In and Around the Square: A Story-Stroll through Washington Square with author John Sorensen

The heart and soul of Greenwich Village is Washington Square Park. To truly know the Village, you must first get to know the Park.  This approximately 60-minute walking tour is a kind of “Washington Square 101” introducing participants to some of the historical and cultural highlights of the near neighborhood. It explores the rich and powerful history of the Square – from the days of the Lenape Native Americans (who were the first inhabitants of what is now the Village area) through to the more recent times of great modern Village artists such as writer Willa Cather, painter Edward Hopper and photographer Diane Arbus.

The journey begins at the fountain in Washington Square, where we reflect on the pauper’s graveyard and the still-running creek underneath the surface of the Park – and look up to the sky, hoping to catch sight of the red-tailed hawks who make the Park their home. Then, while slowly strolling from the archway around the path encircling the Park, we make a voyage of stories through which we consider a few of the key Park landmarks along the way ... from the nearby site of the horrific Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire to the long-time home of Eleanor Roosevelt and the early 1960s hang-outs of Buddy Holly and Bob Dylan.

• John Sorenson

Meet at the Washington Arch, Washington Square Park, New York, NY10011