202 BC – Liu Bang is enthroned as the Emperor of China, beginning four centuries of rule by the Han dynasty. 1784 – John Wesley charters the Methodist Church. 1827 – The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad is incorporated, becoming the first railroad in America offering commercial transportation of both people and freight. 1849 – Regular…
Month: February 2018
In Search of Stability
The Housing Subcommittee of Community Board 1 (CB1) has updated its list (see below) of rent-stabilized apartments in Lower Manhattan, and documented that there are currently 5,213 such units within the district, which is a collection of neighborhoods encompassing 1.5 square miles, bounded roughly by Canal, Baxter, and Pearl Streets and the Brooklyn Bridge. This…
February 27
1594 – Henry IV is crowned King of France. 1812 – Poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against Industrialism in his home county of Nottinghamshire. 1860 – Abraham Lincoln makes a speech at Cooper Union in the city of New York…
Piering Into the Future
A pair of proposals to remake the Hudson River waterfront with large new projects envisions transforming the Battery and the site currently occupied by Pier 40 with futuristic innovations like drone landing pads and open plazas designed to be flooded. Although neither plan is likely to be built anytime soon (if ever), they both emphasize…
Neighbors
Neighbors Elisa de la Roche Occupation: Actress Elisa de la Roche has lived in Lower Manhattan for over 30 years. She has been acting, singing and dancing since she was a teenager. Now though March 18 she is appearing in a new play downtown “Three on a Match” at IATI Theater at 64 East 4th Street….
February 26
1616 – Galileo Galilei is formally banned by the Roman Catholic Church from teaching or defending the view that the earth orbits the sun. 1815 – Napoleon Bonaparte escapes from Elba. 1876 – Japan and Korea sign a treaty granting Japanese citizens extraterritoriality rights, opening three ports to Japanese trade, and ending Korea’s status as…