Washington Heights

Washington Heights is a New York City neighborhood in Upper Manhattan. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification held by American troops during the American Revolution later captured by the British on November 16, 1776; the progress of the battle is marked by a series of bronze plaques along Broadway.

Related Topics:
New York City - Upper Manhattan - Fort Washington - American Revolution - British - November 16 - 1776 - Broadway

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Washington Heights is on the high ridge that rises steeply north of the narrow valley that carries 125th Street to the former ferry landing on the Hudson River. Though the neighborhood was once considered to run as far south as 125th Street, modern usage defines the neighborhood as running north from 155th Street to Inwood. At the northern end of Washington Heights, near Fort Washingon Avenue and 183rd Street in Bennett Park is a plaque marking Manhattan's highest natural elevation. Manhattan is connected to Fort Lee, New Jersey via the George Washington Bridge. To the east across the Harlem River lies the Bronx.

Related Topics:
Hudson River - Inwood - Fort Lee, New Jersey - George Washington Bridge - Harlem River

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Among the Heights' now-vanished riverfront estates was "Minnie's Land," the home of artist John James Audubon, who is buried in Trinity Church Cemetery churchyard of the neighborhood's Church of the Intercession (1915), a masterpiece by architect Bertram Goodhue. At Audubon Terrace is a cluster of five underused Beaux Arts museum buildings of distinguished architecture. Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, perhaps the most widely known institution in the neighborhood, occupies the former site of Hilltop Park, the home of the New York Highlanders (now known as the New York Yankees) from 1903 to 1912.

Related Topics:
John James Audubon - Trinity Church Cemetery - Church of the Intercession - Bertram Goodhue - Audubon Terrace - Beaux Arts - Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center - Hilltop Park - New York Yankees - 1903 - 1912

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The best known cultural site and tourist attraction in Washington Heights is The Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park at the northern end of the neighborhood, with spectacular views across the Hudson to the Palisades. This branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art is devoted to Medieval art and culture, and is located in a medieval-style building, portions of which were purchased in Europe, brought to the United States, and reassembled. Another major museum, though little visited, is The Hispanic Society of America, which has the largest collection of El Grecos and Goyas outside of the Museo del Prado, including one of Goya's famous paintings of Cayetana, Duchess of Alba.

Related Topics:
The Cloisters - Fort Tryon Park - Palisades - Metropolitan Museum of Art - Medieval art - Museo del Prado

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Manhanttan's oldest remaining house, the Morris-Jumel Mansion, is located in the landmarked Jumel Terrace Historic District, located between West 160th and West 162nd Street, just east of St. Nicholas Avenue. An AAM-accredited historic house museum, the Mansion interprets the colonial era, the period when General George Washington occupied it during the American Revolution, and the early 19th century in New York.

Related Topics:
Morris-Jumel Mansion - George Washington - American Revolution

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The neighborhood has a large Dominican population (the area is sometimes called "Quisqueya Heights"), and Spanish is commonly heard being spoken on the streets. Since the 1980s, the neighborhood has been the United States' most important base for Dominican empowerment in the political, non-profit, cultural, and athletic arenas.

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There is also a significant Jewish population, particularly in the more upscale Hudson Heights subsection, descended from a previous wave of immigration, as well as students (and recent graduates) of the neighborhood's Yeshiva University. The term Hudson Heights was created by one of the local real estate firms to attract more wealthy residents in the area. It worked, and the gentrification has been continuing in recent years. It brought a Starbucks to 181st Street, and other upscale stores, spas, gourmet markets, and restaurants.

Related Topics:
Hudson Heights - Yeshiva University - Hudson Heights

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The German-Jewish population is based around Khal Adath Yeshurun, a direct continuation of the pre-war Jewish community of Frankfurt am Main, colloquially called "Breuer's" after Rabbi Dr. Joseph Breuer, founder and first rabbi of the congregation. Washington Heights is also served by a number of smaller orthodox synagogues, as well as the Hebrew Tabernacle, a reform congregation.

Related Topics:
Khal Adath Yeshurun - Frankfurt am Main - Rabbi - Joseph Breuer

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The neighborhood was severely impacted by the crack cocaine epidemic of the early/mid-1980s. Homelessness was rampant. Today, its crime rate, along with that of neighboring Harlem, is quite low. Unfortunately, homelessness is becoming a big problem again.

Related Topics:
Crack cocaine - 1980s - Homelessness - Crime - Harlem

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