Preservation Plan Cover Image

Download the entire 14th Street and Union Square Preservation Plan

Preservation Plan Alternate Cover Image

Download the abridged Preservation Plan (as given to guests at the oral presentation)

Primary Resources: Open Space

35. Union Square Pavilion
Primary Resources Figure

35. Union Square Pavilion.

The Italian Renaissance inspired pavilion in Union Square, located on the northern end of the park and facing onto East 17th Street, was designed for the New York City Parks Department in 1931 by the Department’s architect Charles Schmieder. Schmieder joined the Parks Department as a draftsman in 1912 and served as Department architect from 1922 until his death in 1950. During this time he designed many structures in parks throughout the city, including a boathouse in Central Park and a field house in Inwood Hill Park, in 1931 and 1933 respectively.

Constructed from limestone, the pavilion replaced an earlier wooden structure. It housed a bandstand and comfort station and was part of park improvements made as a result of subway construction.40 The pavilion has since served as a meeting point, a playground, a restaurant and a “soap box” for political protesters.

36. Union Square Park
Primary Resources Figure

36. Union Square Park.

Union Square Park is already listed as a National Historic Landmark under the theme of Labor Organizations & Protests and its period of significance is stated as 1882-1894. However, Union Square’s importance is not only as part of this period and this theme. As one of the most notable open spaces on Manhattan Island, the park has always had an interactive relationship with the public, development of the city fabric, and evolving cultural and political tastes. It is undeniable that the significance of Union Square is a wholistic one, and is a clear reflection of the ever-changing nature of New York City.

Public parks in New York City have a symbiotic relationship with the neighborhoods surrounding them; Union Square is no exception. Nearby residents and businesses have always relied on the continued presence of the park to serve their needs and contribute to the character of the neighborhood. From its evolving use as a potter’s field to its “planned” public space under the Commissioners’ Plan, Union Square is a prime example of the need for open space in the dense fabric of the city.

The square has always been intertwined with its context. It has evolved in use as the city has developed, starting as a private park for upper class residences in the 1830s, and changing to more public use when the area changed to commerce and entertainment in the 1860s. Union Square has reflected the political atmosphere of the city, in its use as a protest ground during the Civil War, for labor protests around the turn of the century and for political and leftist demonstrations in the pre-World War I era. Union Square Park’s design has morphed with changing tastes, from an isolated, formal English plan in the 1830s to a picturesque, democratic repose in the 1870s.

Today, Union Square is still very much in use a public gathering space. Memorial gatherings at the south end during the September 11 aftermath, protests against the Iraq war, annual arts & craft fairs, and the Greenmarket all lend to this space as a public hub of New York City. Continued progress and change in the park’s plan denote the importance of the park as an open space for the city. The city’s history is reflected in the ever-changing designs of the park throughout the past 170 years, and its continued use as a public space serves the city well. The park is valuable in that both its formal plan and its more ephemeral qualities, such as activity and use, are equally significant.

(Refer to the History section for a complete history of Union Square Park)