Federal Hall

Federal Hall National Memorial
New York City Landmark No. 0047, 0887
View of Federal Hall in 2019
Map
Location of Federal Hall in New York City
Location26 Wall Street, Financial District, Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates40°42′26″N 74°0′37″W / 40.70722°N 74.01028°W / 40.70722; -74.01028
Area0.45 acres (0.18 ha)
BuiltMay 26, 1842
ArchitectTown and Davis; John Frazee (Interior Rotunda)
Architectural styleGreek Revival
Visitation156,707 (2004)
WebsiteFederal Hall National Memorial
Part ofWall Street Historic District (ID07000063)
NRHP reference No.66000095[1]
NYSRHP No.06101.000085
NYCL No.0047, 0887
Significant dates
Added to NRHPOctober 15, 1966[5]
Designated NMEMAugust 11, 1955
Designated NYSRHPJune 23, 1980[2]
Designated NYCLDecember 21, 1965 (exterior)[3]
May 27, 1975 (interior)[4]

Federal Hall is a memorial and historic site at 26 Wall Street in the Financial District of Manhattan in New York City. The current Greek Revival–style building, completed in 1842 as the Custom House, is owned by the United States federal government and operated by the National Park Service as a national memorial called the Federal Hall National Memorial. The memorial is named for an earlier Federal style building on this same site, completed in 1703 as City Hall, which the government of the newly independent United States used as its capital building during the 1780s.

The 1703 building served as New York's City Hall and hosted the 1765 Stamp Act Congress before the American Revolution. After the United States became an independent nation, the building served as meeting place for the Congress of the Confederation, the nation's first central government under the Articles of Confederation, from 1785 to 1789. With the establishment of the United States federal government in 1789, it was renamed Federal Hall, as it hosted the 1st Congress and was where George Washington was sworn in as the nation’s first president. It was demolished in 1812.

The current structure, designed by Ithiel Town and Alexander Jackson Davis, was built as the U.S. Custom House for the Port of New York before serving as a Subtreasury building from 1862 to 1925. The current national memorial commemorates the historic events that occurred at the previous structure. The memorial building is constructed of Tuckahoe marble. Its architectural features include a colonnade of Doric columns, as well as a domed rotunda designed by the sculptor John Frazee. The facade and part of the interior are New York City designated landmarks, and the building is also a contributing property to the Wall Street Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ "Cultural Resource Information System (CRIS)". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. November 7, 2014. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYCL-0047 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYCL p. 1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Federal Hall National Memorial". National Park Service. Archived from the original on August 27, 2016. Retrieved June 25, 2016.