Head to lower Manhattan to visit City Hall Park, where New York City’s Revolutionary history begins. In 1765, New Yorkers protested the Stamp Act in the area, which required colonists to pay taxes on all printed materials, from newspapers to playing cards. Eleven years later on, July 9, 1776, the new Declaration of Independence was read aloud on the site of City Hall Park. Can you find the bronze memorial plaque dedicated to the momentous reading? Hint: Enter the Park from Murray St. to find it.

Continue into the Park to find the statue of Nathan Hale, a patriot spy who was executed by the British in 1776. While there is some dispute about where Hale met his end, it was long believed that he was killed nearby. Can you read the inscription at the statue’s base? What does it tell you about Hale’s character?

Imagine it’s 1776 after the Declaration was read aloud. Inspired, a crowd worked together to pull down a heavy lead statue of King George III on a horse that stood in lower Manhattan’s Bowling Green, the oldest park in the city. Not wanting to waste a shred of metal, the patriots sent the destroyed statue to Litchfield, CT, where much of it was melted down and made into musket balls. Today, visitors can still see the park’s original iron fence and a plaque commemorating the history that happened there.

Today, Governors Island, off Manhattan in the East River, is a popular spot for biking and picnicking that visitors can get to via ferry from downtown or Brooklyn. But its past life was much more strategic! During the Revolutionary War, many defensive forts occupied the island in order to keep the British navy from infiltrating the East River.

Why do you think the Continental Army thought Governors Island was such a good location for protecting the New York Harbor and East River? Find a spot where you and your family can see far and wide. What do you see when you look out from the shore’s edge? What do you imagine it looked like in the 18th century? Sketch what you might have seen.

The Continental Army lost control of the island after the Battle of Brooklyn in 1776 and did not regain it until the British evacuated New York in 1783. After the War, the new nation expanded its fortifications on Governors Island. Ebenezer Stevens, a Lieutenant Colonel of the Continental Army and a Boston Tea Party participant, oversaw the construction and expansion of defense fortresses on the island.

Fort Tryon Park in upper Manhattan is a gorgeous park with sweeping views of the Hudson River. During the Revolutionary War, the area was known as Mount Washington and was part of the site of the Battle of Fort Washington. But did you know Fort Tryon Park is named for the British general William Tryon, the last British Governor to rule in New York City?

Tryon Park is named for the British general William Tryon, the last British Governor to rule in New York City? Are you surprised by that? You’re not alone! In the late 20th century, many New Yorkers were outraged when they learned more about it. As America’s bicentennial approached, a group of New Yorkers banded together to honor a patriot instead. In 1977, the City Council voted to name the entrance plaza and drive after Margaret “Molly” Corbin, a colonial woman who followed her husband, a soldier in the Continental Army, into battle. She was with him when he was killed during the Battle of Fort Washington and immediately took his place behind the cannons. She suffered serious injuries herself, leaving her permanently disabled. The U.S. Congress later honored her heroism by providing provisions to her for life and making Corbin the first woman to receive a military pension.

While in upper Manhattan, visit the Morris-Jumel Mansion, the oldest house on the island. Loyalist Colonel Roger Morris built the house as his family's summer home in 1765. The family abandoned the house and fled New York at the start of the Revolutionary War, leaving the home available for wartime use. George Washington occupied the Mansion as his military headquarters for a month or so, but once the patriots lost control of New York, Washington had to abandon the site.

After the war, Washington held his first Cabinet dinner with his many advisers at the Mansion in 1790. The guest list included Vice President John Adams and Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton. While you are visiting the Mansion, ask a staff member about the 1790 meeting and meal. What did they eat? Who else was at the dinner?

Did you make it to all 5 sites? Well done! You’re an excellent History Detective! If you haven’t already, visit New-York Historical to see the related art and artifacts and discover more early American history.