They began to crack down on crime to make Times Square safer. In the 1990s and early 2000s, New York City’s mayors decided they’d had enough. The proximity to tunnels, highways, and the bus stations made Times Square the first stop for vagrants from out of town.
#MAP OF NEW YORK CITY TIME SQUARE AREA TV#
Empty theaters transformed into radio stations, TV studios, and some shady establishments with bad reputations. People were looking for cheaper activities, which is how Times Square began to devolve into the crime-heavy place you may have heard of in the 1970s and 1980s. The good times stopped when the Great Depression hit in 1929, and financial difficulties made it almost impossible for theaters and other forms of entertainment to survive. For the next few decades, Times Square was rocking and rolling. Because of shipping and port access, downtown was becoming more industrial, which pushed all of the theaters and restaurants farther north, towards a brand new Times Square. Some shrewd real estate investors were paying attention and began to make some moves.ĭowntown Manhattan was transforming at the same time. More than 10 subway lines converge underneath Times Square, making it one of the most accessible areas in the entire city. In 1904, two things happened that would transform New York City forever: The first version of the subway system opened, and the New York Times moved into its headquarters on 42nd Street.
Back then, horses were so popular in this area that the district was called Longacre Square, which is a direct nod to the horse-trading district of the same name in London. Vanderbilt, grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt (who established the predecessor to the Staten Island Ferry), used to run a horse exchange in the 1890s on 50th Street in what is now the Winter Garden Theater. Like a lot of stories in New York City, this one starts with the Vanderbilt family. Read on for tips on how you, too, can navigate the Center of the Universe in the City that Never Sleeps. Once I learned my way around, I went from a timid newbie to a tour-leading Times Square expert. Now I’ve been living here for seven years, and I go to Times Square almost every day. On my first trip to NYC in the 10th grade, I came home thinking I’d never be able to cut it in New York because Times Square intimidated me so much. The lights, the shopping, the characters, and the marquees of Broadway all come to a head in the five blocks that stretch from 42nd Street to 47th Street.Īll of that activity can be overwhelming. Located in Midtown - the geographical heart of Manhattan - the lights of Times Square are so bright they can be seen from space.Īll of that energy is palpable, and it sometimes feels like New York City gets its mojo from all the action in Times Square. At 300,000 visitors every day (and around a million on New Year’s Eve), it’s one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Times Square is often called the “crossroads of the world,” and with good reason.
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