Ever wonder how New York became the city that it is today? Wagner College is co-sponsoring an event with the Museum of the City of New York on Tuesday, November 10 at 6:30 pm at the Museum of the City of New York.
When it was conceived in 1811, New York City's street grid was supposed to end the chaos of "old New York" spreading unplanned from Manhattan's southern tip. This vast project of physical and social engineering turned the rocky hills and swampy valleys into the city we know today; the thousands of rectangular blocks, lots, and eventually buildings that the grid produced lent a sense of stability and purpose to a young city evolving into greatness. Join Gerard Koeppel, author of City on a Grid: How New York Became New York (Da Capo, 2015), for a conversation with Hilary Ballon, curator of the Museum’s 2011-12 exhibition, The Greatest Grid, about a plan that “defined the urbanism of a rising city and nation.” Reception and book signing to follow. We have a special $30 ticket + signed copy of the book through the MCNY website.