Sunday, July 30, 11:00 a.m.

CANAL STREET EDGE: FROM BUCOLIC TO FRENETIC

In 1811, the Collect Pond and its drainage canal were paved over, and the notorious Five Points grew up along the eastern end of Canal Street. On the western end stood St. John’s Chapel, in an elegant park, until the upper classes moved north and Commodore Vanderbilt bough the block for his railroad terminal. Transportation infrastructure further changed the area when the Holland Tunnel was completed in 1927. We’ll explore surviving buildings and street patterns from these eras, including the first department store in America and the onetime center of the textile industry in the United States. Leaders: Lynne Funk, architect, and Thor Snilsberg, urbane planner. Meet at 280 Broadway, at Chambers St.