If you want to visit the site of the original World Trade Center, go across Greenwich Street. If not, look over your shoulder to see the new 1 World Trade Center (formerly named Freedom Tower). This sleek combo of glass, metal, and ingenuity is the tallest building in the western hemisphere and the fourth tallest in the world. Also gaze at the flags of the 9/11 Memorial. Admission is free for the memorial—reflecting pools in the Twin Towers’ footprints, with the names of those who died engraved on the pools’ perimeters—but there’s a charge for the museum on the grounds (see website for details).
Walk east along Liberty Street until it meets Broadway, then turn left to reach the ultramodern Fulton Street station, a hub bringing together several subway lines.
POINTS OF INTEREST
Trinity Church trinitywallstreet.org, 74 Trinity Pl., 212-602-0800
New York Stock Exchange nyse.com, 18 Broad St., 212-656-3000
Federal Hall nps.gov/feha, 26 Wall St., 212-825-6990
Museum of American Finance mcaf.org, 48 Wall St., 212-908-4110
Louise Nevelson Plaza Bounded by William Street, Maiden Lane, and Liberty Street
Federal Reserve Bank of New York ny.frb.org, 33 Liberty St., 212-720-5000
Zuccotti Park Broadway at Liberty Street
9/11 Tribute Center tributewtc.org, 120 Liberty St., 212-393-9160
FDNY Memorial Wall fdnytenhouse.com/fdnywall, 124 Liberty St.
1 World Trade Center onewtc.com, bounded by West, Vesey, Fulton, and Washington Streets
9/11 Memorial (National September 11 Memorial & Museum) 911memorial.org, 180 Greenwich St., 212-266-5211
ROUTE SUMMARY
1 Begin at Wall Street and Broadway, and see Trinity Church and its cemetery.
2 Walk on Wall Street to Broad Street and go right.
3 Return to Wall Street and continue in the direction you’d been heading.
4 Walk left on William Street.
5 Walk left at Liberty Street.
6 Cross Broadway and enter Zuccotti Park.
7 Walk left on Trinity Place, then reverse direction.
8 Walk left on Liberty Street to Greenwich Street.
9 Return on Liberty Street to Broadway, then go left to Fulton Street for the train.
CONNECTING THE WALKS
The next walk (City Hall and South Street Seaport) starts where this one ends. For the Civic Center and Chinatown tour (Walk 5), walk north on Broadway almost seven blocks until you reach the City Hall R train station, on your right just past Murray Street.
George Washington surveys the Stock Exchange.
4 CITY HALL AND SOUTH STREET SEAPORT: CITY HALL AWAITS YOUR CALL
BOUNDARIES: Broadway, Barclay St., East River, Fulton St.
DISTANCE: 2.7 miles
SUBWAY: A/C/J/2/3/4/5 to Fulton St.
During the second half of the 1990s, I worked near City Hall. Each day I commuted by train to one of the busiest parts of Manhattan and jockeyed for sidewalk space once I got there. I joined thousands of workers, students, tourists, and fellow New Yorkers who frequented municipal buildings to get licenses, deal with parking tickets, attend court sessions, and conduct research, among other things. I taught at the oddly shaped Murry Bergtraum High School, a large public school with a business theme. It was the best teaching experience of my career.
A built-in bonus of working at MBHS was having City Hall and the South Street Seaport area at my reach. I could easily run errands or shop after school. When I had time on my hands to play tourist, I’d roam the neighborhood, camera in hand (I ran the school’s photography club), and admire the architecture and monuments liberally sprinkled about. I had my favorite restaurants and snack shops, and sometimes my colleagues and I would visit one of the bars near the Seaport or stroll to Chinatown to eat congee. If a parade was passing nearby (for the Yankees’ World Series win, for example—more on that later), we would stop and watch at some point. Everyone enjoyed scoping out bargains at the discount stores on Fulton Street.
It’s hard to believe how spiffy City Hall looks now, its park playing host to rotating outdoor art exhibits, farmers’ markets, and other activities. You’ll find plenty of other things to see and do around here, though. So don’t fight City Hall—have fun at its expense!
The Fulton Street subway station is a labyrinthine tangle of platforms, staircases, artwork, shops, and confusion. Whichever train gets you here, look for signs that direct you to an exit on Broadway (if you get out on John Street or Fulton Street, ask for directions to Broadway). As you get some distance from the station, take a look at the “dome” over it. This 2010 addition resembles a Bundt cake pan.
Once on Broadway, walk to St. Paul’s Chapel, on the north side of Fulton Street. Built in 1766, this is the oldest surviving church building in Manhattan (once upon a time, it was also the tallest building in the city). The brown-and-buff exterior, with its Ionic-columned portico, is kind of somber, but the interior is quite light and airy. The sanctuary has many tributes to 9/11; in the days following the attacks, first responders took refuge here. In addition to prayer and worship, visitors can partake of St. Paul’s numerous interactive elements, such as the Pilgrimage Altar (you can contribute your thoughts), the Memorial Altar (remembering 9/11 victims), and other spots to add mementos.Remarkable historical artifacts are displayed here as well. The Governor’s Box consists of two upholstered chairs with a small wooden border, for use when a governor attends services. George Washington’s Pew (actually a replica) is a legendary part of the church; he worshiped here when New York City was the US capital. A beautiful side chapel, trimmed in white and gold, bears the Hebrew word for God on an arch above the altar. Walk outside to the churchyard, which in the wake of 9/11 was heavily covered with debris. Now it offers a monumental view of the new 1 World Trade Center.
From St. Paul’s, make a right on Broadway and then a right on Fulton Street. The 29-story white building on the left, at 195 Broadway, is the old AT&T Building, now owned by Sony. Completed in 1916, it was the site of the first transatlantic phone call.
Make a right from Fulton onto Church Street and look up, up, up at the new World Trade Center—a triumph over terrorism. Its spire makes it the tallest building in the United States, built to a symbolic 1,776 feet high. New York, and the world, are in awe.
Continue on Church to Vesey Street. To the left, at #90, is the Federal Office Building and US Post Office. Taking up an