Each day, workers on Wall Street pass sites like St. Paul’s Church, Trinity Cemetery, and Bowling Green Park, without giving much thought to each one’s historical significance. Lower Manhattan is rich in history, particularly the time surrounding the Revolutionary War. What better way to explore the area’s past than on a walking tour with a scholar in American History?
Revolutionary New York is a two-hour walking tour offered, appropriately enough, on patriotic holidays—Memorial Day, Flag Day, and July 4th. We took the tour on a blistering hot May 30, yet no one in the two large groups that gathered at Broadway and Murray Street was complaining. A mixture of tourists and New Yorkers, the participants were eager to learn more about those places and monuments we oftentimes take for granted.
Our guide from Big Onion Walking Tours, Sarah Bridger, started our outdoor tutorial by explaining that the American Revolution can actually be broken up into three parts: the build up to the Revolutionary War beginning in 1756, when Britain, emerging as the dominant foreign power in the eastern half of North America, decided to reorganize its empire by passing “extremely unpopular” new laws, including the Stamp Act, the Sugar Act, and the Tea Act; the actual phase of military fighting, lasting from 1775 to 1783; and, the follow-up to the war, when the colonists had to decide what type of government to set up.
Our first stop was City Hall Park, an area that, in the Revolutionary era, was a town commons where people brought their animals to graze. Chambers Street was then the northern boundary of Manhattan and the population was only 20,000, compared to more than 8 million today. Bridger pointed out a “liberty pole” erected in front of City Hall to commemorate the Battle of Golden Hill, a fight between British soldiers and the colonists that occurred on January 19, 1770, six weeks before the Boston Massacre.
Also on the City Hall grounds is a statue of Nathan Hale, who stayed behind in Manhattan after General George Washington and his troops retreated to New Jersey. Hale’s mission was to gather intelligence for Washington, but, Bridger noted, he was not successful as a spy. Instead, he was one of many rounded up by the British as suspected of helping the colonial army. Hale was hung at Kip’s Bay, and is best know for greeting his impending death with the statement: “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”
We walked on to St. Paul’s Church, built in 1765. Just as Washington came to the church to pray after his inauguration, after 9/11, recovery workers gathered there for care and solace. Bridger said that in Revolutionary times, it was the “uptown” alternative to Trinity Church. Imagine that!
Looking out at the tombstones in the Trinity Church cemetery, Bridger surprised us with a sobering fact: although there were 7,000 combat deaths during the Revolutionary War, 18,000 people died later in British prisons. “The British used old abandoned ships to hold the prisoners where they were starved and exposed to diseases,” she said. One prisoner, Thomas Stone, described these prisons as “floating hells.” Bridger read one of Stone’s statements that captured the prisoner’s desperation: “Old shoes were got and eaten with as much relish as turkey.”
We sat to catch our breath outside Trinity Church while Bridger explained that the current structure is actually the third version, this one constructed of brownstone, not as striking as granite or marble but, as Bridger pointed out, certainly more symbolic of New York. The cathedral’s 284-foot spire was once the city’s highest point until the Brooklyn Bridge was erected.
Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury, who died in a duel with his nemesis Aaron Burr, is buried in Trinity Cemetery, the white marble monument marking his grave captured our attention.
In front of Federal Hall, the site where Washington took his oath of office, we admired the large statue commemorating the event.
Stone Street comes closest to looking like Revolutionary Manhattan, with low-rise buildings whose character has been preserved, despite the addition of fire escapes and outdoor restaurants. On Memorial Day, visitors and locals were relaxing with food and drink.
Washington bid farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern, now a museum with an attached restaurant. In the days before the war, the Sons of Liberty met at the tavern to talk strategy. During the war, commandeered by the British to keep the tavern open, the owner, Samuel Fraunces, obeyed, but “listened carefully to military planning and reported back to Washington.” After the war, the tavern was a gathering place for people to talk politics. “It was a happening site,” said Bridger. “It crossed the lines of social class. The dockworker could come to rub elbows with George Washington.”
Last stop on the tour was the Bowling Green Park. In 1733, the small grassy area was set aside so that locals could enjoy lawn bowling, hence the area’s name.
We were left with one thought: the power of the press. Bridger said the tide began to turn against King George III and the monarchy with the publication of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense. That small pamphlet delivered simple arguments with a powerful punch: Why should an island rule a continent? America was not a “British” nation, but made up of people from all over. And how could a “mother” country treat her “children” with such cruelty?
After thanking Sarah, we all went our separate ways to enjoy the rest of the holiday. But the tour gave us much to think about—our history, our freedom, how so many sacrificed so much to continue those freedoms. Perfect outing for Memorial Day, or any day.
The Revolutionary Manhattan Tour will be repeated on Flag Day, June 14, and July 4. Big Onion Walking Tours cover all areas and are a great way to learn more about our city. The guides are knowledgeable and helpful. For more information go to the Big Onion Walking Tours website.
