This Day in History

Today in 1766 The Sons of Liberty appoints a committee to correspond with radical groups in other cities.

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Social > NYC Facts

The New-York Historical Society and NYC Media, the official network of the City of New York, have partnered to produce a special series of 90 one-minute videos that feature the staff of the New-York Historical Society as they answer some of the most captivating questions ever posed to them about the City’s fascinating and unique history. And now, the series has been nominated for a New York Emmy award!

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Why Is the Manhattan House of Detention Called the Tombs?

 The nickname harkens back to the original jail at White and Centre Streets, an imposing Egyptian-style edifice erected in 1838 by John Haviland. While most likely inspired by the building's perceived resemblance to an Egyptian tomb, credit for the name remains in doubt. Although the original tomb-like building is long gone, the nickname is still used.

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What Is the Story Behind the Building on 8th Avenue and 57th Street That Serves As a Pedestal for the Big Glass Tower?

 The Hearst Building, known originally as the International Magazine Building, was designed in 1927 by the Vienna-born designer and architect Joseph Urban. At the time of its construction, it was intended to act as the base for a monumental tower that was never built. Because it is landmarked, the Hearst Building could not be demolished when plans to expand it were revived. Norman Foster's much-praised "green" structure that sits atop Urban's building, despite its very different style, captures some of the theatricality of the original plan.

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Was There Ever a Hotel for Prostitutes, Shaped Like a Giant Elephant?

 While never a brothel, exactly, there really was a tin-skinned elephant-shaped structure on Coney Island. Its proper name was Elephantine Colossus and it stood on a seedy stretch of Surf Avenue near West 12th Street, where the phrase "seeing the elephant" became euphemistic for picking up local prostitutes. Built in 1884, it burned to a cinder on September 27, 1896.

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Who Was Thomas Assist Emmet?

Emmet was an exiled leader of the 1798 Irish Rebellion, who by his death in 1827 had become one of New York's most prominent lawyers. Labeled one of the "disaffected Irish," Emmet's 1804 emigration to America had faced stiff opposition from future New York senator Rufus King and other Federalists. Incidentally, Emmet's body remains in a "temporary" grave at St. Mark's-Church-in-the-Bowery.

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What is the History of Central Park's Gates, and How Were They Named?

 In an 1862 report, Central Park had eighteen named entrance gates, reflecting the character of the citizens of New York City (subsequent gates were added later). The first gate had its name chiseled in its stone entrance in 1954 and the final gate was chiseled in 1999. Some original gates were named after women, hunters, mariners, All Saints, boys, children, miners, engineers, woodmen, girls, pioneers, farmers, warriors and strangers.

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Who was the "Amiable Child" in Riverside Park, and Why Is There a Monument There?

 Near Grant's Tomb stands an inscribed stone urn: "Erected to the memory of an amiable child, St. Claire Pollock. Died 15 July 1797, in the fifth year of his age." The boy was the son of George and Catherine Pollock. It's thought he died from a fall off the cliffs overlooking the Hudson River. The land became part of Riverside Park in the 1870s. As late as 1994 a neighborhood group honored his memory with a yearly ceremony.

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