New York in New York County, New York — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Standing Against All Odds
St. Paul’s Chapel has withstood adversity throughout its many years. On September 21, 1776, ten years after the Chapel opened, a raging fire swept through Lower Manhattan, destroying a quarter of the city, including Trinity Church (St. Paul’s parish home). The community saved St. Paul’s by forming a bucket brigade and dousing the Chapel with water. With Trinity in ruins, St. Paul’s became the primary church until 1790.
225 years later, another tragedy struck on September 11, 2001. The collapse of the World Trade Center buildings across the street from St. Paul’s left Lower Manhattan and St. Paul’s churchyard littered with debris. Miraculously there was no physical damage to the Chapel itself. For nine months after the attacks, St. Paul’s offered Ground Zero recovery workers a place to rest, eat, and receive medical care. On November 3, 2003, more than two years later, the churchyard reopened to the public.
Location. Marker is in New York, New York, in New York County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Broadway and Vesey Street. Marker is in this post office area: New York NY 10007, United States of America.
More about this marker. The marker is in the St. Paul's Chapel graveyard.
Categories. • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Churches & Religion • Disasters •
Credits. This page was last revised on April 2, 2018. This page originally submitted on March 29, 2018, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. This page has been viewed 30 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 29, 2018, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.