{"product_id":"it-happened-on-washington-square-center-books-on-space-place-and-time-9780801870880","title":"It Happened on Washington Square (Center Books on Space  Place  and Time)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe heart of New York Citys Greenwich Village  Washington Square Park has been a vital public space for nearly two centuries. Lined by elegant townhouses  anchored by Stanford Whites iconic Washington Arch  and used by students and professionals  dog walkers and musicians  chess players and toddlers  the park is both an oasis from and an ideal of urban life. Synonymous with the citys artistic identity  the park has also witnessed waves of political and social unrest  and served as a focal point for contentious debates about the future of urban development. This rich and colorful history is captivatingly told by Emily Kies Folpe in It Happened on Washington Square. Farmed by New Amsterdams freed African slaves in the seventeenth century  the park was used as a potters field and dueling ground in the aftermath of the Revolutionary War and then converted into a parade ground for the citys volunteer militia in 1826. Since the 1830s  when it formed the nucleus of an upscale community  Washington Square has been an incubator for American art and a haven for writers  painters  sculptors  and architects. At the beginning of the twentieth century  the area began to attract the artists and political radicalsfrom John Reed to the Beatswho gave the Square a counter-cultural aura it still possesses. In recent decades  the Squares residents have united against such threats to their neighborhood as the urban redevelopment proposed by Robert Moses and the expansion of New York University. Illustrated with a remarkable selection of historic images  It Happened on Washington Square explains why the survival of this unique public space is so important.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45789621256245,"sku":"ByrdShop_0801870887","price":20.44,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780801870880.jpg?v=1784693923","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/it-happened-on-washington-square-center-books-on-space-place-and-time-9780801870880","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}