Secrets of Manhattan

No matter how long you’ve lived in Manhattan or how cultured you are, there’s not a single person who knows everything there is to know about NYC.  Filled with landmarks and buildings and parks — oh my —  there are secrets around every New York corner that are just waiting to be brought to light. Test your knowledge — did you know these weird Manhattan facts?

There’s a real murder mystery connected to an 18th-century building.

Legend has it that a skeleton was found under the floorboards of the Mount Vernon Hotel Museum in the early 1900s. No one knows who it was, how it got there, or who killed the poor soul, which makes for an exciting, yet spooky reenactment that 30-40 New Yorkers participate in each month. The estate first built the carriage house in 1799 before having it serve as a hotel from 1826 to 1833. It was then opened as a museum in 1939, and finally deemed a historic landmark in 1967.

Manhattan has its own Hogwarts.

PC: New York Adventure Club / Corey William Schneider

The Great Hall in the CCNY’s Shepard Hall looks a lot like the Great Hall in Hogwarts. Although it doesn’t teach witchcraft and wizardry to NYC Potterheads, the hall has served some cool purposes. It was used as an army cadet training camp during World War I and as a study hall for soldiers during World War II. Today it’s used as a meeting hall and is a popular stop on NYC tours.

Rockefeller Center used to be a botanical garden.

Back in 1801, David Hosack, a professor of botany at Columbia University, purchased the land that is now Rockefeller Center for just a few thousand dollars and turned it into the nation’s first botanical garden. It unfortunately had to close in 1929 when Hosack ran into financial trouble, and that gave John D. Rockefeller Jr. the chance to purchase the land and create the famous building we know today.

We’ve got plenty more fun facts to share with you, so make sure to follow along and connect with AMAA on Facebook and Twitter!

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