One Wall Street and the New Downtown: The Reinvention of FiDi 

About the Event:

Today’s Financial District is both Manhattan’s oldest and newest neighborhood. Downtown has continually reinvented itself—from the beginnings of Nieuw Amsterdam to the great financial boom of the 1920s, when Wall Street became the center of global finance and a forest of magnificent skyscrapers transformed the skyline, to today’s stunning rebirth.

Join us for an illustrated talk with ADSNY Vice-President Emeritus and architectural historian, Anthony W. Robins, as he transports us back in time to Manhattan’s Downtown district of the 1920s and ’30s to discover the dramatic rise of the skyscraper, the emergence of the Art Deco style, and the spectacular buildings that reshaped the streetscape.

In this exclusive, members-only evening, we’ll discover the story of Wall Street with all its twists and turns—from World War II, when the financial community began its migration to Midtown, to the financial crisis of the late 1980s that led to Downtown becoming a ghost town after business hours. We’ll also learn how city leaders in the 1990s developed an ambitious vision to transform Lower Manhattan into a vibrant 24-hour neighborhood—a place not only for finance, but also for residents, schools, shops, restaurants, and the emerging technology community known as “Silicon Alley.”

At the heart of that transformation was the conversion of historic office buildings into residential spaces, made possible through changes in city regulations and tax incentives—including the Irving Trust Building at One Wall Street, where the talk will take place. This is the perfect setting to hear about the remarkable success story of transformation, giving new life to the financial district and once again making this Art Deco landmark—of which its magnificent Red Banking Room remains one of New York’s great Art Deco interiors—a vital part of the neighborhood.

Join us for this special opportunity to discover the extraordinary history of Downtown—and One Wall Street—in an entirely new way.

About the Speaker:

Anthony W. Robins has been guiding natives and visitors to the city’s wonders of steel and stone for twenty-five years. He has led hundreds of walking tours of New York history and architecture. A founding member of ADSNY, Robins created the Society’s original tour program in 1981. In 2017, the Guides Association of New York City honored him with the “Guiding Spirit Award.” He lectures on New York history and architecture to audiences both in the United States and abroad, teaches various levels of students about architecture and the development of New York City, and has authored five books and a number of short guidebooks, as well as many newspaper and magazine articles. His latest award-winning book, New York Art Deco: A Guide to Gotham’s Jazz Age Architecture (2017), explores Art Deco throughout the five boroughs.

Registration:

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