The Story of Washington Square Park Through Photos

Washington Square Park has been one our most beloved public spaces for generations. From potters field to parade ground to one of the most iconic public spaces in the world, its symbolism and utilization are unrivaled since its transformation to parkland was approved on January 16, 1826. This history comes alive in the images preserved in Village Preservation’s Historic Image Archive, where photos taken over the past hundred years reveal the daily life, political energy, artistic expression, and architectural change of this special space.

The images below from our archive from 1931 to 2021 capture moments and people that reflect the diverse uses of the park, from a playground for children and a stage for music to a gathering place for protest and civic expression.

1931

“Horse-drawn snow plow in Washington Square Park,” from Village Preservation’s Ruth E. Cushman Collection: NY Undergoing Change in the Early to Mid-20th Century

This 1931 image could be depicting life in 1831 or even 1731 (if not for 1 Fifth Avenue visible in the background), underscoring how central horses remained to New York City life for our first 300 years until they were replaced by cars and trucks in the early 20th century. The Ruth E. Cushman collection captures the rapid change occurring throughout New York City in the early to mid-20th century.

The 1940s

“Men in hats and overcoats on bench in Washington Square Park, north side, west of the fountain” Jean Polacheck Collection

This 1940s image of a group of men in hats and overcoats evoke a quiet moment amid the bustle of WWII-era Manhattan. This photograph comes from the Jean Polacheck Collection, which encompasses street scenes and park life from the 1940s. Polacheck’s work often highlights ordinary people in everyday settings. This image speaks to a different era but a similar use of this public space in which locals sit, converse, and people watch.

1957

“Maia Farish swims in Washington Square Park Fountain when it was Wading Pool” Maia Farish Collection

This photo is an example of how local families have used Washington Square Park as our backyard for generations. Although the wading pool aspect of the fountain is long gone, the two playgrounds in the park are utilized by local children at all hours. The Maia Farish Collection highlights many of these “local” moments, including her childhood at Greenwich House, P.S. 41, P.S. 3, I.S. 70, Greenwich House Music School, and Miss Murphy’s Greenwich House Children’s Theater.

1978

“Graffiti on Washington Square Park Arch with World Trade Center in background” Meredith Jacobson Marciano Collection: New York in the 1970s through 9/11

This image perfectly embodies 1970s-80s NYC, an era of economic uncertainty and vibrant counter-culture bridging the urban renewal of the 1960s and the waves of 1990s change. The Meredith Jacobson Marciano Collection: New York in the 1970s through 9/11 and the separate Part 2 of this collection highlight this amazing era of NYC history, including the good, the bad, the sad, daily life, and so much more.

2020

From women’s suffrage and the labor movement, Jane Jacobs and Shirley Hayes, through Black Lives Matter and beyond, Washington Square Park has a long history as a site of protest and activism. I can almost guarantee that someone is protesting something in Washington Square Park right now. Our Pandemic and Protest, 2020-2022: the Marjorie Zien Collection documents this period of intense pressure and protest. These images poignantly and sharply capture the anger, the grief, the sadness, the resolve, the creativity, care, destruction, and gratitude so prominently on display during that period.