Link to the Show / Show NotesNew York City Hall sits majestically inside a nostalgic, well-manicured park, topped with a beautiful old fountain straight out of gaslight-era New York. But its serenity belies the frantic pace of government inside City Hall walls, and disguises a tumultuous, vibrant history. There have actually been two other city halls -- one an actual tavern, the other a temporary seat of national government -- and the one we're familiar with today is a little less than 200 years old.
Join us as we explore the unusual history of this building, through ill-executed fireworks, disgruntled architects, and its near-destruction -- to be saved only by a man named Grosvenor Atterbury.
PLUS: We look at the park area itself, a common land that once catered to livestock, British soldiers, almshouses and a big, garish post office.
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