Wall Street (Manhattan)

Wall Street (Manhattan)
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Name	Wall Street
Location	Financial District, Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates	40.7069°N 74.0113°W
Postal code	10005
Notable buildings	New York Stock Exchange; Federal Hall; 14 Wall Street; 23 Wall Street; Trinity Church

Contents

Wall Street (Manhattan) is a street in Lower Manhattan that has become synonymous with the global financial district, New York City finance sector and historic capital markets institutions. The street hosts landmark sites such as the New York Stock Exchange, Federal Hall National Memorial and Trinity Church, and it connects to broader networks including Broadway (Manhattan), Pine Street (Manhattan), and South Street Seaport. Wall Street's identity intertwines with events and figures like the Buttonwood Agreement, Alexander Hamilton, J.P. Morgan, John Pierpont Morgan and episodes such as the Wall Street bombing of 1920, the Great Depression, and the 2008 financial crisis.

History

Wall Street's origins trace to Dutch colonial New Amsterdam and the 17th-century Fort Amsterdam near the South Street Seaport and Battery Park area, with early roles in trade, customs and municipal affairs tied to figures like Peter Stuyvesant and institutions such as the Dutch West India Company. In 1792 the Buttonwood Agreement among brokers under a buttonwood tree on nearby Broad Street (Manhattan) led to organized securities trading that evolved into the New York Stock Exchange and later interactions with banks like Bank of New York Mellon, Chase Manhattan Bank and Citibank. The 19th and early 20th centuries saw consolidation under financiers including John D. Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt, J.P. Morgan and legal frameworks shaped by legislation such as the Securities Act of 1933 and Securities Exchange Act of 1934, spawning regulatory bodies like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Wall Street was central to crises and reforms—the Panic of 1907 prompted creation of the Federal Reserve System, the Great Depression provoked New Deal measures involving Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Glass–Steagall Act, while late 20th- and early 21st-century episodes like the Black Monday (1987) crash, the Dot-com bubble and the 2008 financial crisis reshaped firms such as Lehman Brothers, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns.

Wall Street runs east–west in Manhattan's Financial District (Manhattan), from Broad Street (Manhattan) to South Street (Manhattan), intersecting arteries such as Broadway (Manhattan), Nassau Street, William Street (Manhattan), Water Street (Manhattan) and proximity to Bowling Green (New York City). The street sits on landfill-expanded lower Manhattan near New York Harbor, East River, and the Hudson River approaches, with neighboring districts including Battery Park City, Tribeca, Seaport District and the Civic Center, Manhattan. Zoning and land parcels reflect influences from New York City Department of City Planning decisions and historic street grids established after colonial-era plots and the 1811 Commissioners' Plan for Manhattan context in southern Manhattan.

Wall Street hosts principal capital market venues such as the New York Stock Exchange and supporting institutions like the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, major investment banks including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan Chase, Citigroup and trading firms like Knight Capital and Virtu Financial. Asset managers and insurers—examples include BlackRock, Vanguard (company), American International Group—maintain headquarters or offices nearby, while exchanges and clearinghouses such as NASDAQ, Intercontinental Exchange, Options Clearing Corporation and the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation link to global markets like London Stock Exchange Group, Hong Kong Stock Exchange and Euronext. Regulatory and professional services around securities involve the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, major law firms like Cravath, Swaine & Moore and accounting firms such as KPMG, Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Ernst & Young.

Architectural landmarks include the Greek Revival Federal Hall National Memorial, the neoclassical New York Stock Exchange building with façades by George B. Post, the Gothic Revival Trinity Church associated with Alexander Hamilton's burial nearby, and early skyscrapers like 14 Wall Street and the classic bank building at 23 Wall Street. Nearby skyscrapers and adaptive reuses involve projects such as One Wall Street, 40 Wall Street, and redevelopment at the South Street Seaport with ties to architects and firms like Cass Gilbert and McKim, Mead & White. Public art and memorials include the Charging Bull, the Fearless Girl statue, and commemorations for events like the Wall Street bombing of 1920 and plaques honoring Revolutionary-era institutions associated with figures such as George Washington.

Wall Street figures prominently in American literature, film and journalism—works include The Great Gatsby references to finance culture, films such as Wall Street (1987 film), The Wolf of Wall Street (film), Margin Call (film), and reporting from outlets like The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Bloomberg L.P. and Reuters. It is central to debates and movements including Occupy Wall Street, activism led by groups such as Adbusters and coverage by commentators like Michael Lewis, and is invoked in policy discourse involving politicians such as Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Cultural portrayals extend to television series including Billions (TV series), and nonfiction works like Liar's Poker shape perceptions tied to banks such as Salomon Brothers and traders like Steve Eisman.

Wall Street's security profile responds to events including the Wall Street bombing of 1920, the September 11 attacks which affected nearby World Trade Center (1973–2001), protests like Occupy Wall Street, and the 2008 financial crisis aftermath that prompted reforms such as the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Law enforcement and regulatory coordination involves the New York City Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service, and the Securities and Exchange Commission, while market safeguards include circuit breakers overseen by exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange and automated trading safeguards influenced by events like Flash crash of 2010.

Category:Financial District, Manhattan