1.
Boroughs of New York City
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New York City, in the U. S. state of New York, is composed of five county-level administrative entities called boroughs. They are Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, each borough is coextensive with a county of New York State. The county governments were dissolved when New York City consolidated in 1898, along all city, town. The term borough was adopted to describe a form of administration for each of the five fundamental constituent parts of the newly consolidated city in 1898. Under the 1898 City Charter adopted by the New York State Legislature, the term is also used by politicians to counter a frequent focus on Manhattan and thereby to place all five boroughs on equal footing. In the same vein, the outer boroughs refers to all of the boroughs excluding Manhattan. All of the boroughs were created in 1898 during consolidation, when the current boundaries were established. Ultimately in 1914, the present-day separate Bronx County became the last county to be created in the State of New York, the borough of Queens consists of what formerly was only the western part of a then-larger Queens County. The borough of Staten Island was officially the borough of Richmond until the name was changed in 1975 to reflect its common appellation, there are hundreds of distinct neighborhoods throughout the five boroughs of New York City, many with a definable history and character to call their own. Manhattan is the geographically smallest and most densely populated borough and is home to Central Park and most of the citys skyscrapers. Manhattans population density of 72,033 people per mile in 2015 makes it the highest of any county in the United States. Manhattan is often described as the financial and cultural center of the world, most of the borough is situated on Manhattan Island, at the mouth of the Hudson River. Manhattan Island is loosely divided into Lower, Midtown, and Uptown regions, Uptown Manhattan is divided by Central Park into the Upper East Side and the Upper West Side, and above the park is Harlem. The borough also includes a neighborhood on the United States mainland. New York Citys remaining four boroughs are collectively referred to as the outer boroughs, Brooklyn, on the western tip of Long Island, is the citys most populous borough. Brooklyn is known for its cultural, social, and ethnic diversity, an independent art scene, distinct neighborhoods, downtown Brooklyn is the only central core neighborhood in the outer boroughs. The borough has a long beachfront shoreline including Coney Island, established in the 1870s as one of the earliest amusement grounds in the country, marine Park and Prospect Park are the two largest parks in Brooklyn. Historically a collection of towns and villages founded by the Dutch
2.
New York City
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The City of New York, often called New York City or simply New York, is the most populous city in the United States. With an estimated 2015 population of 8,550,405 distributed over an area of about 302.6 square miles. Located at the tip of the state of New York. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy and has described as the cultural and financial capital of the world. Situated on one of the worlds largest natural harbors, New York City consists of five boroughs, the five boroughs – Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, The Bronx, and Staten Island – were consolidated into a single city in 1898. In 2013, the MSA produced a gross metropolitan product of nearly US$1.39 trillion, in 2012, the CSA generated a GMP of over US$1.55 trillion. NYCs MSA and CSA GDP are higher than all but 11 and 12 countries, New York City traces its origin to its 1624 founding in Lower Manhattan as a trading post by colonists of the Dutch Republic and was named New Amsterdam in 1626. The city and its surroundings came under English control in 1664 and were renamed New York after King Charles II of England granted the lands to his brother, New York served as the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790. It has been the countrys largest city since 1790, the Statue of Liberty greeted millions of immigrants as they came to the Americas by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is a symbol of the United States and its democracy. In the 21st century, New York has emerged as a node of creativity and entrepreneurship, social tolerance. Several sources have ranked New York the most photographed city in the world, the names of many of the citys bridges, tapered skyscrapers, and parks are known around the world. Manhattans real estate market is among the most expensive in the world, Manhattans Chinatown incorporates the highest concentration of Chinese people in the Western Hemisphere, with multiple signature Chinatowns developing across the city. Providing continuous 24/7 service, the New York City Subway is one of the most extensive metro systems worldwide, with 472 stations in operation. Over 120 colleges and universities are located in New York City, including Columbia University, New York University, and Rockefeller University, during the Wisconsinan glaciation, the New York City region was situated at the edge of a large ice sheet over 1,000 feet in depth. The ice sheet scraped away large amounts of soil, leaving the bedrock that serves as the foundation for much of New York City today. Later on, movement of the ice sheet would contribute to the separation of what are now Long Island and Staten Island. The first documented visit by a European was in 1524 by Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine explorer in the service of the French crown and he claimed the area for France and named it Nouvelle Angoulême. Heavy ice kept him from further exploration, and he returned to Spain in August and he proceeded to sail up what the Dutch would name the North River, named first by Hudson as the Mauritius after Maurice, Prince of Orange
3.
1964 New York World's Fair
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The 1964/1965 New York Worlds Fair was the third major worlds fair to be held in New York City. However, the fair did not receive official sanctioning from the Bureau of International Expositions, hailing itself as a universal and international exposition, the fairs theme was Peace Through Understanding, dedicated to Mans Achievement on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe. American companies dominated the exposition as exhibitors, the theme was symbolized by a 12-story high, stainless-steel model of the earth called the Unisphere. The fair ran for two seasons, April 22 – October 18,1964, and April 21 – October 17,1965. Admission price for adults was $2 in 1964 but $2.50 in 1965, the fair is noted as a showcase of mid-20th-century American culture and technology. The nascent Space Age, with its vista of promise, was well represented, more than 51 million people attended the fair, though fewer than the hoped-for 70 million. Most major American manufacturing companies from pen manufacturers to auto companies had a major presence and this fair gave many attendees their first interaction with computer equipment. The site, Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the borough of Queens, was previously Manhattans Corona Ash Dumps featured prominently in F. Scott Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby as the Valley of Ashes. Prior to that, the site had been a natural wetland — literally wetland meadows that would flush the nearby runoff entering the adjacent bay, Flushing Meadows had been a Dutch settlement, named after the village of Vlissingen. Subsequently, the site was reclaimed for the 1939/1940 New York Worlds Fair, one of the largest worlds fairs to be held in the United States, the 1939 fair also occupied space that was filled in for the 1964/1965 exposition. The 1964/1965 Fair was conceived by a group of New York businessmen who remembered their experiences at the 1939 New York Worlds Fair. Thoughts of a boom to the city as the result of increased tourism was a major reason for holding another fair 25 years after the 1939/1940 extravaganza. Then-New York City mayor, Robert F. Wagner, Jr and he was joined by Austrian architect Victor Gruen in studies that eventually led the Eisenhower Commission to award the worlds fair to New York City in competition with a number of American cities. Organizers turned to financing and the sale of bonds to pay the huge costs to stage them. The organizers hired New Yorks Master Builder Robert Moses, to head the corporation established to run the fair because he was experienced in raising money for vast public projects, Moses had been a formidable figure in the city since coming to power in the 1930s. He was responsible for the construction of much of the highway infrastructure and, as parks commissioner for decades. In the mid-1930s, Moses oversaw the conversion of a vast Queens tidal marsh/garbage dump into the fairgrounds that hosted the 1939/1940 Worlds Fair, called Flushing Meadows Park, it was Moses grandest park scheme. He envisioned this vast park, comprising some 1,300 acres of land, easily accessible from Manhattan, when the 1939/1940 Worlds Fair ended in financial failure, Moses did not have the available funds to complete work on his project
4.
Citi Field
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Citi Field is a stadium located in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in the New York City borough of Queens. Completed in 2009, it is the baseball park of Major League Baseballs New York Mets. Citi Field was built as a replacement for the formerly adjacent Shea Stadium, Citi Field was designed by Populous, and is named after Citigroup, a New York financial services company which purchased the naming rights. The $850 million baseball park was funded with $615 million in public subsidies, the payments will offset property taxes for the lifetime of the park. The Mets are receiving $20 million annually from Citibank in exchange for naming the stadium Citi Field, the entire public cost is being borne by city and state taxpayers in New York. The first game at Citi Field was on March 29,2009, the Mets played their first two games at the ballpark on April 3 and April 4,2009 against the Boston Red Sox as charity exhibition games. The first regular home game was played on April 13,2009. Citi Field hosted the 2013 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, marking the time the Mets have hosted the event. The stadium will host the 2018 NHL Winter Classic between the New York Rangers and the Buffalo Sabres, since the 1990s, the Mets had been looking to replace Shea Stadium. It had originally built as a multi-purpose stadium in 1964. The Mets also considered moving to Mitchel Field or Belmont Park in Nassau County, Long Island, Sunnyside Yard in Queens, or the West Side Yard in Manhattan. In December 2001, shortly before leaving office, New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani announced tentative agreements for both the Mets and New York Yankees to build new stadiums. Of the $1.6 billion sought for the stadiums, city and state taxpayers would pick up half the tab for construction, $800 million, along with $390 million on extra transportation. The teams would keep 96% of ticket revenues and 100% of all revenues, not pay sales tax or property tax on the stadium. Business officials criticized the plan as giving too much money to successful teams with little reason to move to a different city, at the time, Bloomberg said that publicly funded stadiums were a poor investment. Under Bloomberg, the New York City government would offer public financing for infrastructure improvements. Bloomberg called the former mayors agreements corporate welfare, the final plans for what is now Citi Field were created as part of the New York City 2012 Olympic bid. After plans for a West Side Stadium fell through, New York looked for a stadium to host the opening and closing ceremonies and track
5.
Flushing Meadows Carousel
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The Flushing Meadows Carousel is a carousel located in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in the New York City borough of Queens. It contains four rows of figures, including 64 jumping horses,7 standing horses,1 menagerie animal, and 2 chariots. During the fair, it stood on a site within the park, and it was moved to its present site in 1968. In 2016 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the two predecessor carousels were the Feltman’s Carousel and the Stubbman Carousel, both of which were created for amusement operators in Coney Island. 47 horses and the frame are from the Stubbman Carousel, and 24 horses are from the Feltman’s Carousel, while Coney Island has seen resurgence since 2000, it had been busy during the Great Depression and had over twenty carousels spinning at once. The Feltmans Carousel had a restaurant and beer garden that occupied the site where the Luna Park currently sits, the carousel was indoors but faced Surf Avenue. Feltmans carousel is regarded by some as Marcus Illions masterpiece, the Stubbman Carousel was located at West 6th Street and Surf Avenue. It was part of the Stubbman’s Beer Garden, which sat adjacent to the Hotel Eleanor, the site is currently occupied by the New York Aquarium. The Stubbman machine had 64 horses and spun in Stubbman’s Beer Garden until 1953, the Summit article said that the Stubbman Carousel was, “commissioned by George and Henry Stubbman for their beer garden. The building housing the merry-go-round was prominently labeled, ‘Hotel Eleanor and its handsome Louis XIV chariots put the snake-headed, winged dragons of Feltman to shame. ”Both carousels were carved by master carousel carver Marcus Illions. He was one of the premier carvers in the Coney Island style of carving, the creatures that came out of this style were known for flamboyance and a flair for the dramatic. They did not focus on the realism in carving, rather, the Feltman Carousel was a classic Illions design and was extremely ornate. Carousel historian Frederick Fried, author of the book A Pictorial History of the Carousel, said it was, the Stubbman horses were a bit more subdued and simpler. Both frames were made by famed Coney Island ride manufacturer William F. Mangels, the Stubbman frame was eventually used on the Flushing Meadows Carousel when the two machines were combined. It has another feature rare to many carousels, slots in the floor allow the horses to tilt outwards as the machine picks up speed. The Feltman’s carousel spun under a few different owners and it ran from 1903 to 1954 as part Feltman’s. In 1954 Dewey Albert and Nathan Handwerker bought the property, improved it, Handwerker eventually wanted out of the deal and Albert now called the shots. He decided to build Astroland, the first phase of which opened in 1962, the carousel operated indoors until 1962 and outdoors through the 1963 season when it was packed up to make room for Astroland’s 200-foot Astrotower
6.
Flushing Meadows Natatorium
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Located inside the historic Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, site of the world’s fair in 1939 and 1964, the public facility caters to all New York City residents. Built in 2008, the $66.3 million project is the first indoor pool to open in New York City in four decades. The result is a building with 130-foot-high twin masts and a swooping roof form. The masts are an architectural feature extending up into the Queens skyline as well as the supports for the cable-stayed roof. This design provides the clear spans necessary to house an Olympic swimming pool along with an ice skating rink, the Flushing Meadows Natatorium was designed by Handel Architects in association with Kevin Hom Architects. The 1939 and 1964 World’s Fair pavilions, which occupied the site, inspired the architects to design the canopy roof suspended above the natatorium. The World’s Fair was a universal exposition showcasing various cultural exhibitions from all over the world, World’s fairs have become historic markers exemplifying commercial and industrial successes of various eras. The organizers of the 1939 World’s Fair boasted it was “the greatest exhibition ever held. ”They referred to its vast size, the symbolism of the Trylon and Perisphere. Known as the Corona dumps, Robert Moses headed its transformation into a new park, for the borough of Queens, and the construction of the fair. The theme of the 1939 World’s Fair was, “Building the World of Tomorrow. ”The fair was to symbolize the faith in new technology. Through the various showcases from different countries, citizens around the world were given gave a chance to learn about countries that they have heard of in books. The magical and futuristic land also housed new buildings, including the iconic General Motors’ Futurama and Democracity, twenty-five years later, the Flushing Meadows Park was selected, again to be the site of the 1964 World’s Fair. Americans had a fascination with space and “the new frontier. ”The themes of the 1964 World’s Fair were, “A Millennium of Progress” and “Man’s Achievements in an Expanding Universe. ”Space-oriented pavilions such as the New York Pavilion, which housed an observation platform, symbolized the growing infatuation with the Space Age. The New York State Pavilion, designed by Philip Johnson and Richard Foster, is one of the few still standing in Flushing Meadows Park. The oval roof, suspended and cable-hung, was the largest in the world, the pavilion was praised for its suspended roof and two towers that stood as the tallest structures of the fair. This large tent-like structure may have been an influence on the current Flushing Meadows Natatorium, today, all these structures are either demolished or left in an uninhabitable, dilapidated state. The buildings foundation was completed in 2001 but after the September 11 attacks the project was halted due to funding issues, finally, in 2003, the Natatorium was designated as the swimming arena in New York Citys bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympics. The Parks Department partnered with the Economic Development Corporation and plans re-commenced for New York City to build its first public swimming pool in 40 years
7.
USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center
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It is operated by the United States Tennis Association. The facility has 22 courts inside its 46.5 acres and 11 in the adjoining park, the complexs three stadia are among the largest tennis stadia in the world, with Arthur Ashe Stadium topping the global list with a listed capacity of 23,200. All 33 courts have used the DecoTurf cushioned acrylic surface since the facility was built in 1978. Located near Citi Field, the home of the New York Mets, on August 28,2006, the USTA National Tennis Center was rededicated as the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The idea of the center came about in January 1977, when W. E. Slew Hester. He asked the City of New York to let him use the stadium, the stadium was heavily renovated and divided into two venues, Louis Armstrong Stadium and the adjoining grandstand. The National Tennis Center opened in August 1978, after rumors of a possible move to San Diego, a major upgrade and expansion began in March 1995. More land was committed to the USTA National Tennis Center, the four-year expansion was completed in 1999. Arthur Ashe Stadium holds more than 22,000 spectators while Louis Armstrong Stadium was downsized to hold just 10,000 spectators. In 2006, at the location of the old indoor tennis building near the East Gate, work began on a 245, 000-square-foot, the new facility was completed in 2008 and includes 12 courts, classrooms, fitness facilities, and a pro shop. It also includes a hospitality center, museum, and food commissary, other renovations included the players’ lounge, locker rooms, and medical, training and office space. In 2011, the facility opened a new court, Court 17, located in the southeast corner of the grounds, seating 2,500 to 3,000. In constructing the new court, foundations from the 1939 and 1964 Worlds Fair were discovered, because the playing surface of Court 17 is below ground level, the new court has received the nickname of The Pit. As part of a renovation, a new show court was added in the southwest corner of the complex - the new Grandstand. This 8,125 seat stadium, which opened in 2016, is the third largest stadium in the center, and replaces the Old Grandstand, which will be torn down when Louis Armstrong Stadium is replaced in 2018. The center is in the middle of a $550 million renovation in that includes a roof constructed on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The game itself was an event as it was the first ever professional basketball regular season game ever played outdoors in the USA. The contest featured the Indiana Fever defeating the New York Liberty, USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center is the site of the annual New York State High School tennis championships, held in May
8.
Queens Museum
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The Queens Museum, formerly the Queens Museum of Art, is an art museum and educational center located in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in the borough of Queens in New York City, United States. The museum is housed in the New York City Building, which was built for the 1939 New York Worlds Fair, and which then hosted the United Nations General Assembly from 1946 to 1950. The museum itself was founded in 1972, and has, among its permanent exhibitions, the Panorama of the City of New York, a scale model of the five boroughs built for the 1964 New York Worlds Fair. The Queens Museum has focused on outreach and access for a range of audiences. The Queens Museum is, in addition to a fine arts collecting museum, also a site, community center. The Queens Museum is located in the New York City Building, in 1964, the building was renovated by architect Daniel Chait and was once again used as the New York City Pavilion for the 1964 World’s Fair, where it displayed the Panorama of the City of New York. In 1972, with alterations, the north side of the New York City building was converted into the Queens Center for Art and Culture. In 1994, the building underwent a renovation, with architect Rafael Viñoly reconfiguring the structure into galleries, classrooms. For many years, half of the building was an ice skating rink, the museum embarked on a $69 million expansion project in 2009, which was originally slated to be completed in October 2013. The expanded museum reopened in November 2013 after closing for several months, the museums permanent collection consists of around 10,000 items, over 6,000 of which are documents and objects related to the 1939 and 1964 Worlds Fairs, some of which are on long-term display. Since 1995, the museum has maintained a partnership with the Neustadt Collection of Tiffany glass, selections from the collection are on long-term display, drawn from a large private Tiffany collection assembled by Dr. Egon Neustadt and his wife Hildegard starting in the mid-1930s. The collection consists of windows, lamps, and related objects and also boasts an archive of nearly 300,000 pieces of flat, an archive containing representative samples of each type, color, texture and pattern of this material is being established for exhibition and study. The history of the creation of Tiffanys work is stressed in the Queens Museum exhibitions, as Tiffany Studios and Furnaces was once located within studios in Corona, which were closed in the 1930s. The best-known permanent exhibition at the Queens Museum is the Panorama of the City of New York, the Panorama was built by a team of 100 people working for the architectural model makers Raymond Lester Associates in the three years before the opening of the 1964 World’s Fair. The Panorama was one of the most successful attractions at the 1964 Fair, each year the Queens Museum hosts the Panorama Challenge, a trivia contest run by The City Reliquary. Contestants use the Panorama to identify various New York City landmarks, after the Fair closed, the Panorama remained open to the public, and Lester’s team updated the map in 1967,1968, and 1969. After 1970, very few changes were made until 1992, when again Lester Associates was hired to update the model to coincide with the re-opening of the museum, the model makers changed over 60,000 structures to bring it up-to-date at that time. In March 2009, the announced the intention to update the panorama on an ongoing basis
9.
Robert Moses
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Robert Moses was a city planner who worked mainly in the New York metropolitan area. One of his contributions to urban planning was New York States large parkway network. Robert Moses simultaneously held twelve titles, but was never elected to any public office, nevertheless, he created and led numerous public authorities that gave him autonomy from the general public and elected officials. Moses projects were considered by many to be necessary for the development after the Great Depression. During the height of his powers, New York City built campuses to host two Worlds Fairs, one in 1939 and the other in 1964. Moses also helped persuade the United Nations to locate its headquarters in Manhattan, instead of Philadelphia, by helping the state secure the money, Moses was born in New Haven, Connecticut, to assimilated German Jewish parents, Bella and Emanuel Moses. He spent the first nine years of his living at 83 Dwight Street in New Haven. In 1897, the Moses family moved to New York City, Mosess father was a successful department store owner and real estate speculator in New Haven. In order for the family to move to New York City, he sold his estate holdings and store. Mosess mother was active in the settlement movement, with her own love of building, Robert Moses and his brother Paul attended several schools for their elementary and secondary education, including the Dwight School and the Mohegan Lake School, a military academy near Peekskill. After graduating from Yale University and Wadham College, Oxford, and earning a Ph. D. in political science from Columbia University, Moses became attracted to New York City reform politics. A committed idealist, he developed plans to rid New York of patronage hiring practices. None went very far, but Moses, due to his intelligence, caught the notice of Belle Moskowitz, when the state Secretary of States position became appointive rather than elective, Smith named Moses, Moses served from 1927 to 1929. Moses rose to power with Smith, who was elected as governor in 1922, during that period Moses began his first foray into large scale public work initiatives, while drawing on Smiths political power to enact legislation. This helped create the new Long Island State Park Commission and the State Council of Parks and this centralization allowed Smith to run a government later used as a model for Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal federal government. Moses also received numerous commissions that he carried out extraordinarily well, displaying a strong command of law as well as matters of engineering, Moses became known for his skill in drafting legislation, and was called the best bill drafter in Albany. At a time when the public was accustomed to Tammany Hall corruption and incompetence, shortly after President Franklin D. Roosevelts inauguration in 1933, the federal government found itself with millions of New Deal dollars to spend, yet states and cities had few projects ready. Moses was one of the few officials who had projects shovel ready
