Description of the attraction
Times Square is called the crossroads of the world. This famous square is one of the busiest pedestrian spaces, with up to 39 million people (New Yorkers and tourists) passing through it every year. About 300 thousand lovers of city noise, skyscrapers and bright lights come here every day.
Because of these advertising lights, the area that houses Times Square has been called the Great White Way for over a century. And once there was a rural area, there was a manor where horses were bred. In the 19th century, the city expanded rapidly northward, and in 1872, the square formed between Broadway and Seventh Avenue was named Long Acre Square. The square got its current name in 1904, after the New York Times moved to a new skyscraper on 42nd Street. Three weeks later, the first electric advertisement appeared on the corner of 46th Street and Broadway.
Times Square quickly became the center of New York - many theaters, music halls, upscale hotels, and restaurants appeared on it and around. At the same time, the square turned into a breeding ground for vice: gambling and prostitution flourished here. Corrupt police officers invented the term tenderloin for this place (meaning that you can get enough bribes from local entrepreneurs to buy meat tenderloin).
With the onset of the Great Depression, the atmosphere of the square changed, and Times Square was long considered a dangerous and bad place - until the mid-1990s. Then, under the leadership of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, order was put in order: porn theaters were closed, establishments safe for tourists were opened.
Now Times Square is a must-see attraction when you come to New York. Tourists are attracted by a huge number of theaters, cinemas, restaurants with varied cuisine, but no less - the very view of the square, with its recognizable skyscrapers on the northern and southern ends ("house number one" and "house number two"), with neon advertising signs and huge screens. Times Square is the only place in town where building owners are required to display advertisements. Its density on the walls of skyscrapers is such that the area can seriously compete with Las Vegas. The famous "naked cowboy" often performs here, and on New Year's Eve at least a million revelers gather in the square to watch the huge LED "time ball" go down the flagpole, reaching its lowest point exactly at midnight.
In the northern part of Times Square, a small triangle stands out with its name - Duffy Square. There is a monument to the Catholic chaplain Francis Duffy, who became famous during the First World War for his fearless help to the wounded in the thick of battles. Nearby is a monument to George Cohan, who is considered the father of American musical comedy. Behind Kohan and Duffy are the steps of the sloping roof of the TKTS kiosk (selling cheap theater tickets). You can sit there with a hot dog and Coca-Cola, look at flashing advertisements, listen to the hubbub of the crowd in different languages and understand: this is the crossroads of the world.
