Washington Square, in the New York Public Library collection Excavations have found tombstones under the park dating as far back as 1799. To this day, the remains of more than 20,000 bodies rest under Washington Square. However, the cemetery was closed in 1825. Others placed the gallows closer to where the arch is now. One said it had been put up at a spot where the fountain was prior to 2007 park redesign.
Two eyewitnesses to the recorded hanging differed on the location of the gallows. Records of only one public hanging at the potter's field exist. However, research indicates the tree was on the side of the former Minetta Creek that was the back garden of a private house. Ī legend in many tourist guides says that the large elm at the northwest corner of the park, Hangman's Elm, was the old hanging tree. But when New York (which did not include this area yet) went through yellow fever epidemics in the early 19th century, most of those who died from yellow fever were also buried here, safely away from town, as a hygienic measure. It was used mainly for burying unknown or indigent people when they died. It remained farmland until April 1797, when the Common Council of New York purchased the fields to the east of the Minetta (which were not yet within city limits) for a new potter's field, or public burial ground. Among those who owned parcels in what is now Washington Square Park was Paulo D'Angola. The area became the core of an early African American community in New York, then called the Land of the Blacks and later "Little Africa". Their children would be born as slaves, rather than free. The families who received the land were no longer slaves, but had to give a portion of the profits they received from the land to the Dutch West India Company and pay annual land fees. In 1643, a group of "half-freed" slaves and elders such as Domingo Anthony, Manuel Trumpeter and Catalina Anthony, received land grants to build and maintain farms in the areas containing and surrounding Washington Square Park. The Dutch gave the land, then outside the city limits (Wall Street) to Angolan residents of the colony, intending for their plots and settlement to serve as a buffer zone to Native Americans outside the settlement. By the mid-17th century, the land on each side of the Minetta was used as farm land by the Dutch. In the early 17th century, a Native American village known as Sapokanican or "Tobacco Field" was nearby. The land was once divided by a narrow marshy valley through which Minetta Creek (or Brook) ran.
It includes children's play areas, trees and gardens, paths to stroll on, a chess and scrabble playing area, park benches, picnic tables, commemorative statuary and two dog runs. The two prominent features are the Washington Square Arch and a large fountain. While the park contains many flower beds and trees, little of the park is used for plantings due to the paving. Located at the foot of Fifth Avenue, the park is bordered by Washington Square North (known as Waverly Place east and west of the park), Washington Square East (known as University Place north of the park), Washington Square South (known as West 4th Street east and west of the park), and Washington Square West (known as MacDougal Street north and south of the park). Many buildings have been built by New York University, while others have been converted from their former uses into academic and residential buildings. The park's fountain area has long been one of the city's popular spots, and many of the local buildings have at one time served as homes and studios for artists. The park is an open space, dominated by the Washington Square Arch at the northern gateway to the park, with a tradition of celebrating nonconformity. It is operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks). One of the best known of New York City's public parks, it is an icon as well as a meeting place and center for cultural activity. Washington Square Park is a 9.75-acre (39,500 m 2) public park in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York City. Subway: to West Fourth Street–Washington Square, to Eighth Street–New York University New York City Department of Parks and Recreation
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