Who would know, right? This area you can see was once a cemetery. And today it is a meeting place, park, market and district where you can find some of the best restaurants in New York.
This fantastic square is the centre of a residential and commercial area overflowing with activity. It is located at the intersection of Broadway and the former Browery Road, the current Fourth Avenue. Hence its name "union", although many believe it is because since the late 19th century is has been one of the places where demonstrations and union protests are held. In fact, many unions are located in this square. Is it a coincidence?
The truth is that since the 19th century large monuments to politicians have appeared here, which has also given it more social weight. In the centre of the square, there is a statue of George Washington, designed by Henry Kirke Brown in 1856 and the area presents one of Abraham Lincoln by the same artist in 1866, one of the Marquis de Lafayette, designed by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi in 1875, known as the designer of the famous statue of liberty, as well as the more recent memorial to Mahatma Gandhi by Patel Kantilal work in 1986.
Perhaps due to this, Union Square Park held demonstrations and important marches such as the parade's first Labour Day in 1882, the manifestation of March 1930 when more than 35,000 unemployed workers took to the streets to protest, or the massive commemoration of the first Earth Day in 1970.
The square was originally designed in 1831 and opened to the public in 1839 and soon became the centre of a wealthy suburb. The boom came after the Civil War, because nearby theatres and other venues such as Wallack Theatre, the Irving Hall or the Academy of Music were opened. By the late 19th century, large buildings were built that still make this place a very special place. Among them, pay special attention to the Lincoln Building, in Romanesque style and built in 1887 at 1 Union Square West. A little further along, at number 33, you will see a Moorish-style building. This is the Decker Building, built in 1892, which was the seat of the Decker Brothers Piano Company and in the 60s and 70s it hosted the second study of The Factory, the creative factory by Andy Warhol.
But of all the notable buildings of Union Square Park, you cannot help but admire and photograph the century Building, located at 33 17th Street E. It was built in 1881 by architect William Schickel in the Queen Ann style and retains its precious cast iron columns and original features.
Finally, I love the fact that since 1976 every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday in Union Square the Greenmarket has been held, the biggest fresh product market in New York. Fruits, vegetables, flowers, cheese, meat, fish, wine and even homemade cakes. Strolling through the market and trying the food can be a great way to stimulate your senses and rest to continue discovering the city. 100% recommendable.
And since you are in the area, we invite you to discover one of those places that make New York a unique city. If you go south and look for the Virgin store, look at the abstract clock called The Metronome, created by artists Kristen Jones and Andrew Ginzel in 1999. Initially, to tell the time we must take into account that the first couple of digits indicate the time elapsed since midnight. The first two, the hours; the next two, the minutes; and the next two, the seconds. Instead, the last digits indicate the time remaining until the next midnight. That is, the last two, the hours; the previous two, the minutes; and the two before that, the seconds. The three digits that remain in the middle are tenths of a second. But the truth is that lately the clock has been used for other purposes, such as a countdown to any big event in town. Just one more thing, stand under the clock's big hand at any anytime o'clock and we assure you that you will get a fun surprise.
