Washington Square Park
From The Peopling of NYC
Washington Square Park
Bounded by Waverly Place, 4th Street, University Place, and MacDougal Street
Original Design 1871; Architects M.A. Kellogg, I.A. Pillat
Redesigned 1971; Architect: Robert Nichols, landscape architect
Washington Square Park Arch in 1936
Photographer: Berenice Abbott
Photo taken in 1936
NYPL Digital Library
''I know not whether it is owing to the tenderness of early associations, but Washington Square appears to many persona as the most delectable. It has a kind of established repose which is not of frequent occurrence in other quarters of the long, shrill city; it has riper, richer more honorable look than any of the upper ramifications of the great longitudinal throughfare -- the look of having had something of a social history.''
--Henry James
Originally a marshland, the eight-acre parcel was purchased by the city in the 1780's for use as a potter’s field and as a site for a public gallows. Before Washington Square, Manhattan only had one five-and-a-half acre Square, Trinity Church's Hudson Square, compared to London's twenty squares. Manhattanites claimed that the city did not need "vacant space." In 1826, it was named to honor George Washington and rehabilitated as a military parade ground, a use that proved impractical when the heavy artillery sometimes caved into the graces below. Mayor Phillip Hone, elected in 1826, is considered the "father of Washington Square." He made sure that Washington Square would be developed to "benefit the city as a whole."
In 1832, New York University paid $40,000 for "the entire blockfront between Waverly and Washington Places[.]" This drained 99.9% of the university's money (they only had $66.46 left!). Though placing the college $150,000 in debt, NY become on of the neighborhood's most beautiful landmarks for the first half of the century. By the mid-1850's the Square had been reconfigured as an airy commons, complete with a fountain and intersecting pedestrian paths. In 1870 new concern in New York focused on relieving the city from congestion from industrialization by providing open public spaces. Many benches were provided, which in the 1880's, were occupied by immigrants from nearby tenements. The park became an important debarkation point for riders of Fifth Avenue Coach Lines. Since this as where most rider first made contact with Greenwich Village, Washington Square South and its side streets became the testing ground for entrepreneurial efforts to market different bohemian products and experiences.
Washington Square Arch
Fifth Avenue and Waverly Place
Designed 1892; Architects: McKim, Mead, & White
The Arch was originally erected as a temporary arch for the centennial celebration of George Washington’s inauguration. The Washington Square Memorial Arch was first erected in 1889 to commemorate the centennial of George Washington's inauguration. The arch was the idea of a Washington Square North resident, William Rhinelander Stewart, who upon reading that a parade to mark the occasion would march up 5th Avenue, decided that the paraders needed an arch to march through. He gathered donations from residents of Washington Square, Waverly Place, and Fifth Avenue up to 14th St.--refusing money from anywhere else--and commissioned Stanford White of the McKim, Mead & White firm to design it. The arch was built of wood and ornamented with a frieze of garlands, and wreaths of laurel in papier-mache. At night, it was illuminated by incandescent light. The temporary arch was a great success, and a special committee was formed to erect a permanent arch. The marble arch was dedicated on April 30, 1895.
Today’s arch is built of white marble. Two marble eagles are perched on the keystones, and on the west pier there is a staircase of 110 steps. The inscription on the north facade reads: “To commemorate the One Hundredth Anniversary of the Inauguration of George Washington as the first President of the United States.” On the south facade is Washington’s quote: “Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair –the event is in the hands of God.”
Works Cited:
This should be cited as:
Harris, Luther R. Around Washington Square. City of Publication: Publishing House, copyright year. (Please note all punctuation as I have it: see MLA's publication on citing resources)
John
Photo taken from NYU Archives. 1968.