Order V. Chaos
New York City is a dream for many to live in. One thing about New York, specifically Manhattan, that really interests me is the street system. I know it’s silly to think about, but have you ever heard about its history and how complicated it is? I hope you find this issue as interesting as I do.
In the north of Manhattan, we have this organized, geometric, and sleek grid, while in the south, we have an irregular layout. But why is this the case? Well, we’ll have to go back to the reign of the British, during which New York was an island comprising farmlands and nothing less nor more. As Manhattan grew rapidly, the city developed naturally—this organic pattern occurs in the south. Yes, there were some grids on private properties, but overall it was organic. By the 19th century, the population had boomed. The population is up for debate, as according to the New York Times, the population tripled to 96,373 in 1790 because of the growing port, but many argue the true population might’ve been 33,000; even I'm not sure which is true. This resulted in Gouverneur Morris, John Rutherford, and Simeon de Witt being appointed to make a plan for the north of Manhattan. These men didn’t live near each other, so meetings took place over many years. This plan is extremely famous and goes by the name of the Commissioner’s Plan of 1811. They first had a surveyor look at the plots of land—some called it a wasteland. Most of the credit goes to the surveyor (John Randel Jr.) in the Commissioner’s plan of 1811; he had mapped 3 parallel north-to-south streets around 960 feet apart and 5 acres of lots 260 feet apart—he had played a vital role in translating the Commissioner’s ideas into an actual map. This plan was eerily similar to that of Casimir Goerck from 1790, but they did not steal it from him—this is just speculation, so I would take it lightly. The concept was rather flawed with no plans for any parks or plazas. The plan would start at Houston Street—or 1st Street—to 155th Street, and there were around 12 avenues; meanwhile, in the lower east, 4 avenues. The streets are from east to west; meanwhile, the avenues are from north to south—this emphasizes uniformity. A little fun fact I would love to add is that Houston Street is named after a Georgian delegate in Congress named William Houston—that is why it isn't pronounced the same as the city in Texas. Later on, Central Park was added to Manhattan due to a lack of parks. They never cared about the natural patterns during the making of the grid pattern. The grid may be complicated to navigate, but I'm sure anyone can get used to it after a while.
I hope you learned something new and enjoyed this.
See you soon!
— Untitled Journals issue 2