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Financial District in Manhattan in New York County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton

Exploring Downtown

 
 
Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
1. Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton Marker
Inscription. From early Dutch times the tip of Manhattan was fortified with the batteries of guns from which the Battery takes its name – first at the 17th-century Fort Amsterdam on the Custom House site, then at Castle Clinton. Fort Amsterdam disappeared long ago, but its rubble survives in the layers of landfill that eventually helped create 23 acres of Battery Park, in the process filling in the water separating Castle Clinton from the mainland. Today, The Battery Conservancy is implementing its award-winning Master Plan to recapture the park’s harbor-side splendor.

Completed in 1811, as part of New York City’s harbor defense, Castle Clinton is among the oldest, most visited public buildings in Downtown. Transformed in 1824 into Castle Garden, showcasing balloonists, fireworks, and Italian opera companies, the former fort became the city’s leading place of entertainment, and its preferred location for grand entrances by visiting celebrities. From 1855 until 1890 Castle Garden served as America’s first official landing depot for new immigrants, “so well known in Europe,” according to the New York Times in 1874, “that few immigrants could be induced to sail for any other destination.”

From 1896 to 1941, Castle Garden served as the New York Aquarium, in its day the world’s largest. 100 wall tanks and 7 large
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pools played home to 8,000 creatures including turtles, sea lions, sturgeon, alligators, crocodiles, manatees, porpoises, beavers, seacows, electric eels, and whales, many living in salt water pumped in from New York Bay.

Today, Castle Clinton is a National Monument operated by the National Park Service.
 
Erected by The Alliance for Downtown New York, Inc.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Notable Places. A significant historical year for this entry is 1811.
 
Location. 40° 42.27′ N, 74° 0.865′ W. Marker is in Manhattan, New York, in New York County. It is in the Financial District. Marker is at the intersection of State Street and Battery Place, on the left when traveling north on State Street. The marker is located at the northeast entrance to Battery Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: New York NY 10004, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Netherlands Memorial (a few steps from this marker); Netherlands Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); Fort Amsterdam (within shouting distance of this marker); October 28, 1886 (within shouting distance of this marker); Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House / National Museum of the American Indian (within shouting distance of this marker); Broadway - The Canyon of Heroes
Marker at Battery Park image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
2. Marker at Battery Park
(within shouting distance of this marker); American Merchant Marine (within shouting distance of this marker); George Gustav Heye (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Manhattan.
 
More about this marker. There are several pictures on the marker. The top right features an “Aerial view of Manhattan circa 1855.” The left side of the marker contains a picture of 19th century visitors to Castle Garden. Below this is a photograph of “A boy riding a sea turtle at the New York Aquarium.”
 
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Take a tour of the markers in lower Manhattan erected by the Alliance for Downtown New York, Inc.
 
Also see . . .
1. Castle Clinton National Monument. Nation Park Service website. (Submitted on June 5, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.) 

2. Castle Clinton. The Battery Conservancy website. (Submitted on June 5, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.) 

3. Castle Clinton -- the Battery. "Daytonian in Manhattan" entry. (Submitted on April 10, 2020, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.) 
 
Entrance to Castle Clinton image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
3. Entrance to Castle Clinton
Castle Clinton National Monument image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
4. Castle Clinton National Monument
Castle Clinton Diorama #1 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
5. Castle Clinton Diorama #1
This display shows what Castle Clinton looked like when it was an off-shore fortification.
Castle Clinton Diorama #2 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
6. Castle Clinton Diorama #2
This display shows Castle Garden when it served as the New York Aquarium.
Castle Clinton Diorama #3 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2008
7. Castle Clinton Diorama #3
This display shows Castle Clinton as it appears today, as part of the mainland of lower Manhattan.
Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Larry Gertner, November 1999
8. Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton Marker
An earlier version of the marker, when it was part of a "Heritage Trail".
Historic Battery Park image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Larry Gertner, April 19, 2015
9. Historic Battery Park
After the most recent makeover
Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Larry Gertner, December 1, 2018
10. Historic Battery Park & Castle Clinton Marker
The latest iteration of the marker. It is now just across State Street on the reverse side of the "Exploring Lower Manhattan" wayside for the "Alexander Hamilton Custom House/National Museum of the American Indian" at the Custom House Plaza.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on January 31, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 5, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 1,724 times since then and 23 times this year. Last updated on December 2, 2018, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. submitted on June 5, 2009, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.   8, 9. submitted on November 24, 2018, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.   10. submitted on December 2, 2018, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024