117-675: The Campbell is a bar and cocktail lounge in Grand Central Terminal in Midtown Manhattan , New York City . The space, long known as the Campbell Apartment , was once the office of American financier John W. Campbell , a member of the New York Central Railroad 's board of directors. It was later used as office space, as a studio by CBS and as a jail by Metro-North Railroad . Renovations in 1999 and 2007 restored
234-455: A National Historic Landmark . Its Beaux-Arts design incorporates numerous works of art . Grand Central Terminal is one of the world's ten most-visited tourist attractions, with 21.6 million visitors in 2018, excluding train and subway passengers. The terminal's Main Concourse is often used as a meeting place, and is especially featured in films and television. Grand Central Terminal contains
351-509: A Starbucks coffee shop, a Rite Aid pharmacy, and an Apple Store . The Oyster Bar, the oldest business in the terminal, sits next to the Dining Concourse and below Vanderbilt Hall. An elegantly restored cocktail lounge, the Campbell , sits just south of the 43rd Street/Vanderbilt Avenue entrance. A mix of commuters and tourists access it from the street or the balcony level. The space
468-470: A caduceus below an inscripted panel that reads: "To all those with head, heart, and hand • Toiled in the construction of this monument to the public service • This is inscribed." Above the panel is a clock framed by a pair of carved cornucopias. In 2014, the foyer was named for Onassis, former First Lady of the United States , who in the 1970s helped ward off the demolition of
585-446: A theatre in the round , spectators sit on three sides of the court. A men's smoking room and women's waiting room were formerly located on the west and east sides of Vanderbilt Hall, respectively. In 2016, the men's room was renovated into Agern , an 85-seat Nordic-themed fine dining and Michelin-starred restaurant operated by Noma co-founder Claus Meyer , who also ran the food hall. Both venues permanently closed in 2020 during
702-629: A Metro-North train before collecting them three weeks later. In 1996, some of the lost-and-found items were displayed at an art exhibition. Grand Central Terminal contains restaurants such as the Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant and various fast food outlets surrounding the Dining Concourse. There are also delis, bakeries, a gourmet and fresh food market, and an annex of the New York Transit Museum . The 40-plus retail stores include newsstands and chain stores, including
819-599: A contract to refurbish the Biltmore Room into an arrival area for Long Island Rail Road passengers as part of the East Side Access project. As part of the project, the room's booths and stands were replaced by a pair of escalators and an elevator to Grand Central Madison's deep-level concourse, which opened in May 2023. The room's blackboard displayed the arrival and departure times of New York Central trains until 1967, when
936-612: A decade between Irish immigrants and Black people for work. Rioters burned the Colored Orphan Asylum to the ground. At least 120 people were killed. Eleven Black men were lynched over five days, and the riots forced hundreds of Blacks to flee. The Black population in Manhattan fell below 10,000 by 1865. The White working class had established dominance. It was one of the worst incidents of civil unrest in American history . In 1886,
1053-517: A final cost of $ 75 million. In spring 2000, construction began on a project to enclose the Northeast and Northwest passages with ceilings and walls. Work on each passage was expected to take 7.5 months, with the entire project wrapping up by summer 2001. As part of the project, the walls of the passages were covered with glazed terrazzo ; the Northeast Passage's walls have blue-green accents while
1170-460: A mechanical board was installed in the Main Concourse. The Station Master's Office, located near Track 36, has Grand Central's only dedicated waiting room. The space has benches, restrooms, and a floral mixed-media mural on three of its walls. The room's benches were previously located in the former waiting room, now known as Vanderbilt Hall. Since 2008, the area has offered free Wi-Fi. One of
1287-624: A precaution during the COVID-19 pandemic , Grand Central North closed on March 26, 2020. It reopened in September of that year with hours from 6:30 to 10 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. In 2021, its original hours were restored. On November 1, 2021, the entrance to the northeastern corner of Madison Avenue and 47th Street was "closed long-term to accommodate the construction of 270 Park Avenue ". After Grand Central Madison begins full service, Grand Central North will be open from 5:30 a.m. until 2 a.m., seven days
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#17328439371671404-896: A protracted battle with its landlord and closed its doors at the end of the following month. In May 2017, the bar reopened as The Campbell. The Campbell Apartment was seen in the premiere episode , "Return of the Ring" (the Season Five finale) and in the final season episode "Monstrous Ball" (via video at cotillion) of the television series Gossip Girl in 2007. The bar is also mentioned in Nell Zink 's novel Doxology . 40°45′9.26″N 73°58′40.13″W / 40.7525722°N 73.9778139°W / 40.7525722; -73.9778139 Grand Central Terminal Metro-North Railroad terminal Grand Central Terminal ( GCT ; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central )
1521-524: A result of Sandy, and the economic losses in New York City were estimated to be roughly $ 19 billion. The disaster spawned long-term efforts towards infrastructural projects to counter climate change and rising seas, with $ 15 billion in federal funding received through 2022 towards those resiliency efforts. In March 2020, the first case of COVID-19 in the city was confirmed. With its population density and its extensive exposure to global travelers,
1638-476: A speech denying the request, which was paraphrased on the front page of the New York Daily News as "FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD." The Municipal Assistance Corporation was formed and granted oversight authority over the city's finances. While a resurgence in the financial industry greatly improved the city's economic health in the 1980s, New York's crime rate continued to increase through that decade and into
1755-576: A train arrives at the terminal every 58 seconds. Three of Metro-North's five main lines terminate at Grand Central: Through these lines, the terminal serves Metro-North commuters traveling to and from the Bronx in New York City; Westchester , Putnam , and Dutchess counties in New York ; and Fairfield and New Haven counties in Connecticut . The MTA's Long Island Rail Road operates commuter trains to
1872-437: A variety of stores and food vendors, including upscale restaurants and bars, a food hall, and a grocery marketplace. The building is also noted for its library, event hall, tennis club, control center and offices for the railroad, and sub-basement power station. Grand Central Terminal was built by and named for the New York Central Railroad ; it also served the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad and, later, successors to
1989-515: A wall, now sits in the massive fireplace as a reminder of Campbell's wealth. The new bar is done in the same quatrefoil mahogany style as the balcony. The renovation cost an estimated $ 1.5 million. A 2006 renovation replaced a largely blue palette with a largely red one, including new carpet, bar stools and chairs. To avoid closing for even one night, it took place in less than 12 hours and cost $ 350,000. The Campbell Apartment lost its lease in June 2016 after
2106-554: A week. The main entrance into the terminal, underneath the Park Avenue Viaduct, opens into the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Foyer. The room is a short passage with a sloped floor and arched shop windows along its side walls. It is adorned with glass and bronze chandeliers, a classical cornice, and a decorative tympanum above the doors leading to Vanderbilt Hall. The tympanum has sculpted bronze garlands and
2223-402: A year, 60% of which were eventually claimed. In 2013, the bureau reported an 80% return rate, among the highest in the world for a transit agency. Some of the more unusual items collected by the bureau include fake teeth, prosthetic body parts, legal documents, diamond pouches, live animals, and a $ 100,000 violin. One story has it that a woman purposely left her unfaithful husband's ashes on
2340-638: Is a commuter rail terminal located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan , New York City . Grand Central is the southern terminus of the Metro-North Railroad 's Harlem , Hudson and New Haven Lines , serving the northern parts of the New York metropolitan area . It also contains a connection to the Long Island Rail Road through the Grand Central Madison station, a 16-acre (65,000 m ) rail terminal underneath
2457-426: Is an information booth topped with a four-sided brass clock, one of Grand Central's most recognizable icons. The terminal's main departure boards are located at the south end of the space. The boards have been replaced numerous times since their initial installation in 1967. In their design for the station's interior, Reed & Stem created a circulation system that allowed passengers alighting from trains to enter
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#17328439371672574-407: Is designated a "terminal" because trains originate and terminate there. The CSX Corporation Railroad Dictionary also considers "terminals" as facilities "for the breaking up, making up, forwarding, and servicing of trains" or "where one or more rail yards exist". Grand Central Terminal serves some 67 million passengers a year, more than any other Metro-North station. During morning rush hour ,
2691-401: Is lit by Beaux-Arts chandeliers, each with 132 bulbs on four tiers. Vanderbilt Hall was formerly the main waiting room for the terminal, used particularly by intercity travelers. The space featured double-sided oak benches and could seat 700 people. As long-distance passenger service waned, the space became favored by the homeless, who began regularly living there in the 1980s. In 1989, the room
2808-412: Is located on the upper platform level of Grand Central, in the geographical center of the station building. The 35,000-square-foot (3,300 m ) concourse leads directly to most of the terminal's upper-level tracks, although some are accessed from passageways near the concourse. The Main Concourse is usually filled with bustling crowds and is often used as a meeting place. At the center of the concourse
2925-404: Is northwest of the Main Concourse and directly beneath 22 Vanderbilt , the former Biltmore Hotel building. The room was completed in 1915 as a waiting room for intercity trains, which led to its colloquial name of the "Kissing Room", in reference to the greetings that would take place there. As the station's passenger traffic declined in mid-century, the room fell into neglect. In 1982 and 1983,
3042-405: Is one of the world's most populous megacities . The city and its metropolitan area are the premier gateway for legal immigration to the United States . As many as 800 languages are spoken in New York City, making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world. In 2021, the city was home to nearly 3.1 million residents born outside the U.S., the largest foreign-born population of any city in
3159-700: The Empire Builder , the San Francisco Zephyr , the Southwest Limited , the Crescent , and the Sunset Limited under Amtrak. Destinations included San Francisco , Los Angeles , Vancouver , New Orleans , Chicago , and Montreal . Another notable former train was New York Central's 20th Century Limited , a luxury service that operated to Chicago's LaSalle Street Station between 1902 and 1967 and
3276-591: The American South . During construction in Foley Square in the 1990s, the African Burying Ground was discovered; the cemetery included 10,000 to 20,000 graves of colonial-era Africans, some enslaved and some free. The 1735 trial and acquittal in Manhattan of John Peter Zenger , who had been accused of seditious libel after criticizing colonial governor William Cosby , helped to establish freedom of
3393-837: The Atlantic port to the agricultural markets and commodities of the North American interior via the Hudson River and the Great Lakes . Local politics became dominated by Tammany Hall , a political machine supported by Irish and German immigrants . In 1831, New York University was founded. Several prominent American literary figures lived in New York during the 1830s and 1840s, including William Cullen Bryant , Washington Irving , Herman Melville , Rufus Wilmot Griswold , John Keese , Nathaniel Parker Willis , and Edgar Allan Poe . Members of
3510-664: The Bill of Rights there. The Supreme Court held its first organizational sessions in New York in 1790. In 1790, for the first time, New York City surpassed Philadelphia as the nation's largest city. At the end of 1790, the national capital was moved to Philadelphia . During the 19th century, New York City's population grew from 60,000 to 3.43 million. Under New York State's gradual emancipation act of 1799, children of slave mothers were to be eventually liberated but to be held in indentured servitude until their mid-to-late twenties. Together with slaves freed by their masters after
3627-534: The COVID-19 pandemic . City Winery signed a lease for both the food hall and the Agern space in 2022. The firm opened a wine bar, a quick-service restaurant named City Jams, and a farm-to-table restaurant named Cornelius in these spaces that November. The Biltmore Room, originally known simply as the incoming train room, is a 64-by-80-foot (20 by 24 m) marble hall that serves as an entrance to tracks 39 through 42, and connects to Grand Central Madison. The hall
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3744-697: The Caribbean . The attempt at a peaceful solution to the war took place at the Conference House on Staten Island between American delegates, including Benjamin Franklin , and British general Lord Howe on September 11, 1776. Shortly after the British occupation began, the Great Fire of New York destroyed nearly 500 buildings, about a quarter of the structures in the city, including Trinity Church . In January 1785,
3861-450: The Grand Central Madison station beneath Grand Central, completed in 2023 in the East Side Access project. The project connects the terminal to all of the railroad's branches via its Main Line , linking Grand Central Madison to almost every LIRR station. Partial service to Jamaica began on January 25, 2023. The New York City Subway 's adjacent Grand Central–42nd Street station serves
3978-857: The Hudson River , which he named Río de San Antonio ('Saint Anthony's River'). In 1609, the English explorer Henry Hudson rediscovered New York Harbor while searching for the Northwest Passage to the Orient for the Dutch East India Company . He sailed up what the Dutch called North River (now the Hudson River), named first by Hudson as the Mauritius after Maurice, Prince of Orange . Hudson claimed
4095-687: The Lower Hudson Valley . The first documented visit into New York Harbor by a European was in 1524 by explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano . He claimed the area for France and named it Nouvelle Angoulême (New Angoulême ). A Spanish expedition, led by the Portuguese captain Estêvão Gomes sailing for Emperor Charles V , arrived in New York Harbor in January 1525 and charted the mouth of
4212-699: The New York City Fire Department and 71 law enforcement officers. The area was rebuilt with a new World Trade Center , the National September 11 Memorial and Museum , and other new buildings and infrastructure, including the World Trade Center Transportation Hub , the city's third-largest hub. The new One World Trade Center is the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere and the seventh-tallest building in
4329-503: The Statue of Liberty , a gift from France , was dedicated in New York Harbor. The statue welcomed 14 million immigrants as they came to the U.S. via Ellis Island by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and is a symbol of the United States and American ideals of liberty and peace. In 1898, the City of New York was formed with the consolidation of Brooklyn (until then a separate city),
4446-683: The Stonewall riots were a series of violent protests by members of the gay community against a police raid that took place in the early morning of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village . They are widely considered to be the single most important event leading to the gay liberation movement and the modern fight for LGBT rights . Wayne R. Dynes , author of the Encyclopedia of Homosexuality , wrote that drag queens were
4563-586: The steamship General Slocum caught fire in the East River , killing 1,021 people. In 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire , the city's worst industrial disaster, killed 146 garment workers and spurred the growth of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union and major improvements in factory safety standards. New York's non-White population was 36,620 in 1890. New York City
4680-421: The 1998 renovation, which restored the ramps' original appearance with one minor change: the bridge now has a low balustrade, replacing an eight-foot-high solid wall that blocked views between the two levels. The underside of the bridge is covered with Guastavino tiling . The bridge's arches create a whispering gallery in the landing beneath it: a person standing in one corner can hear another speaking softly in
4797-525: The 19th century, the city was transformed by both commercial and residential development relating to its status as a national and international trading center , as well as by European immigration, respectively. The city adopted the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 , which expanded the city street grid to encompass almost all of Manhattan. The 1825 completion of the Erie Canal through central New York connected
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4914-593: The 47th and 48th Street entrances were open from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., while the two entrances to the Helmsley Building were closed. Five years after they opened, the passageways were used by about 30,000 people on a typical weekday. But they served only about 6,000 people on a typical weekend, so the MTA proposed to close them on weekends to save money as part of the 2005–2008 Financial Plan. Since summer 2006, Grand Central North has been closed on weekends. As
5031-676: The Continental Army at the Battle of Fort Washington in November 1776 eliminated the last American stronghold in Manhattan, causing George Washington and his forces to retreat across the Hudson River to New Jersey , pursued by British forces. After the battle, in which the Americans were defeated, the British made the city their military and political base of operations in North America. The city
5148-558: The County of New York (which then included parts of the Bronx), the County of Richmond, and the western portion of the County of Queens. The opening of the New York City Subway in 1904, first built as separate private systems, helped bind the new city together. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, the city became a world center for industry, commerce, and communication. In 1904,
5265-618: The Duke of York (the future King James II and VII). The duke gave part of the colony to proprietors George Carteret and John Berkeley . On August 24, 1673, during the Third Anglo-Dutch War , Anthony Colve of the Dutch navy seized New York at the behest of Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and rechristened it "New Orange" after William III , the Prince of Orange . The Dutch soon returned
5382-683: The Dutch West India Company had operated as a monopoly in New Netherland, on authority granted by the Dutch States General . In 1639–1640, in an effort to bolster economic growth, the Dutch West India Company relinquished its monopoly over the fur trade, leading to growth in the production and trade of food, timber, tobacco, and slaves (particularly with the Dutch West Indies ). In 1647, Peter Stuyvesant began his tenure as
5499-414: The Main Concourse and the construction of Grand Central Tower . Vanderbilt Hall is an event space on the south side of the terminal, between the main entrance and the Main Concourse to its north. The rectangular room measures 65 by 205 feet (20 m × 62 m). The north and south walls are divided into five bays, each with large rectangular windows, screened with heavy bronze grills. The room
5616-410: The Main Concourse ceiling. Access to the lower-level tracks is provided by the Dining Concourse, located below the Main Concourse and connected to it by numerous stairs, ramps, and escalators. For decades, it was called the Suburban Concourse because it handled commuter rail trains. Today, it has central seating and lounge areas, surrounded by restaurants and food vendors. The shared public seating in
5733-420: The Main Concourse, then leave through various passages that branch from it. Among these are the north–south 42nd Street Passage and Shuttle Passage, which run south to 42nd Street; and three east–west passageways—the Grand Central Market, the Graybar Passage, and the Lexington Passage—that run about 240 feet (73 m) east to Lexington Avenue by 43rd Street. Several passages run north of the terminal, including
5850-427: The Metro-North station, built from 2007 to 2023. The terminal also connects to the New York City Subway at Grand Central–42nd Street station . The terminal is the third-busiest train station in North America , after New York Penn Station and Toronto Union Station . The distinctive architecture and interior design of Grand Central Terminal's station house have earned it several landmark designations, including as
5967-454: The New York Central. Opened in 1913, the terminal was built on the site of two similarly named predecessor stations, the first of which dated to 1871. Grand Central Terminal served intercity trains until 1991, when Amtrak began routing its trains through nearby Penn Station . Grand Central covers 48 acres (19 ha) and has 44 platforms , more than any other railroad station in the world. Its platforms, all below ground, serve 30 tracks on
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#17328439371676084-405: The New York metropolitan area is the largest metropolitan economy in the world , with a gross metropolitan product of over US$ 2.16 trillion. If the New York metropolitan area were its own country , it would have the tenth-largest economy in the world . Despite having a 24/7 rapid transit system , New York also leads the world in urban automobile traffic congestion . The city is home to
6201-445: The North End Access Project, the work was to be completed in 1997 at a cost of $ 64.5 million, but it was slowed by the incomplete nature of the building's original blueprints and by previously undiscovered groundwater beneath East 45th Street. During construction, MTA Arts & Design mosaics were installed; each work was part of As Above, So Below , by Brooklyn artist Ellen Driscoll . The passageways opened on August 18, 1999, at
6318-546: The Northwest Passage's walls have red ones. The ceilings are 8 to 10 feet (2.4 to 3.0 m) high; the cross-passages' ceilings are blue-green, the same color as the Main Concourse, and have recessed lights arranged to resemble the Main Concourse's constellations. The passages were to be heated in winter and ventilated. Originally, Grand Central North had no restrooms or air-conditioning. The entrances to Grand Central North were originally open from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. During weekends and holidays,
6435-578: The Revolutionary War and escaped slaves, a significant free-Black population gradually developed in Manhattan. The New York Manumission Society worked for abolition and established the African Free School to educate Black children. It was not until 1827 that slavery was completely abolished in the state . Free Blacks struggled with discrimination and interracial abolitionist activism continued. New York City's population jumped from 123,706 in 1820 (10,886 of whom were Black and of which 518 were enslaved) to 312,710 by 1840 (16,358 of whom were Black). Also in
6552-558: The arts and fashion , and, as home to the headquarters of the United Nations , international diplomacy . With an estimated population in 2023 of 8,258,035 distributed over 300.46 square miles (778.2 km ), the city is the most densely populated major city in the United States. New York City has more than double the population of Los Angeles , the nation's second-most populous city. With more than 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York City
6669-426: The assembly of the Congress of the Confederation made New York City the national capital. New York was the last capital of the U.S. under the Articles of Confederation and the first capital under the Constitution of the United States . As the U.S. capital, New York City hosted the inauguration of the first President, George Washington , and the first Congress , at Federal Hall on Wall Street . Congress drafted
6786-493: The beginning of the 1990s. By the mid-1990s, crime rates started to drop dramatically due to revised police strategies, improving economic opportunities, gentrification , and new residents, both American transplants and new immigrants from Asia and Latin America. New York City's population exceeded 8 million for the first time in the 2000 United States census ; further records were set in 2010 , and 2020 U.S. censuses. Important new sectors, such as Silicon Alley , emerged in
6903-534: The business elite lobbied for the establishment of Central Park , which in 1857 became the first landscaped park in an American city. The Great Irish Famine brought a large influx of Irish immigrants, of whom more than 200,000 were living in New York by 1860, representing over a quarter of the city's population. Extensive immigration from the German provinces meant that Germans comprised another 25% of New York's population by 1860. Democratic Party candidates were consistently elected to local office, increasing
7020-510: The city from New Jersey. The East River—a tidal strait —flows from Long Island Sound and separates the Bronx and Manhattan from Long Island. The Harlem River , another tidal strait between the East and Hudson rivers, separates most of Manhattan from the Bronx. The Bronx River , which flows through the Bronx and Westchester County , is the only entirely freshwater river in the city. The city's land has been altered substantially by human intervention, with considerable land reclamation along
7137-439: The city rapidly replaced Wuhan , China as the global epicenter of the pandemic during the early phase, straining the city's healthcare infrastructure. Through March 2023, New York City recorded more than 80,000 deaths from COVID-19-related complications. New York City is situated in the northeastern United States , in southeastern New York State, approximately halfway between Washington, D.C. and Boston . Its location at
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#17328439371677254-447: The city's economy. The advent of Y2K was celebrated with fanfare in Times Square . New York City suffered the bulk of the economic damage and largest loss of human life in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks . Two of the four airliners hijacked that day were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, resulting in the collapse of both buildings and the deaths of 2,753 people, including 343 first responders from
7371-615: The city's ties to the South and its dominant party. In 1861, Mayor Fernando Wood called on the aldermen to declare independence from Albany and the United States after the South seceded, but his proposal was not acted on. Anger at new military conscription laws during the American Civil War (1861–1865), which spared wealthier men who could afford to hire a substitute, led to the Draft Riots of 1863 , whose most visible participants were ethnic Irish working class. The draft riots deteriorated into attacks on New York's elite, followed by attacks on Black New Yorkers after fierce competition for
7488-511: The concourse was designed resembling Pullman traincars . These areas are frequented by the homeless, and as a result, in the mid-2010s the MTA created two areas with private seating for dining customers. The terminal's late-1990s renovation added stands and restaurants to the concourse, and installed escalators to link it to the main concourse level. The MTA also spent $ 2.2 million to install two circular terrazzo designs by David Rockwell and Beyer Blinder Belle , each 45 feet in diameter, over
7605-404: The concourse's original terrazzo floor. Since 2015, part of the Dining Concourse has been closed for the construction of stairways and escalators to the new LIRR terminal being built as part of East Side Access . A small square-framed clock is installed in the ceiling near Tracks 108 and 109. It was manufactured at an unknown time by the Self Winding Clock Company , which made several others in
7722-417: The development of large housing tracts in eastern Queens and Nassau County , with Wall Street leading America's place as the world's dominant economic power. The United Nations headquarters was completed in 1952, solidifying New York's global geopolitical influence, and the rise of abstract expressionism in the city precipitated New York's displacement of Paris as the center of the art world. In 1969,
7839-423: The diagonally opposite corner. Grand Central North is a network of four tunnels that allow people to walk between the station building (which sits between 42nd and 44th Street) and exits at 45th, 46th, 47th, and 48th Street. The 1,000-foot (300 m) Northwest Passage and 1,200-foot (370 m) Northeast Passage run parallel to the tracks on the upper level, while two shorter cross-passages run perpendicular to
7956-418: The early 18th century, New York grew in importance as a trading port while as a part of the colony of New York . It became a center of slavery , with 42% of households enslaving Africans by 1730. Most were domestic slaves ; others were hired out as labor. Slavery became integrally tied to New York's economy through the labor of slaves throughout the port, and the banking and shipping industries trading with
8073-419: The entrance. The theater's interior had simple pine walls spaced out to eliminate echos, along with an inglenook , a fireplace, and an illuminated clock for the convenience of travelers. The walls of the lobby, dubbed the "appointment lounge", were covered with world maps; the ceiling had an astronomical mural painted by Sarg. The New York Times reported a cost of $ 125,000 for the theater's construction, which
8190-406: The floor is terrazzo . The ceiling is composed of seven groin vaults , each of which has an ornamental bronze chandelier. The first two vaults, as viewed from leaving Grand Central, are painted with cumulus clouds , while the third contains a 1927 mural by Edward Trumbull depicting American transportation. The middle passageway houses Grand Central Market, a cluster of food shops. The site
8307-404: The following routes: These MTA Regional Bus Operations buses stop near Grand Central: The terminal and its predecessors were designed for intercity service, which operated from the first station building's completion in 1871 until Amtrak ceased operations in the terminal in 1991. Through transfers, passengers could connect to all major lines in the United States, including the Canadian ,
8424-558: The former territory of New Netherland , including the city of New Amsterdam , when the Kingdom of England seized it from Dutch control. In the pre-Columbian era , the area of present-day New York City was inhabited by Algonquians , including the Lenape . Their homeland, known as Lenapehoking , included the present-day areas of Staten Island , Manhattan , the Bronx , the western portion of Long Island (including Brooklyn and Queens ), and
8541-524: The hall held the Great Northern Food Hall, an upscale Nordic-themed food court with five pavilions. The food hall was the first long-term tenant of the space; the terminal's landmark status prevents permanent installations. Since 1999, Vanderbilt Hall has hosted the annual Tournament of Champions squash championship. Each January, tournament officials construct a free-standing glass-enclosed 21-by-32-foot (6.4 by 9.8 m) squash court. Like
8658-466: The ice (and its subsequent retreat) contributed to the separation of what is now Long Island and Staten Island. That action left bedrock at a relatively shallow depth, providing a solid foundation for most of Manhattan's skyscrapers. The Hudson River flows through the Hudson Valley into New York Bay . Between New York City and Troy, New York , the river is an estuary . The Hudson River separates
8775-656: The island to England under the Treaty of Westminster of November 1674. Several intertribal wars among the Native Americans and epidemics brought on by contact with the Europeans caused sizeable population losses for the Lenape between 1660 and 1670. By 1700, the Lenape population had diminished to 200. New York experienced several yellow fever epidemics in the 18th century, losing ten percent of its population in 1702 alone. In
8892-662: The last Director-General of New Netherland. During his tenure, the population of New Netherland grew from 2,000 to 8,000. Stuyvesant has been credited with improving law and order; however, he earned a reputation as a despotic leader. He instituted regulations on liquor sales, attempted to assert control over the Dutch Reformed Church , and blocked other religious groups from establishing houses of worship. In 1664, unable to summon any significant resistance, Stuyvesant surrendered New Amsterdam to English troops, led by Colonel Richard Nicolls , without bloodshed. The terms of
9009-545: The local population as a representative of the Dutch colonists. A permanent European presence near New York Harbor was established in 1624, making New York the 12th-oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement in the continental United States , with the founding of a Dutch fur trading settlement on Governors Island . In 1625, construction was started on a citadel and Fort Amsterdam , later called Nieuw Amsterdam (New Amsterdam), on present-day Manhattan Island. The colony of New Amsterdam extended from
9126-419: The most populous urbanized area in the world in the early 1920s, overtaking London . The metropolitan area surpassed 10 million in the early 1930s, becoming the first megacity . The Great Depression saw the election of reformer Fiorello La Guardia as mayor and the fall of Tammany Hall after eighty years of political dominance. Returning World War II veterans created a post-war economic boom and
9243-544: The mouth of the Hudson River , which feeds into a naturally sheltered harbor and then into the Atlantic Ocean , has helped the city grow in significance as a trading port. Most of the city is built on the three islands of Long Island, Manhattan, and Staten Island. During the Wisconsin glaciation , 75,000 to 11,000 years ago, the New York City area was situated at the edge of a large ice sheet . The erosive forward movement of
9360-538: The name of its immediate predecessor that operated from 1900 to 1910. The name "Grand Central Station" is also shared with the nearby U.S. Post Office station at 450 Lexington Avenue and, colloquially, with the Grand Central–42nd Street subway station next to the terminal. The station has been named "Grand Central Terminal" since before its completion in 1913; the full title is inscribed on its 42nd Street facade. According to 21st-century sources, it
9477-643: The north–south 45th Street Passage, which leads to 45th Street and Madison Avenue, and the network of tunnels in Grand Central North, which lead to exits at every street from 45th to 48th Street. Each of the east–west passageways runs through a different building. The northernmost is the Graybar Passage, built on the first floor of the Graybar Building in 1926. Its walls and seven large transverse arches are made of coursed ashlar travertine , and
9594-445: The only " transgender folks around" during the June 1969 Stonewall riots. The transgender community in New York City played a significant role in fighting for LGBT equality. In the 1970s, job losses due to industrial restructuring caused New York City to suffer from economic problems and rising crime rates. Growing fiscal deficits in 1975 led the city to appeal to the federal government for financial aid; President Gerald Ford gave
9711-500: The platforms via 37 stairs, six elevators, and five escalators. The tunnels' street-level entrances, each enclosed by a freestanding glass structure, sit at the northeast corner of East 47th Street and Madison Avenue (Northwest Passage), the northeast corner of East 48th Street and Park Avenue (Northeast Passage), in the two pedestrian walkways underneath the Helmsley Building between 45th and 46th streets, and (since 2012) on
9828-697: The press in North America . In 1754, Columbia University was founded. The Stamp Act Congress met in New York in October 1765, as the Sons of Liberty organization emerged in the city and skirmished over the next ten years with British troops stationed there. The Battle of Long Island , the largest battle of the American Revolutionary War , was fought in August 1776 within modern-day Brooklyn. A British rout of
9945-523: The region for the Dutch East India Company. In 1614, the area between Cape Cod and Delaware Bay was claimed by the Netherlands and called Nieuw-Nederland (' New Netherland '). The first non–Native American inhabitant of what became New York City was Juan Rodriguez , a merchant from Santo Domingo who arrived in Manhattan during the winter of 1613–14, trapping for pelts and trading with
10062-480: The retail areas of the Graybar Passage, currently occupied by wine-and-liquor store Central Cellars, was formerly the Grand Central Theatre or Terminal Newsreel Theatre. Opened in 1937 with 25-cent admission, the theater showed short films, cartoons, and newsreels from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Designed by Tony Sarg , it had 242 stadium-style seats and a standing-room section with armchairs. A small bar sat near
10179-489: The room into a 13th-century Florentine palace with a hand-painted plaster of paris ceiling, leaded windows, and a mahogany balcony with a quatrefoil design. The Persian carpet that took up the entire floor was said to have cost $ 300,000, or roughly $ 3.5 million today. Campbell added a piano and pipe organ, and at night turned his office into a reception hall, entertaining 50 or 60 friends who came to hear famous musicians play private recitals. After Campbell's death in 1957,
10296-516: The room was damaged during the construction that converted the Biltmore Hotel into the Bank of America Plaza. In 1985, Giorgio Cavaglieri was hired to restore the room, which at the time had cracked marble and makeshift lighting. During that era, a series of lockers was still located within the Biltmore Room. Later, the room held a newsstand, flower stand, and shoe shine booths. In 2015, the MTA awarded
10413-440: The rug and other furnishings disappeared from his office and the space eventually became a signalman's office and later an MTA Police office, where officers stored guns and other equipment. It also had a small jail, in the area of the present-day bar. After falling into disrepair, the space was restored and renovated in 1999. The walls and ceiling were brought back to their former glory and the original steel safe, once hidden behind
10530-456: The south side of 47th Street between Park and Lexington avenues. Pedestrians can also take an elevator to the 47th Street passage from the north side of East 47th Street, between Madison and Vanderbilt avenues; this entrance adjoined the former 270 Park Avenue . Proposals for these tunnels had been discussed since at least the 1970s. The MTA approved preliminary plans in 1983, gave final approval in 1991, and began construction in 1994. Dubbed
10647-596: The southern tip of Manhattan to modern-day Wall Street , where a 12-foot (3.7 m) wooden stockade was built in 1653 to protect against Native American and English raids. In 1626, the Dutch colonial Director-General Peter Minuit , as charged by the Dutch West India Company , purchased the island of Manhattan from the Canarsie , a small Lenape band, for "the value of 60 guilders " (about $ 900 in 2018). A frequently told but disproved legend claims that Manhattan
10764-470: The space to its original opulence at a total cost of nearly $ 2 million. Temporarily closed in 2016, the bar was reopened the following year under new management. Located in the southwestern corner of the Grand Central Terminal building—above the northeastern corner of 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue —the space was once reached by a staircase from the terminal's balcony level. Entry now is from
10881-595: The street. The space was first leased in 1923 by John W. Campbell from William Kissam Vanderbilt II , whose family built the terminal. The 3,500-square-foot (330 m) space was a single room 60 feet (18 m) long by 30 feet (9.1 m) wide with a 25-foot (7.6 m) ceiling and an enormous faux fireplace in which Campbell kept a steel safe. At that time, it was the largest ground-floor space in Manhattan. Campbell commissioned Augustus N. Allen , an architect known for designing estates on Long Island and town houses in Manhattan, to build an opulent office, transforming
10998-497: The surrender permitted Dutch residents to remain in the colony and allowed for religious freedom. In 1667, during negotiations leading to the Treaty of Breda after the Second Anglo-Dutch War , the victorious Dutch decided to keep the nascent plantation colony of what is now Suriname , which they had gained from the English, and in return the English kept New Amsterdam. The settlement was promptly renamed "New York" after
11115-427: The terminal. The clock hung inside the gate at Track 19 until 2011, when it was moved so it would not be blocked by lights added during upper-level platform improvements. Metro-North's lost-and-found bureau sits near Track 100 at the far east end of the Dining Concourse. Incoming items are sorted according to function and date: for instance, there are separate bins for hats, gloves, belts, and ties. The sorting system
11232-659: The three, the Lexington Passage, was originally known as the Commodore Passage after the Commodore Hotel , which it ran through. When the hotel was renamed the Grand Hyatt, the passage was likewise renamed. The passage acquired its current name during the terminal's renovation in the 1990s. The Shuttle Passage, on the west side of the terminal, connects the Main Concourse to Grand Central's subway station. The terminal
11349-408: The tracks. The 47th Street cross-passage runs between the upper and lower tracks, 30 feet (9.1 m) below street level; it provides access to upper-level tracks. The 45th Street cross-passage runs under the lower tracks, 50 feet (15 m) below street level. Converted from a corridor built to transport luggage and mail, it provides access to lower-level tracks. The cross-passages are connected to
11466-448: The upper level and 26 on the lower. In total, there are 67 tracks, including a rail yard and sidings ; of these, 43 tracks are in use for passenger service, while the remaining two dozen are used to store trains. Grand Central Terminal was named by and for the New York Central Railroad , which built the station and its two predecessors on the site. It has "always been more colloquially and affectionately known as Grand Central Station",
11583-578: The world by pinnacle height, with its spire reaching a symbolic 1,776 feet (541.3 m), a reference to the year of U.S. independence . The Occupy Wall Street protests in Zuccotti Park in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan began on September 17, 2011, receiving global attention and popularizing the Occupy movement against social and economic inequality worldwide. New York City
11700-524: The world's largest natural harbors . The city comprises five boroughs , each coextensive with a respective county . The city is the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area , the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. by both population and urban area . New York is a global center of finance and commerce , culture , technology , entertainment and media , academics and scientific output ,
11817-483: The world's two largest stock exchanges by market capitalization of their listed companies: the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq . New York City is an established safe haven for global investors. As of 2023 , New York City is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates and has by a wide margin the highest U.S. city residential rents; and Fifth Avenue is the most expensive shopping street in
11934-521: The world. New York City traces its origins to Fort Amsterdam and a trading post founded on Manhattan Island by Dutch colonists around 1624. The settlement was named New Amsterdam in 1626 and was chartered as a city in 1653. The city came under English control in 1664 and was temporarily renamed New York after King Charles II granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York , before being permanently renamed New York in November 1674. New York City
12051-402: The world. New York City is home by a significant margin to the highest number of billionaires , individuals of ultra-high net worth (greater than US$ 30 million), and millionaires of any city in the world. In 1664, New York was named in honor of the Duke of York (later King James II of England ). James's elder brother, King Charles II , appointed the Duke as proprietor of
12168-552: Was heavily affected by Hurricane Sandy in late October 2012. Sandy's impacts included flooding that led to the days-long shutdown of the subway system and flooding of all East River subway tunnels and of all road tunnels entering Manhattan except the Lincoln Tunnel . The New York Stock Exchange closed for two days due to weather for the first time since the Great Blizzard of 1888 . At least 43 people died in New York City as
12285-525: Was a haven for Loyalist refugees and escaped slaves who joined the British lines for freedom promised by the Crown , with as many as 10,000 escaped slaves crowded into the city during the British occupation, the largest such community on the continent. When the British forces evacuated New York at the close of the war in 1783, they transported thousands of freedmen for resettlement in Nova Scotia , England, and
12402-525: Was a prime destination in the early 20th century for Blacks during the Great Migration from the American South, and by 1916, New York City had the largest urban African diaspora in North America. The Harlem Renaissance of literary and cultural life flourished during the era of Prohibition . The larger economic boom generated construction of skyscrapers competing in height. New York City became
12519-484: Was among the most famous trains of its time. From 1971 to 1991, all Amtrak trains using the intrastate Empire Corridor to Niagara Falls terminated at Grand Central; interstate Northeast Corridor trains used Penn Station. Notable Amtrak services at Grand Central included the Lake Shore , Empire Service , Adirondack , Niagara Rainbow , Maple Leaf , and Empire State Express . Grand Central Terminal
12636-466: Was attributed to construction of an elevator between the theater and the suburban concourse as well as air conditioning and apparatuses for people hard of hearing. The theater stopped showing newsreels by 1968 but continued operating until around 1979, when it was gutted for retail space. A renovation in the early 2000s removed a false ceiling, revealing the theater's projection window and its astronomical mural, which proved similar in colors and style to
12753-464: Was boarded up in preparation for its restoration in 1991. During the process, a temporary waiting room was established on an upper level of the terminal. Around 1998, the renovated hall was renamed in honor of the Vanderbilt family , which built and owned the station. It is used for the annual Christmas Market, as well as for special exhibitions and private events. From 2016 to 2020, the west half of
12870-415: Was computerized in the 1990s. Lost items are kept for up to 90 days before being donated or auctioned off. As early as 1920, the bureau received between 15,000 and 18,000 items a year. By 2002, the bureau was collecting "3,000 coats and jackets; 2,500 cellphones; 2,000 sets of keys; 1,500 wallets, purses and ID's [ sic ]; and 1,100 umbrellas" a year. By 2007, it was collecting 20,000 items
12987-477: Was designed and built with two main levels for passengers: an upper for intercity trains and a lower for commuter trains. This configuration, devised by New York Central vice president William J. Wilgus , separated intercity and commuter-rail passengers, smoothing the flow of people in and through the station. The original plan for Grand Central's interior was designed by Reed and Stem , with some work by Whitney Warren of Warren and Wetmore . The Main Concourse
13104-555: Was once the office of 1920s tycoon John W. Campbell , who decorated it to resemble the galleried hall of a 13th-century Florentine palace. In 1999, it opened as a bar, the Campbell Apartment; a new owner renovated and renamed it the Campbell in 2017. New York City New York , often called New York City or NYC , is the most populous city in the United States , located at the southern tip of New York State on one of
13221-445: Was originally a segment of 43rd Street which became the terminal's first service dock in 1913. In 1975, a Greenwich Savings Bank branch was built in the space, which was converted into the marketplace in 1998, and involved installing a new limestone façade on the building. The building's second story, whose balcony overlooks the market and 43rd Street, was to house a restaurant, but is instead used for storage. The southernmost of
13338-686: Was originally configured with two parallel passages, later simplified into one wide passageway. Ramps include the Vanderbilt Avenue ramp and the Oyster Bar ramps. The Vanderbilt Avenue or Kitty Kelly ramp leads from the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street down into the Shuttle Passage. Most of the space above the ramp was built upon in the 20th century, becoming the Kitty Kelly women's shoe store, and later operating as Federal Express. The ramp
13455-415: Was purchased for $ 24 worth of glass beads. Following the purchase, New Amsterdam grew slowly. To attract settlers, the Dutch instituted the patroon system in 1628, whereby wealthy Dutchmen ( patroons , or patrons) who brought 50 colonists to New Netherland would be awarded land, local political autonomy, and rights to participate in the lucrative fur trade. This program had little success. Since 1621,
13572-546: Was returned to its original two-story volume during the terminal's 1998 restoration. The Oyster Bar ramps lead down from the Main Concourse to the Oyster Bar and Dining Concourse. They span a total of 302 ft (92 m) from east to west under an 84 ft (26 m) ceiling. A pedestrian bridge passes over the ramps, connecting Vanderbilt Hall and the Main Concourse. In 1927, the ramps were partially covered over by expanded main-floor ticket offices; these were removed in
13689-417: Was the U.S. capital from 1785 until 1790. The modern city was formed by the 1898 consolidation of its five boroughs : Manhattan , Brooklyn , Queens , the Bronx , and Staten Island . Anchored by Wall Street in the Financial District, Manhattan , New York City has been called both the world's premier financial and fintech center and the most economically powerful city in the world. As of 2022 ,
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