While you enjoy your comfortable stay at East Village Apartments, be sure to enjoy some down time at Tompkins Square Park, one of New York City’s most popular destinations. The park is named for Daniel D. Tompkins (1774-1825), Vice President of the United States.
The square-shaped park is located in the East Village neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan and spreads over 10.5 acres (42,000 square miles). Like most of the iconic places in New York, Tompkins Park also has a rich history behind it and is associated with various events, although some of them are not very positive.
On January 13, 1874, Tompkins Square witnessed a major riot as police clashed with thousands of labor protesters. This incident was a major event in a labor dispute zone. In a similar incident in 1877, around 5,000 people clashed with the National Guard as they crowded to listen to communist revolutionary speeches in this very park.
In the 1980s, Tompkins Park became the center of New Yorkers’ social problems. The park was frequented by many homeless people and even became a hub for drug use and other illegal activities. This sparked a riot in August 1988, when the city police tried to rid the park of such elements.
However, during the 1990s and 2000s, Tompkins Park underwent a major facelift and witnessed a gradual gentrification of its surroundings. With its many built-in playgrounds, basketball courts, handball courts and outdoor chess tables, the park today attracts decent young people and families from all over the world.
Among major landmarks in the East Village neighborhood, Tompkins Square Park is today home to several events such as the Howl Festival, Charlie Parker Jazz Festival, and the Tompkins Square Dog Run.
