Everything about Washington Heights Manhattan totally explained
Washington Heights is a
New York City neighborhood in the northern reaches of the
borough of
Manhattan. It is named for
Fort Washington, a fortification constructed by
Continental Army troops during the
American Revolutionary War at the highest point on Manhattan island to defend the area from the British forces. During the
Battle of Fort Washington, on
November 16,
1776, the fort was captured by the
British at great cost to the American forces; 130 soldiers were killed or wounded, and an additional 2,700 captured and held as prisoners, many of whom died on
prison ships anchored in
New York Harbor. The progress of the battle is marked by a series of bronze plaques along
Broadway.
Geography
Washington Heights is on the high ridge in
Upper Manhattan that rises steeply north of the narrow valley that carries
125th Street to the former ferry landing on the
Hudson River. Though the neighborhood was once considered to run as far south as 125th Street, modern usage defines the neighborhood as running north from
Harlem (
Hamilton Heights) at
155th Street to
Inwood, topping out just below
Dyckman Street.
Transportation
Washington Heights is connected to
Fort Lee,
New Jersey via the
George Washington Bridge. The
George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal is located at the Manhattan end of the bridge. The
Trans-Manhattan Expressway, a portion of
Interstate 95, proceeds from the George Washington Bridge in a trench between 178th and 179th Streets. To the east, the Highway leads to the
Alexander Hamilton Bridge across the
Harlem River to
the Bronx and the
Cross-Bronx Expressway. The
Washington Bridge crosses the Harlem River just north of the Alexander Hamilton Bridge.
High Bridge is the oldest Harlem River span still in existence, crossing the river just south of the Alexander Hamilton Bridge. Originally it carried the
Croton Aqueduct as part of the New York City water system and later functioned as a pedestrian bridge that has been closed since 1970. It has been recently announced High Bridge will reopen after a 20 million dollar renovation project.
Subways
Washington Heights is served by the
New York City Subway.
On the
Eighth Avenue Line (and ) service is available at the
155th Street,
163rd Street–Amsterdam Avenue,
168th Street station. The C line ends at 168th St.
The A train continues and stops at
175th Street–George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal,
181st Street,
190th Street, and
Dyckman Street.
Along the
Broadway-Seventh Avenue Line, the train has stations at
157th Street,
168th Street,
181st Street, and
191st Street.
Noted sites
Among the Heights' now-vanished riverfront estates was "Minnie's Land," the home of artist
John James Audubon, who is buried in
Trinity Church Cemetery churchyard of the neighborhood's
Church of the Intercession (1915), a masterpiece by architect
Bertram Goodhue. At
Audubon Terrace is a cluster of five underused
Beaux Arts museum buildings of distinguished architecture.
Columbia University Medical Center and
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, the medical campus and school, respectively, of
Columbia University, lie in the area of 168th Street and Broadway, occupying the former site of
Hilltop Park, the home of the New York Highlanders (now known as the
New York Yankees) from 1903 to 1912. Across the street is the New Balance Track and Field center, the nation's premier indoor track and home to the Track and Field hall of fame.
The best known cultural site and tourist attraction in Washington Heights is
The Cloisters in
Fort Tryon Park at the northern end of the neighborhood, with spectacular views across the Hudson to the
New Jersey Palisades. This branch of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art is devoted to
Medieval art and culture, and is located in a medieval-style building, portions of which were purchased in Europe, brought to the United States, and reassembled.
Another major museum, though little visited, is
The Hispanic Society of America, which has the largest collection of works from
El Greco and
Goya outside of the
Museo del Prado, including one of Goya's famous paintings of Cayetana, Duchess of Alba. The Society shares its campus with
The American Academy of Arts and Letters on Broadway at West 156th Street. Twice a year the galleries are open to the public.
Manhattan's oldest remaining house, the
Morris-Jumel Mansion, is located in the landmarked Jumel Terrace Historic District, located between West 160th and West 162nd Street, just east of St. Nicholas Avenue. An
AAM-accredited historic house museum, the Mansion interprets the colonial era, the period when General
George Washington occupied it during the
American Revolutionary War, and the early 19th century in New York.
On February 21, 1965,
Malcolm X was assassinated during a speech at the
Audubon Ballroom, on Broadway at West 168th Street. The interior of the building was demolished, but the Broadway facade remains. It is now the home of the Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial & Educational Center. Several shops, restaurants and a bookstore occupy the first floor.
In Fort Washington Park you'll find the
Little Red Lighthouse, a small lighthouse located at the tip of Jeffrey's Hook on the Hudson River at the base of the eastern stanchion of the George Washington Bridge. It was made famous by a 1942 children's book and is the site of a namesake festival in the late summer. A a 5.85-mile recreational swim finishes there in early autumn. It's also a popular place to watch for peregrine falcons.
Parks
Community
The neighborhood has a majority
Dominican population (the area is sometimes referred to as "Quisqueya Heights"), and Spanish is frequently heard being spoken on the streets. Washington Heights has been the most important base for Dominican accomplishment in political, non-profit, cultural, and athletic arenas in the United States since the 1960s. Most of the neighborhood businesses are Dominican owned, driving the local economy.
Heralding the arts scene north of Central Park is the annual Uptown Arts Stroll (www.artsstroll2007.com). Artists from Washington Heights, Inwood and Marble Hill are featured in public locations throughout the upper Manhattan each summer for several weeks.
The Manhattan Times publishes news about Washington Heights weekly in Spanish and English. The annual restaurant guide highlights the neighborhood's top restaurants. www.manhattantimes.com
Fort Tryon, Frankfurt-on-the-Hudson and Hudson Heights
In the years after World War I, the area south of
Fort Tryon Park borrowed the park's name. Fort Tryon was the name of the area between Broadway and the Hudson River, and south of the park to W. 179th Street. References to the old name survive in the Fort Tryon Jewish Center (on Fort Washington Avenue between W. 183rd and W. 185th Streets (there is no W. 184th Street on Fort Washington Avenue)), the Fort Tryon Deli and Grocery (also on Fort Washington Avenue, at W. 187th Street), and in the pages of the Not for Tourists Guide to New York City
The neighborhood's name had changed by the late 1940s. Jews from Germany and Austria were leaving home as the Nazi party came to power. A disproportionately large number of Germans who settled in the area had come from Frankfurt-am-Main, giving rise to Frankfurt-on-the-Hudson. So many Jewish immigrants lived in Washington Heights after World War II that the neighborhood around Broadway and W. 160th Street was jokingly referred to as the Fourth Reich. There remains a significant Jewish population, particularly on the west side of Broadway, descended from the previous wave of immigration, as well as students (and recent graduates) of the neighborhood's
Yeshiva University.
Currently the area is referred to as "
Hudson Heights," especially among residents, real estate agents and in the media. Hudson Heights is generally considered to extend as far east as Broadway, By then, the neighborhood's previous name,
Frankfurt-on-the-Hudson, no longer fit.
As Soviet (and, later, Russian) immigrants filled the area, Russian became far more common than German. Once Spanish become prevalent, and English was the
lingua franca, the German nickname fell by the wayside. Even though Hudson Heights isn't a terribly original name, it makes sense since the highest natural point on Manhattan is in
Bennett Park.
Fort George
Hudson Heights isn't the only Washington Heights neighborhood with a distinct name. Historically, Fort George runs from Broadway east to the Harlem River, and from West 181st Street north to Dyckman Street and Sherman Creek. The largest institution in Fort George is
Yeshiva University, whose main campus sits east of Amsterdam Avenue in
Highbridge Park. A branch of the Young Men's & Women's Hebrew Association is in the neighborhood, and
George Washington High School sits on the site of the original Fort George.
One of Manhattan's rare semi-private streets is there. Washington Terrace runs south of West 186th Street for a half-block between Audubon and Amsterdam Avenues. The single-family homes there were built for middle-class families but some have been unoccupied for years.
It should be noted that younger people and new arrivals don't use the old Fort George name, preferring to refer to the neighborhood simply as Washington Heights.
Sherman Creek and El Alto
Sherman Creek is a small inlet of the Harlem River located south of West 201st Street, north of the Harlem River Drive, and east of Tenth Avenue. As a name for the several blocks around it, Sherman Creek is something of a historical relic, as many people don't care to distinguish it from the surrounding parts of Washington Heights. The name "Sherman Creek" in reference to a residential neighborhood, may make a re-appearance if a much-discussed huge condo complex one day gets off the ground there.
Municipal planners haven't stopped using the name, however. The Manhattan Institute held a forum, "Saving Sherman Creek," in January 2006 at the
Harvard Club of New York. The New York City Economic Development Council is studying a $9.1 billion plan to reinvigorate the area. The
Daily News (New York) has written about the project.
Interestingly, new names for neighborhoods are generally considered to be ersatz creations of real estate agents and, therefore, emblematic of gentrification. However, the newest name for Washington Heights -- an alternative, really -- comes not from people with dollar signs in their eyes. The Spanish-speaking Caribbean immigrants who have flocked here for decades call Washington Heights a name worthy of its elevation: El Alto.
Crime epidemic
Washington Heights was severely affected by the
crack cocaine epidemic of the early/mid-1980s. This was due, in part, to the neighborhood crack gang, known as the Wild Cowboys or the Red Top Gang, who were associated with
Yayo. The Wild Cowboys were responsible for the higher number of crimes, especially murders, during the late 80s and early 90s. Robert Jackall wrote a book,
Wild Cowboys: Urban Marauders and the Forces of Order, describing the events that took place during that period of lawlessness.
Homelessness was rampant. Washington Heights had become the largest drug distribution center in the Northeastern United States during that time. A housing project in the neighborhood was nicknamed “Crack City,” an epithet commonly bestowed upon rough areas at the time. In fact, so common was the name that Crack City was also used to refer to the Far West Side of Manhattan ; Boerum Hill, Brooklyn; Roslyn Heights, N.Y.; Atlantic City, N.J.; Richmond, Calif.; and the Kilburn neighborhood of London.
On October 18, 1988, 24 year old Police Officer Michael Buczek was murdered by Dominican drug dealers in Washington Heights. The killers fled to the Dominican Republic where one later died in police custody and a second was apprehended by U.S. Marshals in 2000. The third suspect was apprehended in the Dominican Republic in May 2002. Fifteen years after the shooting, Pablo Almonte, 51, and Jose Fernandez, 52, received the maximum sentence, 25 years to life, for their roles in the murder of Officer Michael Buczek. Daniel Mirambeaux, the alleged shooter, died in June 1989, plunging to his death under mysterious circumstances after he was ordered turned over to the United States.
In the ensuing years, the Buczek family founded the Michael John Buczek Foundation. There is a street, an elementary school, and a little league baseball field named in honor of Michael John Buczek. The Michael Buczek Little League hosts 30 teams with over 350 boys and girls, and is coached by officers from the 34th precinct.
Crime subsequently fell quickly due to aggressive police tactics. Police presence increased, and building landlords allowed police to patrol in apartment buildings, which led to the arrests of thousands of drug dealers a year in Washington Heights. People were also being stopped for quality of life crimes, which deterred people from carrying guns. A new police precinct was also added in the area. Today, its crime rate, along with that of neighboring
Harlem, is much lower yet still a very real problem in Washington Heights.
Even though crime complaints were down 5.88% in 2007 over 2001 (and down 65.47% from 1993), there were 5 murders in lower Washington Heights (that is, below W. 178th St.) in 2007 . By comparison, in the upper portion of Washington Heights, where the 34th Precinct includes Fort George, Hudson Heights and Sherman Creek (as well as Inwood), there was only 1 murder in 2007; likewise, above W. 179th Street, crime complaints were down 21.05% in 2007 over 2001 (and down 83.15% from 1993) .
That puts lower Washington Heights on par with Harlem, where the 30th Precinct also recorded five murders in 2007 . By comparison, the 13th Precinct (Flatiron, Stuyvesant Town and Union Square) recorded three murders in 2007 and the 20th Precinct (the Upper West Side) recorded none. .
Sports
Historic
Five clubs in American professional sports played in the Washington Heights area: the New York Giants, who are now the
San Francisco Giants, the
New York Mets, the
New York Yankees, the Football
New York Giants and the
New York Jets. The baseball Giants played at the
Polo Grounds at West 155th Street and Eighth Avenue from 1911-1957, the Yankees played there from 1913-1922 and the
New York Mets played their inaugural 1962-1963 season there.
Before the Yankees played at the Polo Grounds, they played in
Hilltop Park on Broadway between 165th and 168th from 1903-1912; at the time they were know as the
New York Highlanders. On
May 15,
1912, after being heckled for several innings, the great
Ty Cobb leaped the fence and attacked his tormentor. He was suspended indefinitely by league president
Ban Johnson, but his suspension was eventually reduced to 10 days and $50. One of the most amazing pitching performances of all time took place at Hilltop Park. On
September 4,
1908, 20 year-old
Walter Johnson shut out New York 3-0 with a five-hitter. The park is now the
Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, a major
hospital, which opened on that location in 1928. Washington Heights was the birth place of Yankee star
Alex Rodriguez.
Boston Red Sox slugger
Manny Ramírez grew up in the neighborhood, moving there from the Dominican Republic when he was thirteen years old and attending
George Washington High School, where he was one of the nation's top prospects. Hall-of-Fame infielder
Rod Carew, a perennial batting champion in the 1970s, also grew up in Washington Heights, having emigrated with his family from
Panama at the age of fourteen.
The
New York Mets and
New York Jets both began play at the Polo Grounds, while
Shea Stadium in
Queens was under construction.
Modern
The New Balance Track and Field Center, located in the 168th Street Armory on Fort Washington Avenue, maintains an Olympic-caliber track that's one of the fastest in the world. High school and colleges hold meets there regularly, and it's open to the public, for a fee, for training. The auditorium seats 60,000 people.
The Armory is the starting point for an annual road race founded by Peter M. Walsh, the Coogan’s Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks 5K, which is run in March. The race is sanctioned by the
New York Road Runners, and counts toward a guaranteed starting spot in the New York Marathon.
Also at the Armory is The National Track and Field Hall of Fame, along with the Charles B. Rangel Technology & Learning Center for children and students in middle school and high school.
The facility is operated by the Armory Foundation, which was created in 1993.
Extreme swimmers take part in the Little Red Lighthouse Swim, a 5.85-mile swim in the Hudson River from Clinton Cove (Pier 96) to Jeffrey’s Hook, the location of the
Little Red Lighthouse. The annual race, sponsored by the Manhattan Island Foundation, attracts more than 200 competitors. The course records for men and women were both set in 1998. Jeffrey Jotz, 28, of Rahway, N.J., finished in 1 hour, 7 minutes and 36 seconds. Julie Walsh-Arlis, 31, of New York, finished in 1:12:45.
Education
University education includes
Yeshiva University and
Boricua College. The medical campus of
Columbia University
hosts the
College of Physicians and Surgeons, the
College of Dental Medicine, the
Mailman School of Public Health, the
School of Nursing, and the
Graduate School of Basic Sciences, which offers doctoral programs in biomedical sciences. These schools are among the departments that comprise the
Columbia University Medical Center, whose full name is the New York-Presbyterian/Columbia Medical Center.
Private primary and secondary schools include
Mother Cabrini High School, The School of The Incarnation, and the
City College Academy of the Arts, a project funded by the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Other private schools include the Herbert G. Birch School for Exceptional Children and
Medical Center Nursery School.
Public primary and secondary schools are assigned to schools in the
New York City Department of Education. High Schools include:
George Washington High School
Zoned middle schools include:
J.H.S. 143 Eleanor Roosevelt
Mirabal Sisters Schools, MS 319, MS 324, and MS 321, formerly IS-90
Grade 6 and 7 option schools include:
(WHEELS) Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School
Zoned elementary schools include:
P.S. 48 Police Officer Michael John Buczek School
P.S. 132 Juan Pablo Duarte
P.S. 173
P.S. 187 Hudson Cliffs School
P.S. 192 Jacob H Schiff School
P.S. 314 The Muscota New School
It's worth noting that despite its name, CUNY in the Heights, the uptown campus of the City University of New York, isn't in the Heights, but in
Inwood. The CUNY XPress Center, however, is in the Fort George neighborhood of Washington Heights, but it isn't a campus. Instead, its purpose is to assist immigrants and to help students enroll in one of the CUNY schools.
Notable residents
Alex Arias (1967-), Dominican-American former Major League Baseball player.
Young Blaze (1989-), Dominican Cuban-American hip-hop producer
Héctor Carrasco (1969-), Dominican baseball player
Gene Colan (1926-), Marvel and DC Comics artist, Comic Book Hall of Famer
Frances Conroy (1953-), actress.
Don Dinero - Cuban-American Hip-Hop/Reggaeton artist.
Jim Dwyer (1957-), columnist and reporter at The New York Times.
Leonel Fernández (1953-), President of the Dominican Republic.
Lawrence Fishburne (1961-), African-American, Academy Award nominated actor.
Luis Flores (1981-), Dominican former NBA point guard.
Alan Greenspan (1926-), 13th Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve.
Clifton Hyde (1976-), guitarist/composer.
Jacob K. Javits (1904-1986), United States Senator.
Julio 204, one of the originators of New York graffiti.
Henry Kissinger (1923-), former National Security Advisor and United States Secretary of State.
Joshua Lederberg (1925-2008), geneticist who received the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for work in bacterial genetics, was born in Montclair.
Stan Lee - Creator of Spider-Man, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk.
Julio Lugo - Dominican Baseball player for Boston Red Sox
Magic Juan - Dominican-American hip-hop/merengue/Reggaeton artist.
Jae Millz (1983-), Jamaican-American rapper
Mims (1981-), Jamaican-American Rapper.
Manny Perez - Dominican Actor, who has appeared in Third Watch.
Freddie Prinze (1954-1977), Puerto Rican and Hungarian descent Stand-up comedian, best known for his 1970s TV series Chico and the Man co-starring Jack Albertson.
Manny Ramírez (1972-), Dominican Baseball player for the Boston Red Sox.
Alfonso Ribeiro (1971-), actor best known for his role as Carlton Banks in the TV sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
Alex Rodriguez (1975-), Dominican-American Baseball player for the New York Yankees.
Willy Rodriguez (1982-), Dominican-American Musical Director of La Excelencia and Tito Puente Jr.
Juelz Santana (1983-), Dominican-African American Rapper
Merlin Santana (1976-2002), Dominican-American actor also Tupac's brother-in -law
Vin Scully (1927-), Sportscaster for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
TAKI 183 - one of the originators of New York graffiti.
Gina Torres (1969-), Cuban Actress
2 in a Room - Dominican-American & Cuban American Hip-Hop/ Freestyle group
Ruth Westheimer (1928-), "Dr. Ruth", sex educator and sex counselor.
J. R. Writer (1984-), Dominican-American RapperFurther Information
Get more info on 'Washington Heights Manhattan'.
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