Nestled deep in the heart of Greenwich Village lies Washington Square Park, one of the most popular public spaces in all of NYC and a cultural landmark whose rich and storied history is largely unknown to the thousands of tourists and residents who walk its hallowed grounds.
In the early 17th century, before it was a park, or a square (technically a rectangle), the area was a marshland used by the Lenape Tribe for hunting waterfowl. Once Dutch settlers arrived in Manhattan and expeditiously forced all the Lenape out of their native land, they turned the marsh into farmland to feed the flourishing New Amsterdam colony.
After the Revolutionary War, the area was used as a potter’s field, a mass burial place for the poor, indigent, and victims of epidemic. The potter’s field operated for nearly 30 years and an estimated 20,000 human skeletons remain beneath the park today, for the city couldn’t afford to disinter all those lost souls laid to rest.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the land was paved and aptly dubbed Washington Parade Grounds on July 4th 1826, at a time when it was very much in fashion to name things after our first president.
Complementing the central fountain, the Washington Square Arch was initially made of papier-mâché and plaster in 1889 to celebrate the centennial of George Washington’s inauguration. The temporary arch proved to be a sensation and was erected in marble to stand permanently and gloriously at lower Fifth Avenue in 1892.
After WWII, a strong bohemian community flourished around the square. Bob Dylan and Joan Baez would sing regularly by the fountain as beat writers composed their radical works. Though skyrocketing real estate values have since edged working artists out of the neighborhood, Washington Square Park remains a cultural epicenter and dynamic public space for all to enjoy.
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Sources:
Photo courtesy of Doc Searls without change via Flickr (https://flic.kr/p/nA22rF)
http://washingtonsquareparkconservancy.org/history/
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/washington-square-park/monuments/1657
https://www.nypl.org/blog/2011/03/10/grim-origins-washington-square-park