The Broadway Project

Numbers in parenthesis refer to the photos on this site: http://www5.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=5912196028/a=9628390028_9628390028/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/

I can't get enough of this City. I love walking if I have the time. I'm not afraid to be underground, but there is far less to see. There is always something going on, and always something to report. The other day, I decided to walk in the City while I had a few minutes before I had to be somewhere. I was coming from New Jersey with a coffee cup in my hand, and as I climbed the stairs to the street, I tripped. Coffee splashed on my face and glasses-not a lot, but enough to notice.

I went into a bodega across the street and asked for a couple napkins. The clerk kind of snorted, took a breath, and said, "No." I did a double-take as she continued, "People come in here all the time and want my stuff. No, you can't have a napkin." I explained that I had tripped coming up the steps, and just wanted to wipe off my face." Glancing at my cup, she said, "Go back to Dunkin Donuts. They have napkins there."

I turned and walked out, going down the block to Lenny's Bagels and asked them if I could have a napkin. The guy behind the counter, without hesitating, said "Sure!" and handed me five. I used one and left the store; I had a brainstorm. I took the other four napkins back to the bodega and offered them to the clerk. She asked, "What are those?" I said that they were napkins and I thought I would leave them with her in case someone else needed a napkin, because then she wouldn't have to use hers. She snorted again, and said she didn't want them.

During one of my many walks about a year ago, I found Strand Bookstore. I had heard of this store, but had never been there. I looked around the store, paying particular attention to the New York section. I discovered a book called "Broadway: From the Battery to the Bronx" by Richard Shepard. I may have read the jacket flaps, but I did not flip through the book at all. Almost immediately, the idea came to me that I could do that. After all, I was standing on Broadway, and the Battery was only 2 miles to the south. I have heard that Broadway begins at the Battery in Lower Manhattan and continues north and west for over 300 miles. I will not be finding the northern end of the thoroughfare.

I didn't want the book to color my approach to my version of this project, so I didn't read nor did I flip through the book. I thought it would be a good idea, I kicked around how I might complete the project, and finally, I decided to start walking.

Broadway, in fact, does not begin at the very southernmost tip of Manhattan. Battery Park wraps around the tip. Most of this park is landfill from construction projects around the City, notably, the World Trade Center site. Castle Clinton is in the middle of the park, but when New York City was originally settled, this fort was on an island out in the harbor. Just north of the park sits the Alexander Hamilton US Customs House (2). It was, as its name implies, originally a Customs House, but now it is houses the National Museum of the American Indian, a part of the Smithsonian Institution.

Two streets come together to form the foot of Broadway. On the west side of this intersection stands Number One Broadway (3). This building used to be the International Mercantile Marine Company Building. Currently, it's a Citibank. This site was also a location of George Washington's headquarters during the Revolutionary War. Continuing up Broadway, you pass the Bowling Green, a small park in front of the Customs House, and the bull symbolizing Wall Street. The bull statue has been there since 1989, charging up Broadway. Just across the street is 26 Broadway, the Standard Oil Building (4). This building has a unique curve that follows Broadway. The top is a pyramid that appears to be a stylized oil lamp. Perhaps a nod to the company for which the building was built? I have been accused of being too much like a tourist, and I'm OK with that. For me, the usual New York landmarks are some of my favorite places to go. I love reading about how and why they were built. The Rockefellers simply had so much money, they decided to build an office complex uptown. When I walked past 26 Broadway, I wanted to see the lobby of the building and maybe get a picture. It's not a good idea to just walk into a building and start snapping pictures, so I asked the guy at the security desk. I took note of his grey facilities-type uniform, rather than a typical security suit, and hoped he might indulge me. He said, "Hurry up. I don't want my boss to see you." I was very appreciative and did the best I could as fast as possible (5).

Right around this point on Broadway, markers are placed in the sidewalk commemorating every ticker-tape parade. Each marker gives the date and who the parade was for-Heads of State, athletes, notable citizens, and military and veterans (6, 7). The Canyon of Heroes (8) extends from the foot of Broadway to City Hall just one mile away. There have been over 150 parades since 1886, when the first celebrated the Statue of Liberty's dedication.

I found 71 Broadway (9) to be an interesting building for the corner windows. I have seen other buildings with windows like this, and would love to live in an apartment with curved glass in the windows. The studios in the apartment start at $3000, so it will be a long time before I can afford to live there. A side note about this building- when Dominique Strauss-Kahn was under house arrest for allegedly assaulting a hotel maid, this was the building he lived in-at least for a couple weeks.

The next notable building on my walk was Trinity Church (10). This was the first Anglican Parish in the colonies. Three churches have been built on this site. The churchyard contains the graves of three notable people in US history. Captain James Lawrence (12), of "Don't Give Up the Ship!" fame, Robert Fulton (13), inventor of the steamboat, and Alexander Hamilton (14), Secretary of the Treasury. Three-tenths of a mile further, St. Paul's Chapel stands (16). It was built as an outreach chapel for those who lived "uptown." During the fire of 1776, Trinity Church and most of New York burned, but St. Paul's was one of the few buildings saved by a bucket brigade. I found it interesting that the entrance to St. Paul's on Broadway is actually the back door. The front of the church faces, well, Church St. With that in mind, the altar of this church has a sculpture of God giving the Ten Commandments to the people which also form a frame outside on the "back" of the church for the first monument approved by Congress-in 1776-memorializing Major General Richard Montgomery (17).

The Woolworth Building (18) stands tall on Broadway, rising to almost 800 feet. Built in 1913, it is one of the oldest (and classiest, in my opinion) skyscrapers in the world. It is a private building closed to tourists since 9/11. Across the street, City Hall Park (19) is open to the public. There is a beautiful fountain which is filled with flowers and greenery during the winter and is surrounded by gas lamps (20). When I stopped here for a moment, the barricades were up, as usual, in front of City Hall. I walked up to the officer standing there and asked if the mayor was in. I told her that I thought he was expecting me for lunch. She laughed and said, "Me too!" I asked her if I jumped the barricade, how far she thought I would get before I was shot dead. She kind of sighed and said, "I wouldn't shoot you. I wouldn't even chase you. We would catch you eventually." About this time, a lady and her small child came up to the barricade. I warned the kid not to make a break for it-it could be dangerous. The cop said that kids run for City Hall all the time. And don't get shot. I thought that was nice of them. This park gets a lot of traffic, but is a nice place to regroup-and who knows? You might see the mayor while you rest.

Just a little further north is the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building (21), a tall, drab, typical federal building that causes no excitement. This is not to be confused with the Jacob Javits Convention Center further uptown. TriBeCa is an area bounded by Broadway on the east, Canal Street on the north, and West St on the west. It's in this area and SoHo, where some fabulous examples of cast iron architecture remain from the mid-1800's, such as 361 (22) and 429 (23) Broadway. This area of Broadway also has a motley collection of delis, gift shops, and space for rent. I went into one of these shops and looked around. There were some souvenirs and trinkets, but also some motorcycle gear. It was kind of an interesting store. I asked the shopkeeper if I could take some pictures of some of the gifts-again, not a good thing to do without permission. He said I absolutely could, so I took some pictures that reminded me of an old friend. I looked around a few more minutes, and left. He came to the door and said, "Would you like me to take a picture of you with the Statue of Liberty?" I smiled and said I was not a tourist, but only appeared to be today. I explained that I loved walking and was just seeing what Broadway had to offer. He said he felt the same way. Just the night before, he got off work at 7pm and didn't get home until 3am, because he and his friends had been walking. Sometimes, it's nice to know I'm not the only one.

Canal Street is known for its various shops and stalls selling almost anything you want. Canal at Broadway (24) is sort of the western edge for this shopping area. Extending east, Canal Street is the southern boundary of Little Italy and continues to Chinatown, but I digress. This is about Broadway, not Canal St. While I was on this corner, I saw a group of men, maybe Muslim based on their garb, who appeared to be arguing. I was going to take a picture of them (without permission this time,) so I moved around so it looked like I was taking a picture down the street. Suddenly, one of the men yelled at me and said, "Hey! Don't take someone's picture without asking!" I said, "Me? Oh, I'm taking a picture of this street." He said, "That's OK then. Go ahead." So I took the picture. Of the street. As I was turning away, a man (25) who had been leaning against the building on the corner said, "Take my picture." When I did, he said, "Do you want to take another?" I said, "You did really well the first time. It's not your fault that you're so photogenic. I think I'm going to keep walking now."

At 465 Broadway, there is a building with a space between it and the next. Like other places in the City, there's a small plaza in that space. Unlike other plazas, this one has a storefront window and a door (26). The door is locked. Maybe some day, I will try to get to the plaza from Mercer St. How fun would it be to take a chair and sit in the plaza, behind the window, and wave at passersby on Broadway? Crossing Houston Street, puts you (obviously) in NoHo. SoHo is South of Houston St. NoHo is north. Every now and again, a block such as the one on Broadway between Bleeker and Bond Streets (27) catches my attention. The different heights of the buildings give an interesting contrast. It's the typical kids' drawing of a city block.

I have walked up Broadway a few times and one day realized that the numbered streets begin at 4th. Third Street is called Great Jones when it crosses Broadway, and 2nd Street is Bond St. Just south of 4th St, I found what appears to be a flea market. It's set up in a parking lot, but the shacks look semi-permanent (28). It was while walking back through these shacks, that I stepped on a nail. I had to sit down and take a break while I pulled said nail out of my shoe. At 4th St and Broadway, a studio is being built for a web series called MLB Fan Cave (29). A guy and his sidekick will watch every single baseball game this season.

Grace Church (30), at Broadway and 10th St., is a beautiful Gothic church. The legend is that Broadway bends to the left at Grace Church to go around it because the church was there first. You can see Grace Church from at least Bond St (2nd), so you can imagine when the church was built-it probably dominated the area with its steeple and Gothic detail. As you make the bend in Broadway, the Empire State Building (31) comes into view for the first time. It is 24 blocks away at this point, and is not on Broadway, but because it can be seen from all over, it will be interesting to see how the building appearance changes as I work my way up Broadway.

Four blocks up is Union Square Park. Since 1815, it has been a public park and gathering place for protests and social movements. There is a large public art project called "Metronome" on the south side of the park, symbolizing the passage of time. It's hard to miss with its large digital numbers. As I approached Union Square, it was apparent there was a protest going on (32). I went across the street and into a store that overlooked the park. It's a great place for an overall view of what's going on. It was quickly clear it was a demonstration for Trayvon Martin who was killed in February by a neighborhood watchman in Florida.

The foot of Broadway to 14th Street is almost two and-a-half miles. It might take less than an hour to walk, but I took my time and spent six hours walking on Wednesday. Two miles further will put me at 54th St. I wonder what I will find in those 40 blocks.