Old City Hall on Wall Street

The old New York City Hall on Wall Street. Illustration published in the Harper's Monthly Magazine, May, 1908, in the Wall Street in Colonial Times by Frederick Trevor Hill. The old City Hall was constructed between 1699 and 1703 on the site of the present Federal Hall National Memorial (26 Wall Street, at the junction of Wall, Broad and Nassau streets). It was designed by James Evetts to replace Stadt Huys, the city's first administrative center. The building was remodeled in 1789-1790 for the new Federal Hall, when the City of New York was the capital of the United States of America.

The illustration depicts the departure of Andrew Hamilton from the City Hall, August 4, 1735. Hamilton was from Philadelphia and was considered one of the most distinguished advocate of his day. He volunteered his services in behalf of John Peter Zenger, accused to have set up, printed, and published divers and sundry nefarious matters defamatory of the government and his Excellency Governor Cosby, in the New York Weekly Journal.

Some text from the magazine about this engraving: «Such was the situation on the 4th of August, 1735, when the greatest crowd which Wall Street had ever harbored gathered at the City Hall clamoring for admission, and before it dispersed a long step had been taken toward American independence.»

«Hamilton opened the proceedings by admitting his client’s authorship of the papers in question, and announcing that he would rest his defence on the truth of the statements they contained. Thereupon an extraordinary legal battle ensued, the Attorney-General and the Chief Justice joining in an attack upon the eminent Pennsylvanian and endeavoring to ride roughshod over his contentions. But Hamilton, though enfeebled by old age and ill health, more than held his own, and when he at last acquired the right to address the jury he rose to the occasion with the most powerful plea for freedom of the press that the New World had ever heard. So masterful indeed was his argument that the Chief Justice felt constrained to counteract its influence by virtually directing the jury to convict. Nevertheless, the twelve good men and true promptly returned a verdict of acquittal; and the moment the foreman announced this result the audience leaped to its feet and burst into a storm of cheering which De Lancey was powerless to suppress...»

More: Wall Street in 18th century ►