Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of
Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the
City of New York. Lower Manhattan is generally defined as the area delineated on the north by
Chambers Street, on the west by the
Hudson River (
North River), on the east by the
East River, and on the south by
Battery Park and
New York Harbor (also known as
Upper New York Bay). Lower Manhattan includes
Wall Street,
City Hall, the
Municipal Building, the
Financial District and the site of the
World Trade Center. It is the fourth largest
central business district in the United States, after
Midtown Manhattan,
Chicago's
Loop, and
Washington, D.C.. The neighborhood was previously the third largest CBD. Lower Manhattan's fall to fourth place can be attributed by the district's loss of the World Trade Center, which contributed over 16 million square feet of office space to the area. The square footage lost in the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks was equivalent to the office space in the entire city of
Cincinnati in 2001. It is expected that Downtown will regain its third place ranking after the construction of the
Freedom Tower, which is expected to yield close to the original center's square footage of rentable commercial space, and the construction of financial firm
Goldman Sachs' new headquarters.
History
The
Dutch established the first European settlements in Manhattan, which were located at the lower end of the island. The first fort was built at the
Battery to protect
New Netherland. In 1771, Bear Market was established along the Hudson shore on land donated by Trinity Church, and replaced by Washington Market in 1813. Washington Market was located between Barclay and Hubert Streets, and from Greenwich to West Street. Throughout the 1900's and 20's the area experienced a construction boom, towers such as
40 Wall Street,
American International Building,
Woolworth Building, and
20 Exchange Place were completed in the 1900's and 30's. At the end of the 1950s, Lower Manhattan had become economically depressed, in comparison with
Midtown Manhattan which was booming.
In the 1950s, a few new buildings were constructed in Lower Manhattan, including an 11-story building at 156 William Street in 1955. A 27-story office building at 20 Broad Street, a 12-story building at 80 Pine Street, a 26-story building at 123 William Street, and a few others were built in 1957.
Construction of
Battery Park City brought in many new residents to Lower Manhattan. The Complex started construction in the 1980s from landfill from construction of the
World Trade Center. The Gateway Plaza, the first complex to be completed in Battery Park City was completed in 1983. The
World Financial Center was the main centerpiece of the project, consisting of four luxurious highrise towers. By the turn of the century, Battery Park City was mostly completed, with the exception of some ongoing construction on West Street. By the late 90's and early 2000s Lower Manhattan was fully developed and reached its highest population of business tenants and residents.
Historic sites
The area contains many old and historic building and sites, including
Castle Garden, originally the fort
Castle Clinton,
Bowling Green, the old
United States Customs House, now the
National Museum of the American Indian,
Federal Hall, where
George Washington was
inaugurated as the first
U.S. President,
Fraunces Tavern,
New York City Hall, the
New York Stock Exchange, renovated original mercantile buildings of the
South Street Seaport (and a modern tourist building), the
Fulton Fish Market, the
Brooklyn Bridge,
South Ferry, embarkation point for the
Staten Island Ferry and ferries to
Liberty Island and
Ellis Island, and
Trinity Church. Lower Manhattan is home to some of New York City's most spectacular skyscrapers, including the
Woolworth Building,
40 Wall Street(also known as the Trump Building), the
Standard Oil Building, and the
American International Building.
Cardinal directions in Manhattan
"Downtown Manhattan" has different meanings to different people, especially depending on where in New York City they reside. Generally speaking, it refers, like Lower Manhattan, to the area of Manhattan south of
Canal Street.
With this definition, it would refer to the neighborhoods of the
Financial District,
Battery Park City,
TriBeCa, and most of
Chinatown. Sometimes areas north of Canal Street, including
SoHo and
Greenwich Village, up to 14th Street are also considered part of "Downtown". Many people (especially when talking about business matters) would use the term
Downtown Manhattan to refer only to the Financial District and the businesses located there. This area is also the earliest area of New York City settled by Europeans, and it's one of the few areas of Manhattan where the street
grid system in not strictly regular. The area of the World Trade Center is also within Downtown Manhattan.
Education
Higher education
Elementary/secondary education
The
New York City Department of Education operates New York City's public schools. Manhattan residents living south of Chambers Street are zoned to either
P.S. 234 Independence School
or
P.S. 89. All of the residents are zoned to
Simon Baruch Middle School 104.
Claremont Preparatory School
There is no high school zoning. Nearby high schools include:
(South of Chambers)
Stuyvesant High School
Murry Bergtraum High School
High School of Economics and Finance
High School for Leadership and Public Service
Millennium High School
(North or East of Chambers)
Pace University High School
Seward Park High School
Unity High School
University Neighborhood High School
External results
Click here for more details on Lower Manhattan
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