Chatham Square is a major intersection in Manhattan's

Manhattan

Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...

 Chinatown

Chinatown, Manhattan

Manhattan's Chinatown , home to one of the highest concentrations of Chinese people in the Western hemisphere, is located in the borough of Manhattan in New York City...

. The square lies at the confluence of seven streets: Bowery, East Broadway

East Broadway (Manhattan)

East Broadway is a two-way east-west street in the Chinatown and Lower East Side neighborhoods of the New York City borough of Manhattan. East Broadway begins at Chatham Square and runs eastward under the Manhattan Bridge, continues past Seward Park and the eastern end of Canal Street, and ends...

, St. James Place, Mott Street

Mott Street

Mott Street is a narrow but busy thoroughfare that runs in a north-south direction in the borough of Manhattan in New York City in the United States. It is best known as Chinatown's unofficial "Main Street". Mott Street runs from Chatham Square in the south to Bleecker Street in the north...

, Oliver Street, Worth Street

Worth Street (Manhattan)

Worth Street is a two-way street in the Manhattan borough of New York City. It runs from Hudson Street, TriBeCa, in the west to Chatham Square in the east. Past Chatham Square, the roadway continues as Oliver Street, which runs one-way north- and westbound. Between West Broadway and Church Street,...

 and Park Row

Park Row (Manhattan)

Park Row is a street located in the Financial District of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It was previously called Chatham Street and during the late 19th century it was nicknamed Newspaper Row, as most of New York City's newspapers located on the street to be close to the action at New...

. The postal ZIP Code

ZIP Code

ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...

 is 10038.

History

Chatham Square was named for William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham

William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham

William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham PC was a British Whig statesman who led Britain during the Seven Years' War...

 and Prime Minister

Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...

 of Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

 before the American Revolution

American Revolution

The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...

. Pitt Street in the Lower East Side

Lower East Side

The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....

 is also named for him, and Park Row

Park Row (Manhattan)

Park Row is a street located in the Financial District of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It was previously called Chatham Street and during the late 19th century it was nicknamed Newspaper Row, as most of New York City's newspapers located on the street to be close to the action at New...

 was once Chatham Street.

Up until about 1820, the square was used as a large open air market for goods and livestock, mainly horse

Horse

The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...

s. By the mid-19th century, it became a center for tattoo parlors, flophouse

Flophouse

A flophouse , doss-house or dosshouse is a place that offers very cheap lodging, generally by providing only minimal services.-Characteristics:...

s and saloons

Bar (establishment)

A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...

, as a seedy section of the old Five Points neighborhood. In the 20th century, after The Great Depression and Prohibition

Prohibition

Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...

, the area was reformed.

The Kimlau Memorial Arch was erected by the American Legion, Lt. B.R. Kimlau Post 1291 in 1962 to honor United States service members of Chinese ancestry who have fought and died serving their country. The arch is named after 26-year-old 2nd Lt. Benjamin Ralph Kimlau

Benjamin Ralph Kimlau

Benjamin Ralph Kimlau was a Chinese American aviator and United States Air Force bomber pilot.Kimlau was born on April 10, 1918 in Concord, MA and moved to New York City with his parents in 1932. He attended DeWitt Clinton High School. After his visit to China, he studied at Pennsylvania Military...

, an aircraft commander in the 380th Bombardment Group who was shot down on a mission over Los Negros Island

Los Negros Island

Los Negros Island is the third largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is significant because it contains the main airport of Manus Province on its eastern coastline, at Momote. It is connected to Lorengau, the capital of the province, on Manus Island via a highway and bridge...

 on March 5, 1944 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. This memorial, bears calligraphy by famous Chinese calligrapher and poet Yu Youren (于右任). There is also a statue of Lin Zexu

Lin Zexu

Lín Zéxú ; 30 August 1785 – 22 November 1850) was a Chinese scholar and official during the Qing Dynasty.He is most recognized for his conduct and his constant position on the "high moral ground" in his fight, as a "shepherd" of his people, against the opium trade in Guangzhou...

 in the square.

Rapid transit

Chatham Square was a major station on both the Second Avenue Elevated Line

IRT Second Avenue Line

The IRT Second Avenue Line, also known as the Second Avenue El, was an elevated railway in Manhattan, New York City, United States, operated by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company until city takeover in 1940...

 and the Third Avenue Elevated Line

IRT Third Avenue Line

The IRT Third Avenue Line, commonly known as the Third Avenue El, was an elevated railway in Manhattan and the Bronx, New York City. Originally operated by an independent railway company, it was acquired by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company and eventually became part of the New York subway...

, until they closed in 1942 and 1955, respectively. As of 2007, a new subway line

Second Avenue Subway

The Second Avenue Subway is a planned rapid transit subway line, part of the New York City Subway system. Phase I, consisting of two miles of tunnel and three stations, is currently under construction underneath Second Avenue in the borough of Manhattan.A plan for more than 75 years, the Second...

 to replace those elevated lines is under construction. The line's Phase 1 is being built from 63rd Street to 96th Street

96th Street (Manhattan)

96th Street is a major two-way street in East Harlem and the Upper West Side, which is a part of the New York City borough of Manhattan, running from the East River at the FDR Drive to the Henry Hudson Parkway at the Hudson River...

. A new station is proposed for Chatham Square as part of Phase 4.