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73-690: The Audubon Theatre and Ballroom , generally referred to as the Audubon Ballroom , was a theatre and ballroom located at 3940 Broadway at West 165th Street in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan , New York City . It was built in 1912 and was designed by Thomas W. Lamb . The theatre was known at various times as the William Fox Audubon Theatre , the Beverly Hills Theater , and

146-530: A metonym for it, as well as in the names of alternative theatrical ventures such as Off-Broadway and Off-off-Broadway . Broadway was originally the Wickquasgeck trail, carved into the brush of Manhattan by its Native American inhabitants. This trail originally snaked through swamps and rocks along the length of Manhattan Island. Upon the arrival of the Dutch , the trail was widened and soon became

219-874: A pro bono team of architects assembled by the New York Landmarks Conservancy and the Municipal Art Society . The compromise allowed Columbia to build on the northern part of the building their research facility – now the Audubon Business and Technology Center in the Mary Woodard Lasker Biomedical Research Building, part of the Audubon Biomedical Science and Technology Park a public-private partnership between Columbia University Medical Center and

292-676: A hotel, live seals were kept in indoor fountains inside its lobby. Later, it was home to the infamous Plato's Retreat nightclub. Immediately north of Verdi Square is the Apple Bank Building , formerly the Central Savings Bank, which was built in 1926 and designed to resemble the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Broadway is also home to the Beacon Theatre at West 74th Street , designated

365-500: A medical research facility. Although many city officials, including Mayor David Dinkins , were strongly in favor of the project because of the jobs and economic impetus it would bring to the area, which had suffered greatly in the economic downturn of the 1970s, community activists and Columbia University students – who occupied Hamilton Hall on campus – protested the planned demolition, and historic preservation groups unsuccessfully sued to prevent it. They were also unable to persuade

438-481: A national landmark in 1979 and still in operation as a concert venue after its establishment in 1929 as a vaudeville and music hall, and "sister" venue to Radio City Music Hall . At its intersection with West 78th Street, Broadway shifts direction and continues directly uptown and aligned approximately with the Commissioners' grid. Past the bend are the historic Apthorp apartment building, built in 1908, and

511-476: A one-block stretch between 24th and 25th Streets. At Greeley Square (West 32nd Street), Broadway crosses Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas), and is discontinuous to vehicles until West 35th Street. Macy's Herald Square department store, one block north of the vehicular discontinuity, is located on the northwest corner of Broadway and West 34th Street and southwest corner of Broadway and West 35th Street; it

584-599: A pilot program; the right-of-way is intact and reserved for cyclists and pedestrians. From the northern shore of Manhattan, Broadway crosses Spuyten Duyvil Creek via the Broadway Bridge and continues through Marble Hill (a discontiguous portion of the borough of Manhattan) and the Bronx into Westchester County . U.S. 9 continues to be known as Broadway until its junction with NY 117 . The section of lower Broadway from its origin at Bowling Green to City Hall Park

657-535: A portion of U.S. Route 9 . It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in New York City, with much of the current street allegedly beginning as the Wickquasgeck trail before the arrival of Europeans. This then formed the basis for one of the primary thoroughfares of the Dutch New Amsterdam colony, which continued under British rule, although most of it did not bear its current name until

730-586: A shared street. Broadway runs the length of Manhattan Island, roughly parallel to the North River (the portion of the Hudson River bordering Manhattan), from Bowling Green at the south to Inwood at the northern tip of the island. South of Columbus Circle , it is a one-way southbound street. Since 2009, vehicular traffic has been banned at Times Square between 47th and 42nd Streets , and at Herald Square between 35th and 33rd Streets as part of

803-578: A similar street in Amsterdam – or "High Street" or "the Highway"; it was renamed "Broadway" after the British took over the city, because of its unusual width. Although currently the name of the street is simply "Broadway", in a 1776 map of New York City, it is labeled as "Broadway Street". In the 18th century, Broadway ended at the town commons north of Wall Street . The part of Broadway in what

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876-849: Is now Lower Manhattan was initially known as Great George Street . Traffic continued up the East Side of the island via Eastern Post Road and the West Side via Bloomingdale Road, which opened in 1703, continued up to 117th Street and contributed to the development of the modern Upper West Side into an upscale area with mansions. In her 1832 book Domestic Manners of the Americans , Fanny Trollope wrote of her impressions of New York City in general and of Broadway in particular: This noble street may vie with any I ever saw, for its length and breadth, its handsome shops, neat awnings, excellent trottoir , and well-dressed pedestrians. It has not

949-439: Is now known as South Broadway. It trends ever westward, closer to the Hudson River , remaining a busy urban commercial street. In downtown Yonkers, it drops close to the river, becomes North Broadway and 9A leaves via Ashburton Avenue. Broadway climbs to the nearby ridgetop runs parallel to the river and the railroad, a few blocks east of both as it passes St. John's Riverside Hospital . The neighborhoods become more residential and

1022-535: Is one of the largest department stores in the world. One famous stretch near Times Square , where Broadway crosses Seventh Avenue in midtown Manhattan , is the home of many Broadway theatres , housing an ever-changing array of commercial, large-scale plays, particularly musicals . This area of Manhattan is often called the Theater District or the Great White Way, a nickname originating in

1095-403: Is the historical location for the city's ticker-tape parades , and is sometimes called the " Canyon of Heroes " during such events. West of Broadway, as far as Canal Street , was the city's fashionable residential area until c.  1825 ; landfill has more than tripled the area, and the Hudson River shore now lies far to the west, beyond Tribeca and Battery Park City . Broadway marks

1168-470: The 72nd Street subway station, one of the first 28 subway stations in Manhattan, remains located on one of the wide islands in the center of Broadway, on the south side of West 72nd Street. For many years, all traffic on Broadway flowed on either side of this median and its subway entrance, and its uptown lanes went past it along the western edge of triangular Verdi Square. In 2001 and 2002, renovation of

1241-475: The 72nd Street station was built in the exact location of these lanes. Northbound traffic on Broadway is now channeled onto Amsterdam Avenue to 73rd Street, makes a left turn on the three-lane 73rd Street, and then a right turn on Broadway shortly afterward. In August 2008, two traffic lanes from 42nd to 35th Streets were taken out of service and converted to public plazas. Bike lanes were added on Broadway from 42nd Street to Union Square . Since May 2009,

1314-809: The First Baptist Church in the City of New York , incorporated in New York in 1762, its current building on Broadway erected in 1891. The road heads north and passes historically important apartment houses such as the Belnord , the Astor Court Building , and the Art Nouveau Cornwall . At Broadway and 95th Street is Symphony Space , established in 1978 as home to avant-garde and classical music and dance performances in

1387-610: The Harlem River on the Broadway Bridge to Marble Hill . Afterward, it then enters the Bronx , where it is the eastern border of Riverdale and the western border of Van Cortlandt Park . At 253rd Street, NY 9A joins with US 9 and Broadway. (NY 9A splits off Broadway at Ashburton Avenue in Yonkers.) The northwestern corner of the park marks the New York City limit and Broadway enters Westchester County in Yonkers , where it

1460-675: The John William Draper House , was the site of the first astrophotograph of the Moon . In the next village, Dobbs Ferry , Broadway has various views of the Hudson River while passing through the residential section. Broadway passes by the Old Croton Aqueduct and nearby the shopping district of the village. After intersecting with Ashford Avenue, Broadway passes Mercy College , then turns left again at

1533-582: The Nation of Islam in 1964, he founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU), whose weekly meetings were held at the Audubon Ballroom. It was at one of those meetings, on February 21, 1965, that Malcolm X was assassinated as he was giving a speech. Because of non-payment of property taxes, New York City took possession of the theatre in 1967. Nevertheless, in the 1960s and 1970s,

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1606-605: The New York City Department of Sanitation . New York Landmarks Conservancy The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a non-profit organization "dedicated to preserving, revitalizing, and reusing" historic structures in New York state. It provides technical and financial skills to owners of historic properties. In the half century since its 1973 founding, the conservancy has provided more than $ 60 million in grants and loans. Since its founding in 1973,

1679-511: The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to hold a hearing on giving the building landmark status. Eventually a compromise was reached, at least in part due to pressure brought by Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger and Malcolm X's widow, Betty Shabazz , who both favored adaptive reuse of the building. They were supported by a report on its structural integrity produced by

1752-543: The San Juan Theater. The ballroom is noted for being the site of the assassination of Malcolm X on February 21, 1965. It is currently the Audubon Business and Technology Center , which is part of Columbia University 's Audubon Research Park. The Audubon Ballroom was built in 1912 by film producer William Fox , who later founded the Fox Film Corporation . Fox hired Thomas W. Lamb , one of

1825-704: The U.S. Rubber Company Building at 58th Street , the B.F. Goodrich showroom at 1780 Broadway (between 58th and 57th Streets ), the Fisk Building at 250 West 57th Street, and the Demarest and Peerless Buildings at 224 West 57th Street. Broadway once was a two-way street for its entire length. The present status, in which it runs one-way southbound south of Columbus Circle ( 59th Street ), came about in several stages. On June 6, 1954, Seventh Avenue became southbound and Eighth Avenue became northbound south of Broadway. None of Broadway became one-way, but

1898-729: The Audubon Ballroom to conduct its religious services . At around the same time, several trade unions, including the Municipal Transit Workers, the IRT Brotherhood Union, and the Transport Workers' Union , utilized the meeting rooms. In 1950, the congregants purchased the building, and they continued to hold services there until 1983. Among the many events held at the Ballroom was the annual New York Mardi Gras Festival. After Malcolm X left

1971-492: The Ballroom operated as the San Juan Theater , showing films which catered to the increasingly Hispanic neighborhood. It closed in 1980, and the building remained vacant and the exterior deteriorated. In 1989, Columbia University , with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey as a partner, reached an agreement with the city, and in 1992 it began the process of demolishing the Audubon Ballroom to replace it with

2044-551: The Bronx , exiting north from New York City to run an additional 18 mi (29.0 km) through the Westchester County municipalities of Yonkers , Hastings-On-Hudson , Dobbs Ferry , Irvington , Tarrytown , and Sleepy Hollow , after which the road continues, but is no longer called "Broadway". The latter portion of Broadway north of the George Washington Bridge / I-95 underpass comprises

2117-673: The Herald Square area. Additionally, portions of Broadway in Madison Square and Union Square have been dramatically narrowed, allowing ample pedestrian plazas to exist along the side of the road. A terrorist attempted to set off a bomb on Broadway in Times Square on May 1, 2010. The attempted bomber was sentenced to life in prison. In May 2013, the NYCDOT decided to redesign Broadway between 35th and 42nd Streets for

2190-478: The New York state and city governments. In return, two-thirds of the Audubon Ballroom's original facade – the part along Broadway and West 165th Street – would be preserved and restored. In addition, a portion of the interior ballroom where Malcolm X was killed was restored and protected, to be made into a museum honoring him. In 2005, the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center opened in

2263-531: The Square's northwest corner; Union Square is the only location wherein the physical section of Broadway is discontinuous in Manhattan (other portions of Broadway in Manhattan are pedestrian-only plazas). At Madison Square , the location of the Flatiron Building, Broadway crosses Fifth Avenue at 23rd Street , thereby moving from the east side of Manhattan to the west, and is discontinuous to vehicles for

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2336-696: The address of Alexander Hamilton 's house, The Grange , which has been moved. Broadway achieves a verdant, park-like effect, particularly in the spring, when it runs between the uptown Trinity Church Cemetery and the former Trinity Chapel, now the Church of the Intercession near 155th Street. NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital lies on Broadway near 166th, 167th, and 168th Streets in Washington Heights . The intersection with St. Nicholas Avenue at 167th Street forms Mitchell Square Park . At 178th Street, US 9 becomes concurrent with Broadway. Broadway crosses

2409-490: The boundary between Greenwich Village to the west and the East Village to the east, passing Astor Place . It is a short walk from there to New York University near Washington Square Park , which is at the foot of Fifth Avenue . A bend in front of Grace Church allegedly avoids an earlier tavern; from 10th Street it begins its long diagonal course across Manhattan, headed almost due north. Because Broadway preceded

2482-429: The center of town just past South Presbyterian Church , headed for equally comfortable Ardsley-on-Hudson and Irvington . Villa Lewaro , the home of Madam C. J. Walker , the first African-American millionaire, is along the highway here. At the north end of the village of Irvington, a memorial to writer Washington Irving , after whom the village was renamed, marks the turnoff to his home at Sunnyside . Entering into

2555-476: The crowded glitter of Bond Street equipages, nor the gorgeous fronted palaces of Regent Street ; but it is magnificent in its extent, and ornamented by several handsome buildings, some of them surrounded by grass and trees. In 1868, Bloomingdale Road between 59th Street (at the Grand Circle, now Columbus Circle ) and 155th Streets would be paved and widened, becoming an avenue with landscaped medians. It

2628-463: The designation. In the 1960s and 1970s, the area surrounding both Verdi Square and Sherman Square was known by local drug users and dealers as "Needle Park", and was featured prominently in the gritty 1971 dramatic film The Panic in Needle Park , directed by Jerry Schatzberg and starring Al Pacino in his second onscreen role. The original brick and stone shelter leading to the entrance of

2701-563: The east, Broadway becomes the busy main street of Tarrytown . Christ Episcopal Church , where Irving worshiped, is along the street. Many high-quality restaurants and shops are along this main road. This downtown ends at the eastern terminus of NY 448 , where Broadway slopes off to the left, downhill, and four signs indicate that Broadway turns left, passing the Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow , another NHL. The road then enters Sleepy Hollow (formerly North Tarrytown), passing

2774-461: The facade of the Audubon Ballroom presents terra-cotta glazed polychromy , encrustations and cornices . Its ornamentations include brown foxes between the windows on the second floor, intended to flatter Fox, and, most prominently, a colorful protruding three-dimensional statue of Neptune on a ship. Alterations to the building in 1996 were made by the architecture firm of Davis Brody Bond, who also designed Columbia University's new building, while

2847-426: The first decade of the 20th century, the area was occupied mostly by equestrian industries and was "thoroughly lifeless", but by 1907, The New York Times characterized this section of Broadway as having "almost a solid line of motor vehicle signs all the way from Times Square to Sherman Square". In the late 1900s and early 1910s, several large automobile showrooms, stores, and garages were built on Broadway, including

2920-487: The foremost American theater architects , to design the building. The building contained a theatre with 2500 seats, and a second-floor ballroom that could accommodate 200 seated guests. During its history, the Audubon Ballroom was used as a vaudeville house, a movie theater , and a meeting hall where political activists often met. In the 1930s, Congregation Emes Wozedek, a synagogue whose members were predominantly immigrants from Germany , began to use basement rooms of

2993-608: The former Symphony Theatre, which was originally built in 1918 as a premier "music and motion-picture house". At 99th Street, Broadway passes between the controversial skyscrapers of the Ariel East and West. At 107th Street, Broadway merges with West End Avenue , with the intersection forming Straus Park with its Titanic Memorial by Augustus Lukeman . Broadway then passes the campus of Columbia University at 116th Street in Morningside Heights , in part on

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3066-632: The grid that the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 imposed on the island, Broadway crosses midtown Manhattan diagonally, intersecting with both the east–west streets and north–south avenues. Broadway's intersections with avenues, marked by " squares " (some merely triangular slivers of open space), have induced some interesting architecture, such as the Flatiron Building . At Union Square , Broadway crosses 14th Street , merges with Fourth Avenue , and continues its diagonal uptown course from

3139-547: The headline "Found on the Great White Way" in the February 3, 1902, edition of the New York Evening Telegram . The journalistic nickname was inspired by the millions of lights on theater marquees and billboard advertisements that illuminate the area. After becoming the city's de facto red-light district in the 1960s and 1970s (as can be seen in the films Taxi Driver and Midnight Cowboy ), since

3212-490: The historic 72nd Street station and the addition of a second subway control house and passenger shelter on an adjacent center median just north of 72nd Street, across from the original building, resulted in the creation of a public plaza with stone pavers and extensive seating, connecting the newer building with Verdi Square, and making it necessary to divert northbound traffic to Amsterdam Avenue for one block. While Broadway's southbound lanes at this intersection were unaffected by

3285-663: The increased southbound traffic between Columbus Circle (Eighth Avenue) and Times Square (Seventh Avenue) caused the city to re-stripe that section of Broadway for four southbound and two northbound lanes. Broadway became one-way from Columbus Circle south to Herald Square ( 34th Street ) on March 10, 1957, in conjunction with Sixth Avenue becoming one-way from Herald Square north to 59th Street and Seventh Avenue becoming one-way from 59th Street south to Times Square (where it crosses Broadway). On June 3, 1962, Broadway became one-way south of Canal Street , with Trinity Place and Church Street carrying northbound traffic. Another change

3358-577: The intersection of Broadway and Fifth Avenue was repurposed into a public plaza, simplifying that intersection. As part of the 2017 project, Worth Square was expanded, converting the adjoining block of Broadway into a "shared street". In September 2019, the pedestrian space in the Herald Square area was expanded between 33rd and 32nd Streets alongside Greeley Square . Five blocks of Broadway—from 50th to 48th, 39th to 39th, and 23rd to 21st Street—were converted into shared streets in late 2021. The block between 40th and 39th Streets, known as Golda Meir Square,

3431-618: The late 1980s Times Square has emerged as a family tourist center, in effect being Disneyfied following the company's purchase and renovation of the New Amsterdam Theatre on 42nd Street in 1993. The New York Times , from which the Square gets its name, was published at offices at 239 West 43rd Street; the paper stopped printing papers there on June 15, 2007. At the southwest corner of Central Park , Broadway crosses Eighth Avenue (called Central Park West north of 59th Street) at West 59th Street and Columbus Circle ; on

3504-455: The late 19th century. Some portions of Broadway in Manhattan are interrupted for continuous vehicle traffic, including Times Square , Herald Square , and Union Square , and instead used as pedestrian-only plazas. South of Columbus Circle , the road is one-way going southbound. Broadway in Manhattan is known widely as the heart of the American commercial theatrical industry , and is used as

3577-468: The lobby to commemorate the contributions Malcolm X made to the civil rights movement. Architect Thomas Lamb, who later would design the nearby eclectic United Palace , was an advocate of the use of ornamentation and color on his building's exteriors. He would write: "Exotic ornaments, colors and scenes are particularly effective in creating an atmosphere in which the mind is free to frolic and becomes receptive to entertainment." In line with this philosophy,

3650-583: The main road through the island from Nieuw Amsterdam at the southern tip. The Dutch explorer and entrepreneur David Pietersz. de Vries gives the first mention of it in his journal for the year 1642 ("the Wickquasgeck Road over which the Indians passed daily"). The Dutch called it the Heeren Wegh or Heeren Straat , meaning "Gentlemen's Way" or "Gentlemen's Street" – echoing the name of

3723-473: The new construction, its northbound lanes are no longer contiguous at this intersection. Drivers can either continue along Amsterdam Avenue to head uptown or turn left on West 73rd Street to resume traveling on Broadway. Several notable apartment buildings are in close proximity to this intersection, including The Ansonia , its ornate architecture dominating the cityscape here. After the Ansonia first opened as

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3796-603: The next block is the Manhattan School of Music . Broadway then runs past the Manhattanville campus of Columbia University, and the main campus of CUNY–City College near 135th Street; the Gothic buildings of the original City College campus are out of sight, a block to the east. Also to the east are the brownstones of Hamilton Heights. Hamilton Place is a surviving section of Bloomingdale Road, and originally

3869-470: The northern border of Sleepy Hollow, New York . Canyon of Heroes is occasionally used to refer to the section of lower Broadway in the Financial District that is the location of the city's ticker-tape parades . The traditional route of the parade is northward from Bowling Green to City Hall Park . Most of the route is lined with tall office buildings along both sides, affording a view of

3942-615: The organization has loaned and granted more than $ 60 million in more than 1,300 restoration projects throughout New York. Its restoration projects include the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House , the Alice Austen House and the Weeksville Heritage Center . The New York Landmarks Conservancy's annual Lucy G. Moses Preservation award recognizes notable preservation efforts. Peg Breen

4015-492: The other triangle is a lush tree-filled garden bordering Amsterdam Avenue from just above West 72nd Street to West 73rd Street. Named Verdi Square in 1921 for its monument to Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi , which was erected in 1909, this triangular sliver of public space was designated a Scenic Landmark by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1974, one of nine city parks that have received

4088-456: The parade for thousands of office workers who create the snowstorm-like jettison of shredded paper products that characterize the parade. While typical sports championship parades have been showered with some 50 tons of confetti and shredded paper, the V-J Day parade on August 14–15, 1945 – marking the end of World War II – was covered with 5,438 tons of paper, based on estimates provided by

4161-455: The portions of Broadway through Duffy Square , Times Square , and Herald Square have been closed entirely to automobile traffic, except for cross traffic on the Streets and Avenues, as part of a traffic and pedestrianization experiment, with the pavement reserved exclusively for walkers, cyclists, and those lounging in temporary seating placed by the city. The city decided that the experiment

4234-410: The restoration of the facade was handled by preservation specialist Jan Hird Pokorny. Broadway (Manhattan) Broadway ( / ˈ b r ɔː d w eɪ / ) is a road in the U.S. state of New York . Broadway runs from the south at State Street at Bowling Green for 13 mi (20.9 km) through the borough of Manhattan , over the Broadway Bridge , and 2 mi (3.2 km) through

4307-436: The road gently undulates along the ridgetop. In Yonkers, Broadway passes the historic Philipse Manor house, which dates back to colonial times. It remains Broadway as it leaves Yonkers for Hastings-on-Hudson , where it splits into separate north and south routes for 0.6 miles (1.0 km). The trees become taller and the houses, many separated from the road by stone fences, become larger. Another National Historic Landmark,

4380-431: The second time in five years, owing to poor connections between pedestrian plazas and decreased vehicular traffic. With the new redesign, the bike lane is now on the right side of the street; it was formerly on the left side adjacent to the pedestrian plazas, causing conflicts between pedestrian and bicycle traffic. In spring 2017, as part of a capital reconstruction of Worth Square, Broadway between 24th and 25th Streets

4453-491: The section of Broadway between 32nd and 21st Streets would be redesigned as part of a project called Broadway Vision. The section between 32nd and 25th Streets would receive a bidirectional bike lane and would be converted to a shared street. Cars would be banned permanently from 27th to 25th Street. That work was finished the same July. In March 2024, the DOT announced plans to convert the section between 17th and 21st Streets into

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4526-483: The site of the former New York Coliseum convention center is the new shopping center at the foot of the Time Warner Center , headquarters of Time Warner . From Columbus Circle northward, Broadway becomes a wide boulevard to 169th Street; it retains landscaped center islands that separate northbound from southbound traffic. The medians are a vestige of the central mall of "The Boulevard" that had become

4599-594: The southern portion of Tarrytown, Broadway passes by historic Lyndhurst mansion , a massive mansion built along the Hudson River built in the early 1800s. North of here, at the Kraft Foods technical center, the Tappan Zee Bridge becomes visible. After crossing under the Thruway and I-87 again, here concurrent with I-287 , and then intersecting with the four-lane NY 119 , where 119 splits off to

4672-564: The spine of the Upper West Side , and many of these contain public seating. Broadway intersects with Columbus Avenue (known as Ninth Avenue south of West 59th Street ) at West 65th and 66th Streets where the Juilliard School and Lincoln Center , both well-known performing arts landmarks, as well as the Manhattan New York Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are located. Between West 70th and 73rd Streets, Broadway intersects with Amsterdam Avenue (known as 10th Avenue south of West 59th Street). The wide intersection of

4745-420: The tract that housed the Bloomingdale Insane Asylum from 1808 until it moved to Westchester County in 1894. Still in Morningside Heights, Broadway passes the park-like campus of Barnard College . Next, the Gothic quadrangle of Union Theological Seminary , and the brick buildings of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America with their landscaped interior courtyards, face one another across Broadway. On

4818-453: The two thoroughfares has historically been the site of numerous traffic accidents and pedestrian casualties, partly due to the long crosswalks. Two small triangular plots of land were created at points where Broadway slices through Amsterdam Avenue. One is a tiny fenced-in patch of shrubbery and plants at West 70th Street called Sherman Square (although it and the surrounding intersection have also been known collectively as Sherman Square), and

4891-478: The visitors' center for Kykuit , the National Historic Landmark that was (and partially still is) the Rockefeller family 's estate . Broadway then passes the historic Sleepy Hollow Cemetery , which includes the resting place of Washington Irving and the setting for " The Legend of Sleepy Hollow ". Broadway expands to four lanes at the trumpet intersection with NY 117 , where it finally ends and U.S. 9 becomes Albany Post Road (and Highland Avenue) at

4964-527: Was called "Western Boulevard" or "The Boulevard". An 1897 official map of the city shows a segment of what is now Broadway as "Kingsbridge Road" in the vicinity of Washington Heights . On February 14, 1899, the name "Broadway" was extended to the entire Broadway / Bloomingdale / Boulevard / Kingsbridge complex. In the 20th century, a 30-block stretch of Broadway, extending mainly between Times Square at 42nd Street and Sherman Square at 72nd Street , formed part of Manhattan 's "Automobile Row". Before

5037-499: Was closed to vehicular traffic at that time. During 2020, the section from 31st to 25th Street was converted to a temporary pedestrian-only street called NoMad Piazza as part of the New York City Department of Transportation 's Open Streets program. Following the success of the pedestrian-only street, the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership BID closed the section between 25th and 27th Streets to vehicular traffic again during 2021 and 2022. City officials announced in March 2023 that

5110-403: Was converted to a shared street , where through vehicles are banned and delivery vehicles are restricted to 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h). Delivery vehicles go northbound from Fifth Avenue to 25th Street for that one block, reversing the direction of traffic and preventing vehicles from going south on Broadway south of 25th Street. The capital project expands on a 2008 initiative where part of

5183-472: Was made on November 10, 1963, when Broadway became one-way southbound from Herald Square to Madison Square ( 23rd Street ) and Union Square ( 14th Street ) to Canal Street, and two routes – Sixth Avenue south of Herald Square and Centre Street , Lafayette Street , and Fourth Avenue south of Union Square – became one-way northbound. Finally, at the same time as Madison Avenue became one-way northbound and Fifth Avenue became one-way southbound, Broadway

5256-419: Was made one-way southbound between Madison Square (where Fifth Avenue crosses) and Union Square on January 14, 1966, completing its conversion south of Columbus Circle. In 2001, a one-block section of Broadway between 72nd Street and 73rd Street at Verdi Square was reconfigured. Its easternmost lanes, which formerly hosted northbound traffic, were turned into a public park when a new subway entrance for

5329-527: Was successful, and decided to make the change permanent in February 2010. Though the anticipated benefits to traffic flow were not as large as hoped, pedestrian injuries dropped dramatically and foot traffic increased in the designated areas; the project was popular with both residents and businesses. The current portions converted into pedestrian plazas are between West 47th and 42nd Streets within Times and Duffy Squares, and between West 35th and 33rd Streets in

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