Moreno - Manhattan Street Scenes

NEW YORK HARBOR. The most memorable entrance to Manhattan has always been its magnificent harbor. Years ago, its preeminence in the field of international shipping made this port the chief entranceway to the United States from overseas. (National Park Service.)

MANHATTAN FROM THE AIR. Taken in December 1961, this picture shows the layout of the streets of Manhattan Island; it also provides a wonderful view of the inner harbor, Governors Island, the Brooklyn Marine Terminal, nearby docks, the East River, the Brooklyn Bridge, and, on the upper left, the Hudson River and a portion of Hoboken, New Jersey. (Port of New York Authority.)

AN AERIAL VIEW OF BATTERY PARK AND LOWER MANHATTAN. This view of some of the streets and buildings on the west side of lower Manhattan was taken in the late 1950s. (The New York Times.)

WEST SIDE PIERS AND THE WORLD TRADE CENTER. This picture is from the 1970s. Although the newly constructed World Trade Center visually dominated the scene, the older buildings and streets of lower Manhattan tell a richer story. (National Park Service.)

THE BARGE OFFICE: GATEWAY TO MANHATTAN. Constructed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury in 1882, the Barge Office stood at the bottom of Battery Park and was the landing place of immigrants just released from Ellis Island, from 1892 to 1911. It also served as a temporary federal immigrant inspection station from 1890 to 1892 and from 1897 to 1900. During most of the Ellis Island years, it was used as office space for officers of the Customs Service, for inspectors of the Bureau of Immigration, and for a team of Marine Hospital Service surgeons attached to the Bureau of Immigration. It was demolished in 1911. (National Park Service.)

THE BARGE OFFICE AND THE BATTERY. Here newly landed aliens just released from Ellis Island congregate in front of the Barge Office. The space between the Barge Office and another building, through which people are exiting, gave access to the Ellis Island ferry. This picture dates from around 1906. (National Park Service.)

JANE NOONAN. This street scene shows 70-year-old Jane Noonan, an Irish immigrant who sold apples in front of the Barge Office. This picture shows her fruit stand as it appeared in 1900, when it stood in front of the Barge Office, near the entrance to the Ellis Island ferry. Years before, she had sold her fruit inside of the Castle Garden Immigrant Station. In 1906, the U.S. Department of the Treasury forced Noonan to move her trade elsewhere.

CASTLE GARDEN IN 1888. One of Manhattans oldest landmarks, Castle Garden, located in Battery Park, was originally built as a fortress. After being closed by the military in 1823, it became a public events center and, in 1839, a concert hall. During these years, colorful events were held there, including formal receptions for Frances Marquis de Lafayette (1824) and U.S. presidents Andrew Jackson (1833), John Tyler (1841), and James K. Polk (1847). The picture shows the castle at the time that it was the New York State Emigrant Depot. After having served as the nations first immigrant landing station (18551890), it then became the very first city aquarium in the country (18961941). In 1950, Pres. Harry S. Truman proclaimed it a national monument under its old military name, Castle Clinton. (National Park Service.)