Madison Square, Herald Square, Macy's & Flatiron Building, New York - "Along Broadway" Video Tours
In this new video tour of
New York City from the series "All Along
Broadway" (see the first two episodes: "
Wall street" (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwx_lomIrMw ) and "
Union Square" ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIUXvqrl-Mc ),
David Hill from
New York Habitat continues his stroll along Broadway and presents
Midtown Manhattan and its famous squares:
Madison Square,
Herald Square and
Greeley Square.
Broadway is one of the most famous roads in the world. It runs the length of
Manhattan, from its southern tip to the northern tip of the island and continues in the
Bronx, crossing many of Manhattan's neighborhoods.
History
The oldest "street" in New York City, Broadway was originally used as a trail by the
Native Americans who lived here; later it was used by the
Dutch settlers to travel to the northern forests to hunt.
Madison Square
Walking north along Broadway, you will reach a large intersection at
Fifth Avenue and
23rd St. which creates a big square
. This is Madison Square, named after the 4th
U.S. President,
James Madison. It was here in 1842 where some of the first amateur baseball games were ever played. They used a vacant lot in the north part of the square (corner of
Madison Avenue &
27th Street).
Later, the original
New York Knickerbocker Baseball club, one of the first professional baseball teams, started right here.
Flatiron or
Fuller Building
One of the most beautiful buildings in this square is the Fuller Building, designed by
Daniel Burnham in the Beaux-Arts architectural style. It was named "Fuller" after the construction company that erected it in 1902 and it was one of the tallest skyscrapers ever built in New York City as of 1902. It was soon renamed the
Flatiron Building because of its triangular shape which resembles a flat iron and gives the name
Flatiron District to the area.
Madison Square Park
On May 10, 1847 Madison Square Park was opened to the public and was made into an aristocratic center surrounded by nice shops and hotels. The park has a few statues.
- At the southeastern corner is the statue of
Senator Roscoe Conkling, who froze to death during the great
1888 blizzard.
- In the southwestern part of the park is a statue of
Secretary of State William Seward, who purchased the territory of
Alaska from
Russia in 1867.
Shake Shack
Entering the park from the south you will run into the Shake Shack, a popular permanent stand that serves hamburgers, hot dogs, shakes of course and even wine. You can sit under the trees, eat some local New York food and enjoy the scenery.
Broadway passes through many neighborhoods around Madison Square. There's
Chelsea,
Murray Hill,
Midtown East and
Midtown West, and New York Habitat ( http://www.nyhabitat.com ) has vacation rentals and furnished apartments all around these areas.
Renting an apartment http://www.nyhabitat.com/new-york-apartment
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( http://www.nyhabitat.com/new-york-apartment/vacation/14344 ).
Or check out this 1 bedroom New York furnished apartment in
Gramercy ( http://www.nyhabitat.com/new-york-apartment/furnished/14056 ).
Don't hesitate to check our website in order to have on overview of all ours vacation rentals http://www.nyhabitat.com/new-york-apartment/vacation or furnished rentals http://www.nyhabitat.com/new-york-apartment/furnished
Herald Square
Walking north towards the area called
Midtown, you will arrive at the next square on Broadway, Herald Square. Herald Square is formed by the intersection of Broadway with
6th Avenue, also known as
Avenue of the Americas, with
34th Street. It takes its name from the now defunct newspaper called
The New York Herald. In the northern part of this square, you can view the statue of the
Bennett family, former owners of the
New York Herald.
Greeley Square
As opposed to the triangular shape of the Flatiron Building, at this intersection you can find a triangular shaped park at Greeley Square.
It's a cozy park with a restaurant kiosk, tables and chairs, where many professional workers from the nearby offices and shoppers from all over like to buy their food and relax.
Macy's Department Store
One of the main attractions in Herald Square is the Macy's department store, which occupies a full city block from Broadway to
7th Avenue.
There is a lot more to discover along and around Broadway, so please be sure to check out our Blog for other video tours: http://www.nyhabitat.com/blog/
2010/07/23/video-tour-madison-herald-squares-midtown-manhattan-all-along-broadway
If you know of any fun stops along Broadway, be sure to leave a comment in the comment section below.