Jackson Square Park

The triangular area developed from an unimproved public rallying place, to a classic Victorian viewing garden, to a children's playground, and finally a contemporary mixed-use space.

One footpath led up from the riverbank trading station called Sapohanikan and was both largely perpendicular to the shore and aligned closely to the solar equinox of spring and fall.

The city's first war memorial was erected in 1762 among farmland at the northern terminus of Greenwich Avenue (known then as Monument Lane) a few hundred feet north of what is now Jackson Square Park.

[4][5] On March 22, 1811, the New York State Legislature adopted the Commissioners' Plan of 1811, the visionary but rigid grid system of streets to the north.

[9] Until 1872 the area was simply an open intersection of streets, acting occasionally as a gathering place for political and civic rallies of up to 1,000 and even 2,000 people in attendance, often featuring temporarily constructed platforms for speakers.

[22] In that year Parks superintendent Samuel Parsons Jr. and consulting architect Calvert Vaux collaborated on a new design for Jackson Square.

"[21] Attitudes toward the use of open space in cities changed in the early 20th century with progressive social reformists reshaping parks to more practically and actively address the needs of urban residents, especially children and mothers.

[25] By 1913, Jackson Square Park was formally participating in what the City called “little farmers” program which allowed children to tend to their very own, dedicated small plot in which to grow flowers and vegetables.

Started in 1902 in DeWitt Clinton Park by Frances Griscom Parsons, the idea quickly spread across New York City and to some degree nationally until the distraction of World War I.

[26] The park underwent renovations in the 1930s—17 pin oaks were planted on the perimeter, the shower basin was replaced by a new wading pool, and new benches were installed.

The centerpiece, a new cast-iron fountain with planters and a granite base, evokes the 19th-century origins of Jackson Square Park but is newly constructed.