WALL STREET begins on the east side of Broadway, opposite Trinity Church,
and terminates at the East River. It is about half a mile from the
extreme southern end of the island, and about the same distance from the
City Hall. It is a narrow street, about fifty feet in width, and slopes
gradually from Broadway to the river. It is lined on both sides with
handsome brown stone, yellow stone, granite, marble, iron, and brick
buildings, and the Treasury and Custom-House rear their magnificent
fronts about midway between the termini of the street. They are
diagonally opposite each other. The buildings are covered with a
multiplicity of signs, rivalling the edifices of Nassau street, in this
respect. Scarcely a house has less than a score of offices within its
walls, and some contain at least three times as many. Space is valuable,
and rents are high in Wall street, and many of the leading firms in it
have to content themselves with small, dark apartments, which a
conscientious man would hesitate to call an "office." The rents paid for
such quarters are enormous, and the buildings yield their owners large
incomes every year. The streets running into Wall street, on the right
and left, are also occupied for several blocks with the offices of
bankers and brokers, and are all included in the general term "Wall
street," or "The Street."
[Picture: WALL STREET.]
Wall street first appears in the history of the city as a portion of a
sheep pasture which was used in common by the inhabitants of New
Amsterdam. Its natural condition was partly rolling upland and partly
meadow of a swampy character. The name of the street originated thus:
About the middle of the seventeenth century, the English in the New
England colonies began to press heavily upon the Dutch in New
Netherlands, and kept the worthy burghers of New Amsterdam in a constant
dread of an invasion. Influenced by this feeling, the city authorities
resolved to fortify the place, and in 1653 constructed a wall or stockade
across the island, from river to river just beyond the line of the
village. This wall passed directly across the old sheep pasture.
Citizens were forbidden to build within 100 feet of the stockade, this
open space being reserved for the movements of troops. It soon became a
prominent highway, and the eastern portion has since remained so. The
anticipated attack on the city was not made, but the wall was kept in
good condition. Houses crept up close to the wall on the city side, and
began to appear on the opposite side just under the wall. Thus a new
street was formed, through which ran the old stockade. The open space
along the wall was originally called _The Cingel_, signifying "the
ramparts." Soon after the town reached the limit of the military
reservation, persons residing here were spoken of as living "long de
Wal," and from this the street came to be called "the Wall street," which
name it has ever since borne. The wall having fallen into decay, was
demolished about the year 1699, and its stones were used in the
construction of the old City Hall, which stood at the intersection of
Wall and Nassau streets, the site now occupied by the Sub-Treasury of the
United States. The old building was used for the various purposes of the
city government until the close of the Revolution. It contained, besides
the council and court rooms, a jail for the detention and punishment of
criminals, a debtors' prison, which was located in the attic, a
fire-engine-room, a cage and a pillory. A pair of stocks was set up on
the opposite side of the street, wherein criminals were exposed to the
indignant gaze of the virtuous public.
At the close of the Revolution, the City Hall was enlarged and improved
for the use of the General Government. It thus became the first capitol
of the new Republic, and was known as Federal Hall. The first Congress
of the United States assembled within its walls in the year 1789, and
upon its spacious portico, in the presence of an immense multitude,
George Washington took the oath to support and defend the constitution as
first President of the United States.
Wall street was originally taken up with private residences, and the old
views represent it as well shaded with trees. Even as late as 1830 it
presented a very rural appearance between Broadway and William street.
Prior to the Revolution, the lower part of the street had been built up
with stores as far as Front street, and had become the centre of
mercantile affairs in the city, the row of stores on Wall street being
the first erected beyond Water street. About the year 1792, the old
Tontine Coffee House was erected on the northwest corner of Wall and
Water streets, and this became the favorite rendezvous for the city
merchants, by whom, indeed, it was erected and controlled. In 1791 the
Bank of New York was located at the corner of William street, and marked
the first encroachment upon the strictly private portion of the street.
It was also the first effort to make this locality the centre of the
financial operations of the city. Other institutions and private bankers
soon followed, and the character and architecture of the street began to
undergo a change. The work of improvement went on steadily, and the Wall
street of to-day is the result. Famous lawyers have also had their
offices in this street. Alexander Hamilton's sign might once have been
seen here, not far from where his humble monument now stands in Trinity
Churchyard, and the name of Caleb Cushing is still to be found near a
doorway just below Broadway.
[Picture: UNITED STATES SUB-TREASURY.]
"In 1700 a house and lot on the southeast corner of Wall and Broad
streets, 16 x 30, sold for 163 pounds. In 1706 a house and lot on the
north of Wall street, 25 x 116, sold for 116 pounds. In 1737 a house and
lot on the north of Wall street, 62 x 102, sold for 110 pounds. In 1793,
the dwelling and lot of General Alexander Hamilton, on the south of Wall
street, 42 x 108, sold for 2400 pounds. In 1794 a house and lot, 44 x
51, sold for 2510 pounds." At present the ground included in these sites
is held at hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The street fairly began its present career in the days of Jacob Little,
"the great bear of Wall street." He opened an office here in 1822, and
by dint of such labor as few men are capable of performing, placed
himself at the head of American operators. His credit was good for any
amount, and his integrity was unimpeachable. He could sway the market as
he pleased, and his contracts were met with a punctuality and fidelity
which made "his word as good as his bond." Efforts were made to ruin
him, but his genius and far-sightedness enabled him to defeat all his
enemies with their own weapons. His gains were enormous, and so were his
losses. The civil war brought upon him disasters which he could not
surmount, and he died poor in the early part of 1861, leaving behind him
one of the names of which New York is proud.
At the corner of Nassau street, and looking down into Broad street, is
the Sub-Treasury of the United States, a handsome white marble edifice.
It is built in the Doric style of architecture, and its massive flight of
steps and imposing portico give to it a striking appearance. It is
constructed in the most substantial manner, and has a rear entrance on
Pine street. The interior is handsomely arranged, and tasteful but
secure iron gratings protect the employees from surprise and robbery.
The vaults are burglar proof. This is the principal depository of the
Federal Government, and millions of dollars are always in its vaults.
The building was erected for, and was used for some years as, a Custom
House.
From the steps of the Treasury one may enjoy a fine view of the entire
street, and of Broad street also. About the hour of noon the scene is
busy and exciting. The roadway in Wall street is full of struggling
vehicles, and long rows of cabs stand in waiting in Broad street for the
busy operators within the Exchanges. The side walks are crowded with an
eager, hurrying throng. The steps and street around the Stock Exchange,
in Broad street, are black with men who are shouting, pushing, and
struggling in the effort to turn the transactions of the day to their
advantage. Overhead is an intricate maze of telegraph wires, along which
flow the quick and feverish pulsations of the great financial heart of
the country. The sunlight falls brightly and cheerily over it all, and
at intervals the clear, sweet chimes of old Trinity come floating down
the street high above the noise and strife below them.
Diagonally opposite the Treasury, and at the corner of William street, is
the Custom House, which occupies the irregular square bounded by Wall
street, Exchange Place, William street, and Hanover street. It is one of
the finest and best arranged edifices in the city.
Just below the Custom House is the handsome marble building of Brown
Brothers, one of the model houses of New York, as regards both the firm
and the edifice. The Messrs. Brown are regarded as the most reliable and
accomplished operators in the street. Across the way, in a dingy granite
building, is the office of August Belmont & Co., the American agents of
the Rothschilds, and bankers on their own account. Jay Cooke & Co.
occupy the fine marble building at the corner of Wall and Nassau streets,
opposite the Treasury, and there conduct the New York branch of their
enormous business. Fisk & Hatch, the financial agents of the great
Pacific Railway, are a few steps higher up Nassau street. Henry Clews &
Co. are in the building occupied by the United States Assay Office.
Other firms, of more or less eminence, fill the street. Some have fine,
showy offices, others operate in dark, dingy holes.