times within City Hall Park. Most recently, in 1999, it was relocated from the edge of the park near the intersection of Broadway and Murray Street to the lawn in front of the entrance to City Hall, where it remains today.

Nathan Hale Statue

The first subway train to hold public passengers in New York City departed from City Hall station in 1904. This station was designed by architects Heins &amp; LaFarge with vaulted tile ceilings crafted by Rafael Guastavino. Guastavino was a Spanish engineer known for his sweeping arches, a feature that he included in other prominent NYC landmarks such as Grand Central Terminal and the Queensboro Bridge. Heins &amp; LaFarge was a New York-based architectural firm that had previously won the contract for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine among other projects. The station design was influenced by the Beaux Arts movement and the City Beautiful movement. At a time when cities were expanding rapidly and haphazardly, the City Beautiful movement was an urban planning idea which held that beautifully designed spaces were key to creating more livable and orderly cities. The early stations designed by Heins &amp; LaFarge are identified by ornate bas relief plaques and swirling flourishes. They also only worked on the numbered subway lines, as the lettered lines were constructed later.  John B. McDonald won the bid from the City of New York to construct the first subway line at an estimated cost of nearly $34 million. City Hall station was the most elegant of all stations along the Interborough Rapid Transit subway line, featuring elaborate “skylights and ornate Grueby Faience tiles.”(3) Some of the skylights can still be spotted peeking through the foliage in the modern-day City Hall Park. The Interborough Rapid Transit Subway (or IRT) was the first subway company in New York and operated the subway under an agreement with Mr. McDonald. The first subway line ran from City Hall to 145th Street, a distance of more than nine miles, and the fare was only a nickel. According to reports from the New York Times, 150,000 passengers rode the subway on its opening day. The Mayor at the time, George B. McClellan, acted as the conductor for the first subway ride, a ride which departed City Hall and arrived at 145th and Broadway in 26 minutes. In true New York form, almost immediately after the subway was open to the public, advertisers carted large signs down to the subway platforms. Passengers were quick to complain that, “the fine appearance of things was to be marred” and the Mayor commented that the signs, “look very bad.”(7)  Amazingly, nearly 30 years prior to the opening of this subway line, New York City had tested another underground train system. In 1870, the city briefly tested a “pneumatic-powered subway beneath Broadway in Lower Manhattan.” (6) Despite continued interest in alleviating traffic in the City, due to complications in the political and economic environment, any version of the subway project struggled to gain support over the next three decades. In March of 1900, the first actual work began on the subway. Construction continued for four years and seven months. Over the course of construction, 16 men were killed and 125 injured, although this was considered below average at the time for a project of this scale.  The station was closed in 1945 as longer trains came into service and the cost of modernizing the old station, which was built on a tight curve, outweighed the benefits of keeping the station in service . Today, there is only one tour available for those who wish to visit New York City’s first subway station. The tour is operated by the New York Transit Museum and is only available for members – details are available through the link at the end of this entry.  Visitors can also catch a glimpse of the station via the Number 6 Train. Hop on any downtown-bound 6 train and remain on the train after the final stop (Brooklyn Bridge). The 6 train will make a loop after the final stop, passing through this little sliver of the past before heading back uptown.

New York’s first subway station opened on October 27, 1904, and was located almost directly beneath City Hall. Elegantly designed with gilded chandeliers and vaulted tile ceilings, this station was the crown jewel of New York's new modern engineering marvel - an underground railroad. The original subway line covered nine miles from City Hall to 145th Street and Broadway. The opening day for the subway saw some 150,000 New Yorkers testing their new form of transit. The old City Hall subway station is no longer in use and is closed to the public, but the station may still be viewed by remaining on the downtown-bound Number 6 Train after its final stop as the train continues and makes a loop before heading uptown. In addition, some of the original skylights can still be spotted by peeking through the foliage in the modern-day City Hall Park.

New York's Old City Hall Subway Station (1904-1945)

William M. Tweed,
widely known as&nbsp;"Boss" Tweed, was a very influential Democratic
politician in the 19th century.&nbsp;Tweed was elected&nbsp;to the United
States House of Representatives&nbsp;and served in office from 1852 to 1855. He
was&nbsp;the head of the Tammany Hall political machine and ushered
unprecedented political corruptness into the history of the organization.&nbsp; 
 
Tweed used the&nbsp;construction&nbsp;project of
Tweed Courthouse, a government building,&nbsp;to embezzle&nbsp;large amounts of
money from the budget. For&nbsp;example, a carpenter was&nbsp;paid more than three hundred thousand
dollars for a month's work.[link
3]&nbsp;The numerous city building projects Tweed issued were also a strategy
for him to gain votes from the workers that benefited from the job
opportunities. Ironically, Tweed himself was tried&nbsp;and convicted in this
courthouse&nbsp;and sentenced to 12 years in prison. After his scandals were
exposed, Tweed fled&nbsp;the country&nbsp;and was bailed out&nbsp;many times,
but ultimately came to&nbsp;his demise in Ludlow Street Jail. 
 
Despite its tainted background, the building
itself was nonetheless full of architectural wonders. John Kellum, a
self-taught architect whose famous works include the Cary Building, also on
Chambers Street, and&nbsp;the Alexander T. Stewart mansion&nbsp;on 5th
Avenue,&nbsp;won the commission to design and build the courthouse&nbsp;in
December 1861 and continued to work on it until he died in 1871. The original
design of the Tweed Courthouse was neo-classical, a popular architectural style
in the United States during the 19th century. German architect&nbsp;Leopold
Eidlitz, who also worked on the&nbsp;New York State Capitol building,&nbsp;continued
to build the building after Kellum's death. He added neo-Romanesque elements such
as bricks and stones in vibrant colors. The Old New York County Courthouse was
finally completed in 1881.&nbsp;The New York County Supreme Court used the
building until 1929, and the City Court used&nbsp;it until&nbsp;1961. In 1999,
the building went through extensive&nbsp;renovation, including the restoration
of the glass skylight in the main hall after its removal during World War II,
and the restoration of the main staircase after its truncation in 1942&nbsp;to
widen Chambers Street.&nbsp;Today, the&nbsp;Tweed Courthouse remains an important
historical site that allows its visitors to glimpse a bit of the past of New
York City.

The Tweed Courthouse, also known as the Old New York County Courthouse, was built between 1861 and 1881 by John Kellum and Leopold Eidlitz. An amalgam of two architects' work, the building contains elements of both neo-classical and neo-Romanesque architecture. It was not only a notable work of art; the Tweed Courthouse was associated with one of New York's greatest political scandals in the 1870s. It was designated as a New York City Landmark in 1984 and a National Historic Landmark on May 11, 1976. The building currently serves as the headquarters of the New York City Department of Education and as an educational center.

Tweed Courthouse

Between 1939 and 1941, and again in the mid-1980s, the city photographed every house and building in the five boroughs. As a result, the&nbsp;Municipal Archives has a collection of over 1.5 million photos.&nbsp;Researchers can view photographs from the 1940s collection on microfilm in the reference room. Low-resolution copies of the 1980s photos can be&nbsp;viewed online or on computers at the&nbsp;Municipal&nbsp;Archives. You can find office records, manuscript&nbsp;material, still and moving pictures, ledger volumes, maps, blueprints, and audio recordings regarding the administration of the New York City government. &nbsp;The records regarding the criminal justice system in NYC, dating form 1684 to 1966, are the largest and most comprehensive in the United States. The archives also&nbsp;maintains records of births reported in the five Boroughs of New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island), prior to 1910; deaths reported prior to 1949; and marriages reported prior to 1930.&nbsp; Committed to long-term preservation, a conservation unit continually upgrades its processes to maintain the archival collection in its care.

Founded in 1950, New York's Municipal Archives preserves and maintains over 220,000 cubic feet of records from over a hundred city agencies. Holdings date back to the Dutch colonial period, including records related to government, land deeds, criminal cases, census records, and items that can help those interested in uncovering their family history. The largest municipal archive in the world, the collection includes over a million photos. 

Municipal Archives

In the late 1800s, though the city of New York had performed admirably in providing civic services and space for its government branches, New York City’s City Hall had run out of space for additional government functions that needed to be carried out for the city. Because of this, many government agencies had to rent out office space in numerous other buildings spread out across the city. In response to this, an effort was formed in 1888 to commission a design for a building to house these other government agencies. It took until 1908 to select a design for the building, but construction on the Manhattan Municipal Building began in 1909, and the famed architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White was commissioned to design and build the new office space.

Construction on the building took a significant amount of time due to the sheer size of the building, but in 1915, the Manhattan Municipal Building was completed. Despite the official opening scheduled for&nbsp;1915, government agencies began moving into the building as early as January 1913. By 1916, almost all of the offices were occupied by government agencies, and their services were open and available to the public. The Manhattan Municipal Building was hugely successful, and on February 1, 1966, it was designated a New York City Landmark. Shortly after that on October 18th of 1972, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the Manhattan Municipal Building continues to serve the citizens of Manhattan.There is a New York City&nbsp;government bookstore which sells NYC-themed&nbsp;souvenirs, t-shirts, knick-knacks and books. You can also purchase your marriage license here and return a day or two later for the ceremony to be performed. While you are there, check out the&nbsp;arched brick&nbsp;ceilings on the Brooklyn Bridge side of the building's street level. &nbsp;These were designed and built by&nbsp;Rafael Guastavino, famous for his arched ceilings, also seen in Grand Central's corridors to the side of the main room. &nbsp;As you walk around the exterior of the building, look up to see Audrey Munson, "America's First Supermodel." The statue atop the Manhattan Municipal Building, known as "Civic Fame"&nbsp;was sculpted by Adolf Alexander Weinman, using Miss Munson as his model. &nbsp;She was a woman so beautiful her image can be seen all over Manhattan, as well as many other locations in the U.S.&nbsp;

The Manhattan Municipal Building, also known as the David N. Dinkins Municipal Building, is a government administration building located at 1 Centre Street in Manhattan. Constructed began in 1907 and was completed in 1914, the Manhattan Municipal Building has served numerous needs of Manhattan’s citizens in its many years of service. In February of 1966, it was designated as a New York City Landmark, and in October of 1972, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the Manhattan Municipal Building continues to serve the citizens of Manhattan through a variety of governmental services.

Manhattan Municipal Building

Horace Greeley was born to humble beginnings in the farming community of Amherst, New Hampshire on February 3, 1811. His father, Zaccheus, owned a small farm and occasionally worked as a day laborer. Due to his family’s economic struggles, Greeley attended school irregularly as a boy. Nevertheless, he became a voracious reader. In 1826, Greeley began an apprenticeship with the editor of a daily newspaper in East Poultney, Vermont. After the periodical ceased publication, he moved to Erie County, Pennsylvania, where he remained for a short time. In 1831, seeking greater opportunities, Greeley moved to New York City. There, he survived by working various jobs. Three years after arriving in the city, Greeley used what money he managed to save to establish a weekly literary and news publication, the New-Yorker.  While the periodical attempted to grow its readership and become profitable, Greeley became involved in politics to make ends meet. Throughout the late 1830s, he wrote regularly for a Whig newspaper and edited campaign sheets. It was also during this period that Greeley made the acquaintance of Thurlow Weed, an influential Albany newspaper editor and Whig political organizer. Weed not only paid him to serve as editor of a short-lived political newspaper that supported William Seward’s 1838 gubernatorial campaign (the Jeffersonian), but also helped him launch a political periodical of his own that supported William Henry Harrison’s 1840 White House bid, the Log Cabin.  In 1841, Greeley founded the New-York Tribune. The Whig periodical covered a wide variety of topics from news, politics, and social reform to book reviews, lectures, and poetry. In his editorial columns, Greeley spoke out against capital punishment, gambling, liquor, and prostitution, while championing education, Free Soil ideology, and westward expansion. The Tribune proved a tremendous success, becoming one of the nation’s leading newspapers by the Civil War. Consequently, Greeley became one of the most powerful newspaper editors in the nation.  In the 1850s, Greeley’s views on slavery influenced him to join a new national political party. Having broad political support in both the North and the South during the antebellum era, the Whig Party consequently took an ambivalent stance on the topic of slavery. Believing slavery to be an immoral institution that was also economically backward, Greeley gravitated toward the fledgling Republican Party. He attended the party’s organizational meeting in 1856 and its national convention in 1860, where he cast a ballot for Abraham Lincoln.  During the Civil War and Reconstruction, Greeley generally sided with the Radical Republicans. The editor of the Tribuneapplauded the Emancipation Proclamation, supported racial equality, and advocated for the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson. Greeley’s controversial decision not to support Lincoln’s reelection in 1864 hurt his popularity across the country. In 1867, hoping to quickly restore relations with the South after the war, he not only pushed for Jefferson Davis’ release from prison, but also signed the former Confederate president’s bail bond. Disturbed by the level of corruption in the Grant administration, Greeley ran against the incumbent president in 1872, but was sounded defeated. Only a few weeks after the election, he died in New York City at the age of sixty-one.  Following Greeley’s death, the Tribune launched a fundraising campaign to erect a statue in honor of its founder and long-time editor. The fundraising effort progressed slowly, in large part due to the Panic of 1873. The periodical eventually commissioned renowned sculptor John Quincy Adams Ward to design the statue and preeminent architect Richard Morris Hunt to design the pedestal. Ward’s work depicts Greeley sitting in an upholstered chair holding a newspaper. Dedicated on September 20, 1890, the over-life-sized bronze statue sits on a pedestal made of Quincy granite. Originally located in front of the Tribune building, the statue was moved in 1916 to the northeast corner of City Hall Park, where it remains today.

This statue honors prominent nineteenth-century newspaper editor and founder of the 'New-York Tribune,' Horace Greeley (1811-1872). A native of New Hampshire, he founded the periodical in 1841. Covering a wide variety of topics from news, politics, and social reform to book reviews, lectures, and poetry, the 'Tribune' became one of the nation’s leading newspapers by the Civil War. Consequently, Greeley became one of the most powerful newspaper editors in the nation. Disturbed by the level of corruption in the Grant administration, Greeley ran against the incumbent president in 1872, but was sounded defeated. Only a few weeks after the election, he died in New York City at the age of sixty-one. Following Greeley’s death, the Tribune began a fundraising campaign to erect a statue in honor of its founder and long-time editor. The fundraising effort progressed slowly, in large part due to the Panic of 1873. The periodical eventually commissioned renowned sculptor John Quincy Adams Ward to design the statue and preeminent architect Richard Morris Hunt to design the pedestal. Ward’s work depicts Greeley sitting in an upholstered chair holding a newspaper. Dedicated on September 20, 1890, the over-life-sized bronze statue sits on a pedestal made of Quincy granite. Originally located in front of the Tribune building, the statue was moved in 1916 to the northeast corner of City Hall Park, where it remains today.

Horace Greeley Statue

<blockquote> </blockquote>The creation of St. Paul's Chapel was granted permission&nbsp;by Queen Anne as a chapel-of-ease for worshipers who lived north of the Trinity Church in 1766.&nbsp;It was established during Britain's occupation of New York and was the first Anglican Church in Manhattan. The architects for this chapel are Andrew Gautier and James Crommelin Lawrence.&nbsp;St. Paul's has the classical portico, boxy proportions, and domestic details that are characteristic of Georgian churches such as James Gibbs' London church—St Martin-in-the-Fields, after which it was&nbsp;modeled.&nbsp;It served as a Revolutionary War Hospital and&nbsp;cemetery, and during the 9/11 attack, it&nbsp;hosted recovery workers. On September 21, 1776, a fire broke out in the Fighting Cock Tavern. The fire quickly spread, destroying many&nbsp;nearby buildings including&nbsp;the Trinity Church. Miraculously, St. Paul's Chapel escaped the flames, bringing signs of hope.&nbsp;On his Inauguration Day on April 30, 1789, George Washington attended services at St. Paul’s. He&nbsp;continued to worship there for the next two years while New York served as the nation’s capital.&nbsp; Many important people are buried in the cemetery of the chapel.&nbsp;The patriots buried at St. Paul's include four of the original members of the Society of the Cincinnati, a patriotic organization of the officers who served under George&nbsp;Washington. They are Major John Lucas and Major Job Summer,&nbsp;who both died of yellow fever in 1789; Lt. Col. Etienne Marie Bechet Sieur de Rochefontaine, a French officer who later commanded the artillery school at West Point; and Dr. John Francis Vacher. Other patriots buried in the cemetery&nbsp;include John Bailey, who forged the Washington battle sword in the Smithsonian, and John Holt, editor of the New York Gazette and New York Journal. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960.

St. Paul's Chapel was built between 1764 and 1766. It was the tallest building in the city at that time, and remains the oldest surviving church in Manhattan. George Washington attended services at this chapel, and visitors can see his original pew inside the church. Washington and members of Congress also attended a special service at the church prior to his inauguration on April 30, 1789. At the time, the church was one of the largest public buildings to have survived the Great New York Fire of 1776. It also survived the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, without any damage and became the center of relief operations for rescue workers in the aftermath of the attack.

The church is also home to the first monument commissioned by the United States Congress. The monument is located on the east side of the church and honors Patriot Richard Montgomery. Benjamin Franklin personally oversaw the construction of the monument after Congress commissioned its creation on January 25, 1776.

New York City Hall Park Walking Tour

Woolworth Building

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information