| Show GREENWICH HAS BIRTHDAY SOON Famous Va s hill g t 0 11 Square Has Interesting History By Dy Jin JJR is IV w TRENT T i Correspondent ot or The E Copyright Consolidated 1926 1925 by The Consoli Consoli- dated Press Association NEW YORK May Green 29 29 Green Greenwich with Village haunt of ot New Yorks York's very Iry snappiest and most up-to- up date up-to-date date youn young intellectuals and Jazz bounds once more Is proving It versatility Having just completed the Ilu- Ilu hu humanitarian tul task of exhibiting Broadways Broadway's belle of the tho bath tUb In something approximating her original costume to those persons who failed tailed to get Invitations to Earl Carrolls Carroll's notorious bacchanalian allan alian bath party the village is h turning for the tho moment to parties more celebrate sedate lIt It Is going to cele- cele cele brate the birthday of famous old Washington Square which will be years ears old In June Visitors from the great open spaces west of ot tho the Hudson whO venture down Into New Yorks York's Bohemia during that month will willbe willbe willbe be let In on a lot of secrets secrete about W Washington things Square Square things which the average New Now Yorker doesn't know knol and which even oven students of old New York have hae just begun to find out in tn recent months month ONCE POTTERS POTTER'S FIELD For example few faw persons real real- realIze real realize ize that the dignified and ly leisure leisure- leisurely leisurely ly looking square once was a pot pot- pot ing ter's potter's Cr's field or that B tt widespread Ing elm In one corner orner of o the park served as a gallows In the post post- revolutionary post revolutionary days Time has passed a horny hand handover handover handover over Manhattan island island-a Island a magIc hand withal but has left much or of the charm the charm and repose that have given something of a social hIs hIs- hIstory his history tory In 1826 1828 a proclamation set asIde the present square as the Washington military parade grounds From 1789 to 1825 this plot of ground had llad been a potters potter's field and a place of pub pub- public public public lic executions Prior to 1789 It was an uncultivated region half haIr swamp and halt half sand In Ir 1823 a 0 new potters field was opened farther uptown In what Is now Bryant park and the tho bodies were ere removed from the lower cemetery A A high Iron railing was WIlS erected around the old oldfield oldfield field and by 1826 homes hemes began to spring up at its borders border ORIGIN OP Ot NAME In those days the city of ot New NewYork NewYork NewYork York was situated two or three miles to the south at the tip ot of Manhattan and the present Washington Square district was dotted with estates of ot the richer gentry who had come out of the city in search of country air and andrest andrest andrest rest Dwellers ot of o the district now try to get their country air a 0 afew afew few hundred feet teet above the pave pave- pavements ments meats Greenwich Village gets Its name from front the little settle settle- settlement settlement settlement ment of ot Greenwich to the south Routh and west of present Washington Square which had been founded under the name of Bosses flosses Bou Bou- Bou Bou werl weri In the days das of ot the early Dutch settlers avenue which cuts Man Man- Manhattan Manhattan hattan Into east cast and west halves running north from coin Washington Square re was begun In 1824 The year 1830 saw the founding of New York university on the east cast eastside eastside side of o the square Here Hero Prot Prof ProfF F B D Morse conducted hi his experiments experiments ments In telegraphy and Prof William Draper made the first Im- Im Image image Im Image age of o a human face on a photo photo- photographIc photographic photographic plate graphic plate In 1835 a hotel botel was built on Fifth avenue venue a block Mock north of the square anti and named for tor the il- il illustrious Il Illustrious family that lived In the vicinity It was called the Bre- Bre Brevoort Brevoort Bre voort Only a few weeks ago the Brevoort hotel figured prominent prominent- prominently ly In the news when the main dinIng room was padlocked after acter federal agents charged they had been served liquor there ARCH The in the old days probably would have broken a n few heads had their domain been thus Invaded The story Is told of othow how bow Henry Brevoort stood on his estate with a II blunderbuss and away the city surveyors who h had d c cometo come te m-te to lay lay the the line for for cut cut- cutting cutting cut cutting ting through a street He lie didn't want the street strett running through hia property particularly since an apple tree that ho lie prized highlY stood In its path The lbs Th results of his obstinacy may be seen today for Eleventh street Is ts the one street of the section that ends at Broadway and Grace church now DOW stands on the site of the old apple appletree appletree appletree tree Washington Square Is la also known knon for the famous Washing Washing- Washington Washington Washington ton arch designed by Stanford White the noted architect who was slain by Harry Thaw and which stands at the point where Firth Fifth avenue begins It was erected by popular subscription In 1889 In commemoration of the theone theone theone one hundredth anniversary of Washington's Inauguration as president Washington Square has success success- successfully successfully successfully fully resisted the Inroads of busi busl busIness business ness The tide of the great city swept over It and left it un- un unspoiled unspoiled un unspoiled spoiled and serene and It may still survive a hundred years from now as at a last remnant of New York Yorks York's Infant days |
