Nassau Street (Manhattan)

Coordinates: 40°42′37″N 74°00′29″W / 40.71028°N 74.00806°W / 40.71028; -74.00806

South end of Nassau Street; Federal Hall National Memorial is on the left, the New York Stock Exchange is in the distance on the right
New York Times (right) and American Tract Society (left) face each other across the north end of Nassau Street

Nassau Street is a street in the Financial District of New York City. It is located near Pace University and City Hall. It starts at Wall Street and runs north to Spruce Street at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, lying one block east of Broadway and east of Park Row, in the borough of Manhattan.

History

Nassau Street was originally called Kip Street — after an early Dutch settler family — but was subsequently named for the royal family of the Netherlands, the House of Orange-Nassau; in particular, it was named some time before 1696 in honor to William of Nassau, the Dutch prince who became King William III of England. Nassau Street once housed many of the city's newspapers. Late in the 20th century Nassau Street was closed to motor traffic during certain hours, in order to promote shopping.

Nassau Street borders on the Fulton-Nassau Historic District, which is bounded by Broadway and Park Row, Nassau, Dutch and William Sts, Ann and Spruce Sts. and Liberty St. The first building of The New York Times — then the New-York Daily Times — was located at 113 Nassau Street. In 1854, the paper moved to 138 Nassau Street, and in 1858 it moved to Park Row, making it the first newspaper in New York City housed in a building built specifically for its use.[1]

Stamp collecting

As early as 1915, Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News contained many advertisements for stamp dealers in Nassau Street.[2] In the 1930s, stamp collecting became very popular and Nassau Street was the center of New York City's "Stamp District", called its "Street of Stamps", with dozens of stamp and coin dealers along its short length.[3] While the stock market did poorly during the Great Depression, stamps kept their value and were "negotiable assets."[3] The Stamp Center Building was located at 116 Nassau Street, and the Subway Stamp Shop (now in Altoona, Pennsylvania) was located at 87 Nassau Street.[3] With the dispersal of most dealers in the 1970s, a process that accelerated with internet trading, the street no longer has this character.[3][4]

Nassau Street was also the title of a book written in the 1960s by Herman Herst Jr.[5] that described the "golden age" of the stamp collecting industry.[3]

Notable buildings

See also

References

  1. ↑ Dunlap, David W. (November 14, 2001). "150th Anniversary: 1851–2001; Six Buildings That Share One Story". The New York Times. Retrieved October 10, 2008. Surely the most remarkable of these survivors is 113 Nassau Street, where the New-York Daily Times was born in 1851.... After three years at 113 Nassau Street and four years at 138 Nassau Street, The Times moved to a five-story Romanesque headquarters at 41 Park Row, designed by Thomas R. Jackson. For the first time, a New York newspaper occupied a structure built for its own use.
  2. ↑ "Mekeel's Weekly Stamp News". XXIX. Boston: Severn-Wylie-Jewett Co. 1915.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Michael Pollak, "Street of Stamps", New York Times, October 15, 2010. Found at New York Times website. Accessed October 26, 2010.
  4. ↑ "About Our Company". Subway Stamp Shop. Retrieved December 4, 2006.
  5. ↑ Thomas, Jr., Robert McG. (February 7, 1999). "Herman Herst Is Dead at 89; An Esteemed Stamp Collector". The New York Times. Retrieved May 29, 2010.
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