We all know about Greenwich Village as a place for artists, young people who love coffee houses, but the history of what we now know as Greenwich Village goes back to the 16th century when it was inhabited by the birth of America. There was also a river of trout flowing through the area, providing the tribe with an abundance of food.
The first European settlers in Manhattan were the Dutch, who called their first town New Amsterdam in what we now know as the Financial District, a logical place for them to live where the rivers meet the ocean. But not for the weekend. By the 1630s, they and the freed slaves they had bought with them had begun to move north and clear land for farming in the Greenwich Village< /a>. This is the first change of Greenwich Village, from desert to country land.
Of course, the Dutch lost their seat to the British in 1664 and the name was changed to New York and that is, with Greenwich Village repeated from farm to farm in superior class of Britain, as the highest order of the army. It was a few years later when Greenwich Village got its first name, which was Grin’wich
The area remained much the same until 1780. Downtown Manhattan began to be the busiest and New York’s Potter Field Cemetery, but there was no place in Downtown, so with Greenwich Village north of Downtown, they bought 8 acres of land just north of the city, in the area we now know as Washington Square Park. And this was the beginning of the third change from the farms to the street of Greenwich Village. There is one event in history that focuses on development and that led to a long series of yellow fever and cholera epidemics between 1799 and 1821. The city was shaken , thousands were dying, and those who had not been struck thought of one thing in their minds, and that was to get out of the crowded center of the city, and take the north; that time was Greenwich, where there were green pastures and clean air.
They all had the intention of coming back when the diseases left, but when they stopped, they changed their minds. So I return to the people where they could create their own fortress. And they did build. Banks, warehouses, a row of houses. He diverted the ancient trout streams, overthrew the hills, cut down the forests, and the land was transformed forever.
New York University was established in the area in 1836 and became a center of learning with art galleries, literary societies and theaters being established.
At the end of the 19th century, another change took place. There were many industries in the area such as coal and lumber yards and breweries that made way for the arrival of immigrants from Ireland, Germany and Italy. The rich and noble, who had built magnificent houses around the old seat, moved further north and the houses were turned into apartments for the new arrivals.
By the time WW started in 1917, the area was known as a place for artists and writers to come for low rents and pretty streets. There were art galleries and theaters, creating a real mecca for the arts of the time. Then things would change again and another change would take place. And that exchange was bought by Prohibition. All these great buildings and a clamoring city. They brought the wealthy from the north, bought cheap property, and restored the rowing houses to their former glory. They say history always repeats itself. The sons of the rich, who took the north all these years, have returned. All went well until 1929 and the stock market crash. All the rich were no longer rich.
By the 1950s, Greenwich Village began to look familiar. It was the home of the beatnik generation and many coffee houses and restaurants are still there.
If you go to Greenwich Village today, you will find shops, arcades, many great restaurants and night clubs. It is one of the best places in the night life in New York. When you walk through Washington Square Park, remember the people who were buried there centuries ago. Take a look at the historic houses from the 19th century that are still standing and you’ll see proof that everyone who’s been here over 300+ years has helped make Greenwich Village’s history what it is today.
