New York City’s Former James Dean Apartment

Located on a side street just off on Central Park West is the former residence of one of the largest cultural icons of all-time—James Dean. In this rather nondescript limestone Rowhouse with bow fronts, Dean once lived in a single-room apartment on the top floor in 1954. The room was said to measure only 1212 feet and had a shared bathroom down the hall. Mind you, Dean lived here prior to moving on to Hollywood and becoming one of the biggest stars of all time.

James Dean Apartment

Dean’s success was not immediate in Hollywood. He began his career in a Coca-Cola commercial where he was seen handing bottles of Coke two teenagers. During this time to subsidize his income, he was also working as a parking lot attendant at the CBS Studios lot.

Dean only appeared in three films during his career, all of which were leading roles. The first was East of Eden (1955), which was the only film actually released while he was alive. His most famous role followed East of Eden in Rebel Without A Cause where he played a rebellious teen named Jim Stark.

While filming his final film in 1956, The Swan, Dean was working with famous actor Alec Guinness, who utilized his Jedi-like powers to ultimately foresee Dean’s death. One day after Dean rode onto the set in his brand new Porsche 550 Spyder, Guinness was overheard warning Dean, “Get rid of that car, or you’ll be dead in a week.”

On September 30, 1955, Dean and a friend were taking his new Porsche to a race in Salinas, California. Seeing as his Porsche was still new, it technically did not qualify for participation in the race since it did have the required minimum mileage. Dean, hence, chose to drive the vehicle in the race himself to ensure the Porsche qualified. Along his route Dean was stopped for speeding at 3:30pm while traveling 65 mph in a 55 mph zone.

Approximately two hours later Dean was driving west along US Route 466 when he noticed a 1950 black and white Ford Custom Tudor coupe coming at him in his lane. Dean apparently turned to his passenger and commented, “That guy’s gotta stop… He’ll see us.” Unfortunately 23-year-old Donald Turnupseed did not see Dean’s vehicle and the two collided head-on.

Dean suffered massive internal injuries including a broken neck and was pronounced dead on arrival at 5:59 p.m. In regards to the individual in the oncoming vehicle, Mr. Turnupseed only maintained minor injuries and survived the impact. Mr. Turnupseed only spoke about the incident once after the accident when he was interviewed by a local newspaper. He refused to be interviewed or speak of the incident ever again after that.

• Website: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/02/nyregion/02james.html
• Address: 19 West 68th Street, New York City, NY
• Cost: Free

Walking Tour to Bowling Green New York City

Walking Tour to Bowling Green New York City - Bowling Green was officially established as New York City’s first park in 1733, however, this space was a center of significant activity long before that. Its earliest origins date back to a period between 1638 and 1647 when it was used as a cattle market. In 1733 the land was leased by the city to three prominent landowners for the price of one peppercorn per year. The only stipulations attached to the city’s leasing were that the newly created park must add to the “beauty and ornament” of the city and include for “the delight of the Inhabitants of the city” a bowling green to allow Colonists to play a popular game at the time referred to as 9 pins.

In 1770 a statue of King George III was erected in the center of the green in honor of his decision to repeal the Stamp Act. The statue showed George in elegant Roman style robes in the vein of Marcus Aurelius astride his horse complete with laurel wreath atop his head. Further British symbolism was added to this park space in 1771 when it was bordered by a black cast iron fence with decorative crowns atop it.

These symbols honoring the British monarchy, however, were not to be tolerated as tensions arose surrounding the Revolutionary War. On July 9, 1766 following a reading of the recently signed Declaration of Independence near City Hall, the Sons of Liberty led a group of Colonists to the park to topple and destroy the statue of King George. Ropes were said to be attached to the statue to pull it to the ground whereby it was then literally hacked into pieces. The head of the statue was even reportedly attached to horse back and paraded through the city. The pieces of the statue were subsequently provided to the wife of the governor of Connecticut who proceeded to melt the statue into ammunition. Someone even had the presence to count the number of musket balls made from this statue which apparently numbered 42,088. Six pieces of the statue were preserved and may be viewed at the New York Historical Society.

The King George statue was not the only victim this day as Colonists further proceeded to hack off the tops of fence posts with the royal crowns atop them. Unfortunately, no one has a clear picture of what these finials looked like, but if you carefully inspect any one of the posts of the fence you can clearly see where the tops were removed.

Following the Revolution, there were numerous town houses build around the outskirts of Bowling Green. It remained largely residential until approximately 1850 when many of the residences began to be converted into commercial structures. In 1914 the landscape of the Green was significantly altered with the addition of a subway station. It was during this time that the bowling greens for which this space was initially designed were moved to Central Park. These greens are now located just north the Sheep Meadow near the West 69th entrance to the park.
The city finally removed the subway entrance from this site in 1978 and began a renovation of the space. This renovation included the addition of the fountain in the center, which was dedicated by philanthropist George Delacorte.

• Website: http://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/M007/
• Address: Bowling Green, New York City, NY
• Cost: Free

Free Walking Tours NYC : 55 Wall Street

Free Walking Tours NYC : 55 Wall Street - Shortly after the signing of the Buttonwood Agreement in 1793 the founders of the New York Stock Exchange decided they needed a more formal meeting space than the street - side. This first informal space was called Tontine’s Coffee House and was formerly located at this address.

The Tontine Coffee House was in every way a true coffee house as you would imagine it as people would literally sit around having their drinks and “making deals.” The coffee house remained a center of trade until 1817 when the exchange moved to a larger space on Wall Street.

The current building on this site is a Greek Revival structure that was erected in 1842 and is one of the three oldest buildings on Wall Street. This structure is often referred to as the Merchants Exchange Building after one of its former bank tenants. It was designed by a Boston architect by the name of Isaiah Rogers.

The original four-story structure designed by Rogers was actually the lower half of this building. It contained these monumental Ionic columns which were carved from single pieces of stone from a quarry in Massachusetts, floated via raft to New York and then hauled to this locale for installation via forty teams of oxen.

From 1862-1907 this building served as the US Customs House prior to moving to the Alexander Hamilton Customs House near Bowling Green. In 1907, the First National Bank (now a part of Citibank) hired the architectural firm of McKim, Mead & White to, in essence, double the amount of space within this building. This renovation included the addition of the second level of columns, this time in a Corinthian style.

From 1998-2003, the Regent Wall Street Hotel was located here as one of the most luxurious hotels in the area. The hotel played a prominent part in the finale of the 2004 remake of The Manchurian Candidate starring Denzel Washington.

Website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/55_Wall_Street
Address: 55 Wall Street, New York City, NY
Cost: Free

The Village’s Patchin Place in New York City

Tiny enclaves within big cities will always have a place in our hearts and The Village’s Patchin Place is no exception. A small gated cul-de-sac near the intersection of Avenue of the Americas and West 10th Street, Patchin Place contains a series of ten three-story brick row houses. The homes were developed by a surveyor by the name of Aaron Patchin. It is often rumored that these homes were constructed to house workers from the nearby Brevoort Hotel (which was formerly located at 11 Fifth Avenue, just north of Washington Square). The fact that the Brevoort itself was not erected until 1855, however, contradicts this theory.

The Village’s Patchin Place in New York City

Patchin Place remained within the family until 1920 when Grace Patchin sold the buildings which were then converted into apartments shortly thereafter. A privacy fence was added to the street entrance in 1929. During the initial two decades when these properties were first converted to apartments, they quickly became a haven for writers who appreciated the space’s relative quiet nature. E. E. Cummings was the street’s most noted residents during this period.

The properties were once again acquired by new ownership in 1963. This owner intended on razing the buildings for construction of larger and/or more commercial properties. Historical activists rose to the challenge though, and ensured that this enclave was saved.

Today, this street is most commonly referred to as “Therapy Row.” Beginning in the 1990s, a number of psychotherapists began to move their offices here. As of 2003, 15 therapist offices occupied 50 of the available properties.

Patchin Place’s most noted charm is via its 19th century Gaslamp. It is only one of two remaining within the entire city of New York. Unfortunately, its gas power has long since been retired and the only light emitted from it today is solely powered via electricity.

Website: http://www.nyc-architecture.com/GV/GV030PatchinPlace.htm
Address: Patchin Place, New York City
Cost: Free

Free Walking Tours NYC : William Tecumseh Sherman Statue

Free Walking Tours NYC : William Tecumseh Sherman Statue -  GrandArmyPlaza in New York City’s Central Park received its most iconic marker, the Sherman equestrian statue, on Memorial Day 1903. The sculpture features Sherman astride his horse with its right hoof slightly raised. The horse’s rear hoofs are orchestrated atop a series of Georgian pine, a subtle reference to the Sherman’s famed March to the Sea. Leading Sherman is a winged figure with a large palm frond in her left hand while her right arm is extended as if pointing the way to “Victory” for the General. The statue has been ornately covered in a gold leaf that adds to the sculpture’s brilliance. When the sculpture was being constructed, its designer Augustus Saint-Gaudens mandated that the work be covered in two layers of gold to ensure the statue maintained its skin and did not take on a “smoke stack” appearance.

Saint-Gaudens was commissioned to create the sculpture of Sherman in 1892 shortly after the General’s death the year prior. Already a noted artist for his creations of the Diana statue that formerly resided atop Madison Square Garden and the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial within the Boston Common, he was known for both his elegance and perfectionism that led to the works being unveiled a bit less timely than most artists. For instance, Saint-Gaudens spent fourteen years working on the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial before he deemed it complete. Fortunately park officials only had to wait eleven years for the unveiling of the Sherman statue.

To create a likeness of Sherman, Saint-Gaudens leveraged a prior bust he had created by the General in 1888. While sculpting the bust, Sherman posed for eighteen two-hour sessions for the artist to ensure he accurately captured the man’s image. During one, especially lengthy session, it was reported that Saint-Gaudens instructed Sherman to re-button his shirt collar which had become disheveled. Sherman retorted back to the artist that, “The General of the Army of the United States will wear his coat any damn way he pleases.”

Saint-Gaudens used another model as his inspiration for the image of the winged “Victory”. Harriette (“Hettie”) Eugenia Anderson was an African-American model whose image Saint-Gaudens also captured in his design of the Indian Head eagle coin that was minted between 1907 and 1916.

During his eleven years of laboring over the sculpture, Saint-Gaudens became ill and his presence at the unveiling was documented as being quite frail. Unfortunately the Sherman Memorial would be Saint-Gaudens’ last significant work as he passed away four years later in 1907.

Thanks in part to Saint-Gaudens’ obsessive request to ensure two layers of gold leaf on the Sherman Memorial, it maintained its glamour longer than many sculptures. By 1989, however, the statue had started to show signs of wear and tear and the monument was restored.

As to the man himself, Sherman was born William Tecumseh Sherman on February 8, 1820. His unique middle name has long been a source of speculation as to its derivation. Various accounts have been reported over the years. Sherman himself claimed his father suggested the name in honor of the great Shawnee leader who had attempted to unite the tribes in the Ohio Valley versus Americans encroaching on their lands. Other accounts, such as the one published in a 1932 biography, claim that Tecumseh was not even Sherman’s middle name but his first. The biography states that “William” was first given to him as a good Christian name later in life at the age of nine or ten by his then foster mother, Maria Ewing.

At the age of sixteen Sherman enrolled in the United States Military Academy at West Point. Although he would later be declared the first “modern” general and become recognized for his efforts in ending the Civil War, Sherman was not always considered prime cadet material. Sherman recalled, “At the Academy (West Point) I was not considered a good soldier, for at no time was I selected for any office, but remained a private throughout the whole four years.”

William Tecumseh Sherman Statue

Sherman proved his worth over the course of the Civil War, though in key battles such as Bull Run and Shiloh. His tenacity made him a natural leader that led others to follow. His resolve was demonstrated for instance, in the Battle of Shiloh where, despite having three horses shot out from under him and being wounded on two separate occasions (in the hand and shoulder), he continued his pursuit of the enemy. Sherman’s success would lead him to being promoted to major general in 1862.

Perhaps Sherman’s most noted encounter during the Civil War was his infamous March to the Sea in November 1864. After capturing the city of Atlanta for the Union army his troops set fire to the city. Sherman later stated that he never intended for the complete destruction of Atlanta as occurred, since he only instructed his troops to burn munitions factories and other resources of the Confederate army. By the time all was said and done, though, Sherman and his troops had left a trail of destruction that measured sixty miles between Atlanta and Savannah. Although criticized as being inhumane by some, the tactics used had the effect of requiring Confederate troops to scatter and led to their surrender shortly thereafter.

Upon conclusion of the war, Sherman retired to a townhouse on West 71st Street in New York City. He would often spend his time in retirement riding his horse in Central Park. When not riding, Sherman also began work on his personal Memoirs which were published in 1875. These Memoirs are considered one of the best historical accounts of the Civil War. Accepting an invite to share his personal accounts to the graduate class of the Michigan Military Academy in 1879, Sherman explained to students that “War is hell.” His usage of the phrase is the first documented account of an expression that would grace many a politician and soldier’s lips in the years to come. Sherman remained in New York City for the remainder of his days. The general passed away at the age of seventy-one in 1891.

• Website: http://www.centralparknyc.org/visit/things-to-see/south-end/william-tecumseh-sherman-grand-army-plaza.html
• Address: Central Park, New York City, NY (Grand Army Plaza, Intersection of Central Park South and Fifth Avenue)
• Cost: Free

Free Walking Tours NYC : Lincoln Center For The Performing Arts

Free Walking Tours NYC Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts is a 15-acre complex of building home to New York’s Opera, Ballet, Philharmonic Orchestra and much more. In the 1950s and 1960s this area was a seventeen block neighborhood of brick tenement home to many Puerto Rican immigrants and known as San Juan Hill. Their tale became largely famous through the 1957 Broadway hit, West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein. Just four years later when filming began for the Hollywood interpretation of the musical, directors would have to find new locales to replicate San Juan Hill as it had been completely razed for redevelopment.

Lincoln Center For The Performing Arts

Efforts had already begun in the 1950s to replace the dreary tenements with a new center for culture. The first significant barrier, however, was in obtaining rights to the proposed site. This was accomplished via eminent domain when the city seized the properties as part its urban renewal plans. These plans called for the relocation of the existing 7,000 residents within the neighborhood, a large portion of which never saw these promises come to fruition.

Lincoln Center was officially approved for construction in 1956 and President Eisenhower broke ground for the facility in May 1959. To help fund the $184.5 million project, John D. Rockefeller III actually contributed one-half of the funds from his own pocket.

As to the derivation of the name Lincoln Center, no one is really certain as to where it came from. It is largely believed to be a tribute to Abraham Lincoln but no validation of this exists within city records. The name for the area can actually be traced back to 1906 via records from the New York City Board of Alderman (equivalent to the city council). It is believed by some that this apparent omission may be partly driven by the fact that then New York mayor, George B. McClellan Jr., refused acknowledgement of the former President. McClellan Jr’s father had been a major general in the Union Army during the Civil War who had had numerous disputes with Lincoln. McClellan’s disdain for Lincoln even went so far as to run versus him for the Presidency in 1864.

In regards to the current complex, the Avery Fisher Hall was completed in 1962 and followed by the David H. Koch Theatre in 1964 and then the Metropolitan Opera House. The centerpiece of the plaza consists of a fountain by Philip Johnson and a sculpture titled The Reclining Figure by Henry Moore

• Website: http://new.lincolncenter.org/live/
• Address: 70 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York City, NY
• Cost: Free to enjoy the plaza.