Lower Manhattan: How the Money Started
The first US capital was born on a street built on a wall built on a slave market. Finance and erasure, cast together.
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Battery Park: Where the Defensive Logic Began
Battery Park: Where the Defensive Logic Began
The southern tip of Manhattan, named for the cannons that once defended the colony's harbor.
Bowling Green: The Founding Receipt That Never Existed
Manhattan's first park and the legendary site of the 1626 land transfer with the Lenape. The deed does not survive.
Wall and Pearl: The Auction Block
The site of New York's official municipal slave market, established 1711, operated 51 years. Marker dedicated 2015.
Stone Street: The First Paved Street
The first cobbled street in New Amsterdam, paved in 1658 by Dutch council order. Restored 2000.
Federal Hall: The Republic Arrives
The site of Washington's 1789 inauguration and the first US Congress. The current building dates to 1842.
African Burial Ground: The Ground Underneath
The 1991 rediscovery of an 18th-century African burial ground. National Monument designated 2006.
Foley Square: The Geometry of Cover-up
A civic plaza between the African Burial Ground and City Hall. Two blocks apart, by design.
New York City Hall: The Thesis Stated Plain
Cornerstone 1803, completed 1812. The oldest US city hall in continuous original use.
Best Time to Visit
Tuesday through Thursday, mid-morning. The African Burial Ground visitor center is closed Sundays and Mondays per NPS, and Tue-Thu gives you reliable interior access. Federal Hall interior is also weekdays only.
Pro Tips
- •Schedule the walk Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday so the African Burial Ground visitor center is open
- •Federal Hall is free but interior access is weekdays only, 9am to 5pm
- •The 2015 slave-market marker is at the southwest corner of Wall and Water, not at Wall and Pearl. Stand at the marker; the actual auction block sat slightly west between Pearl and Water
- •Stone Street is pedestrian-only and lined with restaurants. Enter from the Hanover Square end for the strongest cobblestone walk
- •Bring water. The corridor is mostly shaded but the granite plazas at the Burial Ground and Foley Square get hot in summer
- •Allow time to sit inside the Ancestral Chamber. It is the most physically affecting part of the walk
Safety & Precautions
- Lower Manhattan sidewalks are busy on weekdays. Stay aware at the Wall and Pearl marker corner, which sits at an active crosswalk
- City Hall interior tours require advance reservation through NYC.gov. The exterior and surrounding park are the audio anchor; the interior is not required
- The African Burial Ground outdoor monument is open 24/7, but the indoor visitor center is closed Sundays and Mondays
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