Washington Square Park - The Park in Popular Culture and Local Politics

The Park in Popular Culture and Local Politics

Washington Square has long been a hub for politics and culture in New York City.

In 1834 New York University decided to use prison labor to dress the stone for its new building, across from the park. Prison labor from Sing Sing was cheaper than hiring local stonemasons. This, the stonecutters of the city said, was taking the bread out of their mouths. They held a rally in Washington Square Park, and then held the first labor march in the city. That turned into a riot, and the 27th New York regiment was called out to quell the stonecutters. The regiment camped in Washington Square for four days and nights until the excitement subsided. New York University continued their use of prison labor.

In 1888, Robert Louis Stevenson, in the U.S. seeking medical help for his battle with consumption, shared a seat in the Park with Mark Twain, enjoying conversation.

In 1912, approximately 20,000 workers (including 5,000 women) marched to the park to commemorate the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, which had killed 146 workers the year before. Many of the women wore fitted tucked-front blouses like those manufactured by the Triangle Shirtwaist Company. This clothing style became the working woman's uniform and a symbol of female independence, reflecting the alliance of labor and suffrage movements. Over 25,000 people marched on the park demanding women's suffrage in 1915.

In 1934, Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, became sober while attending Oxford Group Meetings approximately one mile from Washington Square Park (246 East 23rd Street). In his "Big Book" of Alcoholics Anonymous, Wilson referred repeatedly to a triumphal arch matching the unique features of the Washington Square Arch in every detail.

In the years before and after World War I the park was a center for many American artists, writers, and activists, including the photographer André Kertész, who photographed the square during winter. Later the park was a gathering area for the Beat generation, folk, and Hippie movements in the 1950s and 1960s; in 1958 musician Buddy Holly, a nearby resident of the Village, spent time in the park both listening to people play and helping guitarists with musical chords.

The park was featured extensively in the 2007 film I Am Legend. It was home to the protagonist, Dr. Robert Neville, played by Will Smith. It was used as a major action piece, especially in the last scenes of the film. Filming involved the closure of the park to make room for numerous explosions and filming equipment.

Built-in outdoor chess tables on the southwest corner encourage outdoor playing along with throngs of watchers (in his youth, Stanley Kubrick was a frequent player). These tables were featured in the films Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993) and Fresh (1994). The Washington Square tables form the cornerstone of what is called Manhattan's "chess district," as the area around the park (Thompson Street, between West 3rd Street and Bleecker Street) has a number of chess shops, the oldest being the Village Chess Shop (founded in 1972), in addition to the playing location in the park. In addition, the park's Scrabble players were featured in the 2004 documentary film Word Wars.

On September 27, 2007, Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama held a rally at Washington Square. 20,000 people registered for the event, and the crowds overflowed past security gates set up as a cordon. The New York Times described the rally "as one of the largest campaign events of the year."