Manhattan Street Names: Jane & John, Carmine & Cornelia

Posted March 24th, 2010

In the course of leading a basically bicoastal life, I’ve had the opportunity to spend a lot of time walking and driving the streets of both New York and L.A.  And I have to say, as rhythmic and melodious as so many of the California names are– e.g. Alameda, Amanita, Mariposa, Morella– for native New Yorker me there’s nothing like the solid, straight-forward, usable street names of downtown Manhattan, from Greenwich Village to the Wall Street area, names resonant with references to early American history.

The names of these meandering streets, lanes and alleys were subject to shifting trends.  Many British names were changed after the Revolutionary War, for example, and for a time fashion dictated that streets named for local property owners would carry the first names only.  Leaders in the War of 1812 provided a goodly share of names, as did figures connected to Trinity Church.

Here are Lower Manhattan street names with their historical roots–any of which would make a possible namesake.

ALLEN — after War of 1812 hero Captain William Henry Allen

ANN – named for either a member of the Beekman clan or the wife of Captain William Henry Allen

ASTOR –named for John Jacob Astor, “the richest man in America”

BARCLAY – Reverend Henry Barclay was the second rector of Trinity Church

BARROW–  artist Thomas Barrow was known for his portraits of Trinity Church

BAXTER—originally called Orange Street, renamed for Mexican War hero Colonel Charles Baxter

BAYARD –Nicholas Bayard was mayor of NY in 1686

BENSON — Egbert Benson was New York’s first Attorney General

BETHUNE—named for philanthropist Johanna Graham Bethune

BLEECKER—the street ran through the farm of Anthony L. Bleecker

CARMINE—for  Trinity Church vestryman Nicolas Carman (sic)

CATHERINE – the wife of land owner Henry Rutgers

CHARLES ––named for landowner Charles Christopher Amos

CHARLTON — Dr. John Charlton, an English-born surgeon, became president of the N.Y. Medical Society

CHRISTOPHER—also named for Charles Christopher Amos, a local landowner

CHRYSTIE – named for Lt.-Col. John Christie (sic), killed in the War of 1812

CLARKSON – Revolutionary War hero Matthew Clarkson

CLINTON— George Clinton, was a Revolutionary War hero and the first governor of New York State

CORNELIA – a beloved granddaughter of landowner Robert Herring

CROSBY – named for William Bedlow Crosby, who inherited much of the Lower East Side

DELANCEY – named after James De Lancey, Sr, whose farm was located in what is now the LES

DUANE –James Duane was an early mayor of the city

ELDRIDGE –named for a Lieutenant killed in the War of 1812

ELIZABETH — unknown

ESSEX – named for the English county (as were nearby Norfolk and Suffolk Streets)

FORSYTH—named in 1817 for Lt. Col. Benjamin Forsyth

FRANKLIN –formerly Sugarloaf Street, it was renamed in 1816 to honor Benjamin Franklin

FULTON—Robert Fulton , inventor of the steamship

GREENE— Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene

HARRISON—named after local brewery owner George Harrison

HENRY – named for Colonel Henry Rutgers, a member of the New York State legislature, among other accomplishments

HESTER—Hester Rynders was the daughter of disgraced governor Jacob Leisler

HORATIO – Revolutionary General Horatio Gates

HOUSTON – named for delegate to the Continental Congress William Houstoun (original spelling)

HOWARD – Henry Howard headed the NYC volunteer fire department in the 19^th century

HUDSON – named after Henry Hudson

JACKSON—Jackson Square named after President Andrew Jackson

JANE –originally owned by the Jaynes family; spelling changed when the areas was owned and developed by Jane Gahn

JAY – probably named for Founding Father John Jay

JOHN – named for a 17^th century shoemaker, John Harpendingh in an area then known as “Shoemakers’ Pasture.”

KENMARE—a (probably orrupt) Lower East Side politician known as Big Tim Sullivan named this street after his mother’s Irish birthplace.

LEONARD—unknown

LEROY– Jacob Leroy, alderman and business man

LUDLOW – another War of 1812 hero, this one a Lieutenant killed in a naval battle

MACDOUGAL –Revolutionary Commander Alexander McDougal

MERCER –  Hugh Mercer, an officer killed in the Revolutionary War

MILLIGAN – once the property of Samuel Milligan

MINETTA – named after Minetta Brook, whose course it followed

MOORE—before landfill changed the shape of Manhattan, Moore Street was the where ships were moored.

MORTON—prominent lawyer Jacob Morton

MURRAY – Joseph Murray, a pre-Revolutionary War lawyer

PATCHIN – named for surveyor Aaron Patchin

PEARL – Running along what was once the bank of the East River, named for the abundant oyster shells that washed ashore.

PERRY – named first for landowner Henry Ogden Perry, later namesake was Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, War of 1812 naval hero

READE—named for the 18^th century warden of Trinity Church, John Reade.

SHERIDAN Square— Civil War hero General Philip Sheridan

STANTON—named for George Stanton, an agent for the de Lancey family

SULLIVAN— Revolutionary War hero Brigadier General John Sullivan

THOMAS – named for a son of Anthony Lispenard, a merchant and landowner

THOMPSON – a memorial to Revolutionary War Brigadier General William Thompson

VARICK –named in 1799 for then mayor Richard Varick

VESEY – the Reverend William Vesey was the first rector of Trinity Church

VESTRY—named for the vestry of Trinity Church

WALKER – Benjamin Walker was a Revolutionary War captain and congressman

WARREN –named for Admiral Sir Peter Warren

WAVERLY – named for Sir Walter Scott’s popular novel Waverly

WILLIAM – possibly named for John Jacob Astor’s son

And for an extra dose of trivia, here are some earlier names of  Lower Manhattan  streets—or parts of them–  that got lost to history:

AMITY

AMOS

ANTHONY

AUGUSTUS

BRANNON

BROOK

BUDD

BURR

BURTON

CARROLL

COZINE

DAVID

DOMINIC

ELIZA

FITZROY

GERMAINE

HAMMOND

HENRY

HETTY

JACOB

LAURENS

LORILLARD

OGDEN

RACHEL

ROSE

SCOTT

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