Tompkins Square Park
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(Texts copied from the Tompkins Square Park Wikipedia article)
Tompkins Square Park is a 10.5 acre (42,000 m²) public park in the Alphabet City section of the East Village neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is square in shape, and is bounded on the north by East 10th Street, on the east by Avenue B, on the south by East 7th Street, and on the west by Avenue A. St. Marks Place abuts the park to the west.
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History
19th century
Tompkins Square Park is located on land near the East River, that once consisted of marshland and open meadows, but has since been filled in.[1] Tompkins Square Park is named for Daniel D. Tompkins (1774–1825), Vice President of the United States under President James Monroe and the Governor of New York from 1807 until 1817. The park was landscaped by 1850 and has been a public park since the late 1870s.
On January 13, 1874, the Tompkins Square Riot occurred in the park when police crushed a demonstration involving thousands of workers.[2] The riot marked an unprecedented era of labor conflict and violence.
20th century
In the middle 19th century the "Square" included a large parade ground for drilling the New York National Guard. The modern layout of the park by Robert Moses in 1936 is said to be intended to divide and manage crowds that have gathered there in protest since the 1870's. That tradition was rekindled as the park became the nursery of demonstrations against the Vietnam War in the 1960s.
By the 1980s Tompkins Square Park had become for many New Yorkers synonymous with the city's increased social problems. The park at that time was a high-crime area that contained encampments of homeless people, and it was a center for illegal drug dealing and heroin use.
In August 1988, a riot erupted in the park when police attempted to clear the park of homeless people; 44 people were injured. Bystanders as well as homeless people and political activists got caught up in the police action that took place on the night of August 6 and the early morning of August 7, after a large number of police surrounded the park and charged at the hemmed-in crowd while other police ordered all pedestrians not to walk on streets neighboring the park. Much of the violence was videotaped and clips were shown on local TV news reports (notably including one by a man who sat on his stoop across the street from the park and continued to film while a police officer beat him up), but ultimately, although at least one case went to trial, no police officers were found culpable.
From June 3, 1991 to July 25, 1992, the park was closed to the public for restoration, but also to keep out the homeless and in attempt to calm tensions.[3]
21st century
Increasing gentrification in the East Village during the 1990s and 2000s, as well as enforcement of a park curfew and the eviction of homeless people, have changed the character of Tompkins Square Park. The park was closed and refurbished in the early 1990s and today, with its playgrounds and basketball courts, handball courts and outdoor chess boards, the park attracts young families, students and seniors as well as tourists from all over the globe.
Events
Music
The outdoor drag festival Wigstock, held in the park, is now part of the Howl Festival.
The Charlie Parker Jazz Festival is a musical tribute to the famous former resident of Avenue B. There is also an annual "Riot Reunion" concert every summer that features the neighborhood punk-rock band Leftöver Crack.
Tompkins Square Dog Run
The Tompkins Square Dog Run was recently named by Dog Fancy magazine as one of the top five dog parks in the United States.. It is currently slated to undergo a $150,000 renovation, much of which will be funded by the New York City government, and a large portion of which will be raised by the efforts of the dog run patrons.
Each year the run hosts a Halloween party to raise money to maintain the run. This is the biggest dog Halloween party in the United States, boasting an annual attendance of more than 400 dogs in costume and 2,000 spectators.
References
- ^ Hassell, Malve Von Hassell (1996). Homesteading in New York City, 1978-1993: The Divided Heart of Loisaida. Bergin & Garvey, p. 39.
- ^ Gordon, Michael Allen (1993). The Orange Riots: Irish Political Violence in New York City, 1870-1871. Cornell University Press, p. 203.
- ^ Hassell, Malve Von Hassell (1996). Homesteading in New York City, 1978-1993: The Divided Heart of Loisaida. Bergin & Garvey, p. 44.
