Vintage Images of the Federal Hall

This was the site of New York City's 18th-century City Hall. The original building was constructed between 1699 and 1703 on the site of the current Federal Hall National Memorial (26 Wall Street, at the juncture of Wall, Broad, and Nassau Streets). The land was donated by Abraham de Peyster, New York’s first mayor. The building was the seat of government for the British colony of New York.

After the Independence War (1775–83), New York was established as the capital of the United States of America. The Constitution was ratified in 1788, New York was the national capital and the City Hall was remodeled for the new Federal Hall. On April 30, 1789, George Washington was inaugurated here as the first President of the U.S.A.

In 1790, the country's capital was transferred to Philadelphia and the building became the city government until 1812, when the new City Hall was opened. The old Federal Hall was demolished. The current building was erected, between 1833 and 1842, for the Custom House. Its design was inspired by the Parthenon of Athens. In 1862, the building housed the US Sub-Treasury. In 1883, the bronze statue of George Washington, by the sculptor John Quincy Adams Ward, was unveiled on its steps. In 1939, the building was designated as the Federal Hall Memorial National Historic Site.

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