Before Williamsburg was a hipster paradise, before it was a Puerto-Rican/Italian enclave, before it was a Jewish refuge from LES tenements, before it was a booming industrial hub of sugar and beer, before it was a local center for Whig Party politics, Williamsburgh (The “h” was shed in 1855) was the headquarters for Hessian mercenaries hired by…
Revolution was coming. The American Continental Congress, sensing the inevitability of a break from the British Empire and the ensuing war, had called George Washington, the head of the Continental Army, to come down to New York from Boston. Even though New York’s population of 20,000 was only the seventh largest in the colonies, Washington considered…
Yesterday we looked at the origins of the New York public school system. Today we look at a second major crossroads in the history of New York education – the question of religious education in public schools. On April 11, 1842, Governor William Seward signed a bill authorizing local control to school boards, a messy compromise…
The future of public education in New York has been a hot topic recently. How much funding should city schools get? Is there a role for charter schools? How should teachers be evaluated? Fortunately, we have posts today and tomorrow about the history of public education in New York. During the 18th century, the only…
Times Square has become so synonymous with New York City that many visitors and residents alike don’t stop to think about where the name came from. This origin story goes back 111 years, to April 8, 1904, when Mayor George McClellan renamed Longacre Square for the proud newspaper that had just relocated to the block. The…
The British takeover of New Amsterdam in 1664 brought several changes to the growing port city, and one of them was an increased, more brutal practice of slavery. On April 7, 1712, nearly two dozen slaves rose up in defiance, torching houses and taking to the streets to foment a larger rebellion. This early American…
We all know how frustrating it is when your morning train has issues. (I’m looking at you, L line!) Now imagine eleven days without subways or buses. By 1980, the city had started to recover from the mid-70s fiscal crisis, but dealing with union contracts, many of which had been frozen or taken a hit…
On April 4, 1967, King delivered “Beyond Vietnam,” one of his most dramatic and controversial speeches, at Riverside Church on 121st Street. An utter denunciation of the war in Vietnam and indictment of American imperialism, the speech linked critiques of U.S. foreign and domestic policies. King lamented, “We have been repeatedly faced with the cruel irony…
One of the most controversial figures of her time, Madame Restell provided illegal contraception and abortion pills to women of all classes for decades until she committed suicide on April 1, 1878. Born Ann Trow in England, and Ann moved to New York City when she was 20, and eventually married radical freethinker Charles Lohman.…
A week ago we looked out how a determined group of activists saved their college and today we celebrate an activist who started one. On April 1, 1889, the Board of Trustees of Columbia University voted to found Barnard College, which became the first college available to women in New York City. Columbia College’s long-time president, Frederick A.…
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