The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-23
ROMANCE OF CITY STREETS.
AMELIA BARR, THE AUTHOR, a
STUDENT or Old NEW YORK.
The District Around Bowling Green the
Part OF the city which she Hal Made
Her Custom House site n
Earliest Centre or COIOnial Life.

Auc DthNEICk tTDuhtu hbOWhhs oNVNa ~
nj OF the city which she Has made
Her Own-CustOm House site n
Earliest Centre or Colonial Life.
There are few persons who know their old
New York better or who nav impzr.s7
greater charm to its story than Mrs. Amera
E. Barr. In her country home at Cornwall
on-the-Hudson Mrs. Barr writes her tales
Of love and romance and old time gardens,
and has brought to life again the days
when Bowling Green was surrounded by
fine old houses and the shaded paths ct
Battery Park were the ~favorfte meeting
places Of young couples.
The streets and alleys around lower
Broadway are no tangle to Mrs. Barr.
Every street has its romance she
declares, and her stories go far to prove
the assertion. For many years Mrs. Barr
worked among the histories and records OF
the Astor Library, and in her own library
she is fond of showing to the visitor her.
collection Of Americana.
The site of the new Customs House 10
Bowling Green may be called the cradle OF
the present street system OF New York.
Here stood old Fort Amsterdam, and here
began the original paths which came 10
the dignity of streets only when they had
proved their usefulness. Thus PEARL
Broadway, Stone, BeaveE and Front street1
were originally paths communicating with
the fort and White Hall, the Governors
house, or were merely short cuts between
markets, stores, pastures, &c. This was
in the days of the early Dutch occupation.
AS tho need arose new streets were laid
out. and by the middle of the eighteenth
century New York had assume the appear
ance and Importance of a growing city.
Pearl and Front streets had become the.
main business tho~roughfares. There were
the shops where women of the day soughs
bargains. Broadway and Wall street were
the most fashionable residential ~avenuess'
though there were many fine houses on
other streets.
The tendency Of growth was northw ard
along the East River, but by ITO the city
hardly reached the present Fulton street.
In fact il was in that year that a skirmish
took place betw cen the British soldiers and
aSand of patriots on Colder Hill, the name
Of which has been commemorated in Gold
street. The conflict arose over a liberty
pole which the British pulled down as often
as the patriots set it up. The scene, roughly
speaking, was the block now bounded by
Fulton, Gold, William and John streets.
A tablet has been placed on the corner OF
j Ohm and William streets recording the
event, and between Fulton and John on
William the old Golden Hill Inn was stand
ing at the time Of the fight.
During the Revolution Cherry and Queen
(now PEARL streets and Hanover Square
south of Wall and east of Broad we're very
aristocratio streets. In 1889, the year OF
Washington's Inauguration, the old Federal
Hall (uow the Sub-Treasury) was not only
the most imposing building in the city
but the street itself was the centre Of all
official and fashionable life Al 3 Cherry
street was the house that Washington oo-
cupied at the time of the Inauguration and
the procession which escorted him to Fed
eral Hall OF that occasion went down Cherry
through Pearl to Broad and up the latter
to Wall. Even more imposing, al Mrs.
Barr is fond OF relating, was the reception
given to Washington when he came from
Mount Vernon TO assume the duties OF the
Presidency. She says:
From Murray's wharf at the foot Of Wall
Street, where he landed, Washington walked
up Wall to Queen and through the latter
to his house in Cherry street, accompanied
by the soldiery and officers in uniforms
the civil officials, and a large concourse OF
enthusiastic citizens, while the windows
and stoops of the houses along the route
were filed with people waving flags and
shouting. All the buildings were gayly dec
grated with bunting
At Broad and Beaver streets is a tablet
concentrating a daring deed Of the Revo-
luton. Marinus Willett, a stanch patriot
and subsequently an honored city official,
got wind of the fact that a regiment OF
British regulars had been ordered to Boston
nd with them a CARLOAD Of muskets and
ammunition. On the day the soldiers were
TO leave, Willett, with a small band OF fol-
lowers, took up his station in Brc ad street,
through which the troop passed on the way
to Murray's wharf, the point Of debarkation:
Along the route was a large gathering OF
citizens. The cart came in the rear OF
the procession and was z srded by only
a few soldiers. Willett watched his op-
portunity and whe the noise was at its
highest he and his followers made q dash for
the cart, siezed 1t, turned it about, and TAX
ing il through Peaver street to Broadway had
the arms stored away in a place OF safety be-
fore the regulars recovered from their sur
prise. The ammunition and muskets were
subsequently, used b 'the patriots.
On the site of the Washington Building,
at 1 Broadway, stood the Kennedy house,
the winter home Of Capt. Archibald Ken
nedy, commander Of Fl. M. 8. Coventry at
the time OF the attempted enforcement OF
the Stamp Act. At b opening OF the
Revolution the properly was confiscated.
but during a part of the BFitish occupation
it was the residence OF eAord Howe and
later for brief periods occupied by Gems.
Washington, Putnam and Lee. Next door,
~ ANNH - . Va1 NAN NF1eb1 49, ~@@ NH
way for several blocks were examples OF
New York's finest architecture.
In the Bowling Green enclosure opposite
the Kennedy house stood the leaden statue
of George Ill. which was destroyed by q
mob july 8, 1879. AT that time William
Bradford's house stood or the site Of the
present Cotton Exchange. Here was set
up the first printing press in New York
and here too was published the first metro
politan newspaper, the New York Gazette.
This part of New York was a network OF
Notifications during the Revolution and
for some years after. Along the sea wall
from the foo of Greenwich street to White
hall Slip (now South Ferry extended the
so-called Grand Battery. In the early
part of the wal breastworks were erected
along the water line. Forti1cations were
also built along the lower East River shore.
To the north, in the rear Of Trinity Church,
a strong redoubt was built, and around
City Hall barricades were thrown up which
extended overthe district now called News
paper Row.