Varick Street

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Varick Street

Federal building at 201 Varick Street, home of the Environmental Measurements Laboratory and Village Station post office
Location Manhattan, New York City
North end Seventh Avenue
South end West Broadway

Varick Street runs north-south in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. Varick Street's northern end originates in the West Village, where it is a continuation of Seventh Avenue South south of Clarkson Street. It continues downtown through Hudson Square and TriBeCa until it reaches Leonard Street, where it merges with West Broadway. Motor traffic is one-way southbound. Major east-west streets crossed include Houston Street and Canal Street. Approaching Broome Street, the two rightmost lanes of Varick Street are reserved for traffic entering the Holland Tunnel, where backups often occur at rush hour.

Varick Street is named for Richard Varick, an early New York lawmaker and the mayor of New York City from 1789 to 1801, who owned property in the area.[1]

Varick Street was widened during the extension of Seventh Avenue in 1917. A number of old buildings were torn down during the widening project, including St. John's Chapel, which facilitated construction of the IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line and opened up a new vehicular route between midtown and lower Manhattan.[2]

The downtown M20 bus route runs the entire length of Varick Street. Additionally, the crosstown M21 bus intersects Varick Street at Houston Street in the westbound direction and at Spring Street in the eastbound direction. The Houston Street, Canal Street, and Franklin Street subway stations on the IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line (1 2 trains) are located under Varick Street.

In 1853, Heinrich Englehard Steinweg (later known as Henry E. Steinway)[3] founded the first American Steinway & Sons factory in a loft at the back of 85 Varick Street.[4] At the intersection with North Moore Street stands the FDNY firestation of Hook & Ladder Company 8, known from the Ghostbusters films.

References

Notes

  1. ↑ "Downtown Street Names and the Stories They Tell". Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center. December 27, 2004. Retrieved August 22, 2007. An extension of Seventh Avenue leading south from Clarkson Street, Varick Street got its name from Richard Varick, who served as the mayor of the city from 1791 to 1801.
  2. ↑ "Seventh Avenue Extension Will Create Great Business Revival in Old Greenwich". The New York Times. September 24, 1911. p. X9. Retrieved May 29, 2010.
  3. ↑ Panchyk, Richard (2008). German New York City. Arcadia Publishing. p. 50. ISBN 978-0-7385-5680-2.
  4. ↑ Goldenberg, Susan (1996). Steinway: From glory to controversy; the family, the business, the piano. Oakville, Ontario: Mosaic Press. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-88962-607-2.
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