Doing something new every week in 2017 #19: Wall Street & the Financial District
If New York City was built by the titans of industries, then Wall Street is the home of the Old Money and the epitome of the American Dream.
Little wonder, then, nearly all of the self-made tycoons from The Men Who Built America — Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Carnegie and J.P. Morgan, have all left their marks on Wall Street.
Wall Street itself only covers a small area of the Financial District, but its significance and impact to the city goes far beyond its physical footprint.
Federal Hall National Memorial
The Federal Hall was built in 1700 as New York’s City Hall. It served as the first capitol building of the United States, as well as the site of George Washington’s inauguration as the first President of the USA.
The New York Stock Exchange
Around the corner from the Federal Hall is the infamous New York Stock Exchange. I didn’t know what I expected, but I sure wasn’t expecting to see a (relatively) low rise building wedged between other low rises that sat on the edge of a tiny (vehicle inaccessible) street.
Since 2009, most of the trading has gone digital, meaning only a very small amount of trade actually happens on the trading floor of the NYSE on a day-to-day basis.
What is still exciting though, is the continued tradition of the opening and closing bells and the banner outside the NYSE, wherever a company IPOs.
House of Morgan
Wedged between the Federal Hall and NYSE, is a freestanding 4-storey classical building, unremarkable in every way. Actually if you look closely enough, you can see a couple of holes along the base of the building (from the Wall Street bombing that killed 38 people back in 1920).
This no-frills looking building is the House of Morgan, built by banking pioneer J. P. Morgan back in 1913 as the HQ of J.P. Morgan & Co, his burgeoning banking empire. Even though the building is situated on a prime piece of real estate, he purposefully chose to only build it four stories tall, defying the prevailing belief around Wall Street that taller is better.
The Trump Building
Towering over the House of Morgan, on 40 Wall Street stood a 71-storey skyscraper built by The Manhattan Company back in 1930. This was the world’s tallest building for quite some time. Its imposing height and beautiful art deco architecture still makes for a commanding presence on Wall Street as well as the New York skyline.
Donald Trump purchased the building back in 1995 for a reported bargain basement price of $10 million and renamed it to The Trump Building. The building is now valued at over $1 Billion.
The Charging Bull & the Fearless Girl
A trip to Wall Street wouldn’t be complete without visiting the Charging Bull, which is only a stone’s throw from the Historic District on the Bowling Green. Due to the mass popularity of the Charging Bull, it is virtually impossible to get a selfie with the bull.
Next to the Charging Bull is the Fearless Girl statue, which is loved but also hated by many as a “fake corporate symbol of feminism”. The hatred towards the Fearless Girl reached a boiling point shortly after our visit in April, that a “Sketchy Dog” statue mysteriously appeared in May. Much to everyone’s amusement, the dog statue appeared to be urinating on the Fearless Girl’s leg. #ohnoyoudidn’t
26 Broadway aka the Standard Oil Building
Our last stop in the Financial District was 26 Broadway, also known as the Standard Oil Building. The corner site building was built in a mish mash of architectural styles from its curved bottom facade to the setbacks topped by a pyramid.
This 31-storey, John D. Rockefeller building was once the tallest building in New York and acted as a welcome beacon to visitors of Lower Manhattan.
Wall Street and the Financial District was definitely a highlight for me while we were in New York. I loved the rich history of this area and felt like I definitely got to know a lot more about the Men Who Built America.
Coming up next:
The Empire State Building
The Chrysler Building
The Met
#19 of 52 new ways to challenge yourself in 2017 | Last week: New York