7. Pier A Building

Built between 1884 and 1886, Pier A is the oldest pier in Manhattan. Originally, it was the headquarters for the New York City Docks Department, but over the years it has also housed the Harbor Police, a fireboat station for the New York City Fire Department, and various other municipal agencies.

The Pier’s clock tower was added in 1919 to commemorate the soldiers who died in World War I. According to the Department of Docks and Ferries, it is the first World War I memorial to have been erected in the United States. The clock and bell were donated by Daniel G. Reid, the founder of U.S. Steel Corporation, and it was the only clock in the world to strike “ship’s bell time.” Following renovation, Pier A has been adaptively reused into a food destination.