Madison Square Park seen from above

Manhattan is often described as a grid, a series of rectangular blocks stacked around each other. That description generally holds true except for Broadway. The Great White Way rolls the length of Manhattan at an angle, from South Ferry to the Broadway Bridge at the tip of Manhattan, slicing through rectangles to create a dozen oddly shaped spaces, that, despite the lack of right angles, are known as “squares.” Some are well known, some recent, and some all but forgotten. Each has a story that reflects the unique history, society, commerce, and personality of old (and new) New York. Come along on a 14-mile virtual walk up the island of Manhattan to explore those 12 squares along Broadway.

1. Steve Flanders Square

City Hall Park

At Broadway and Murray Street, at an entrance to City Hall Park, is the most recent and smallest square on Broadway – Steve Flanders. Mr. Flanders was a New York journalist who covered City Hall. Starting his career at The Herald Tribune, he then moved to ABC News, NBC, and finally to WCBS as an on-air political commentator. Mr. Flanders, on his way to City Hall, suffered a fatal heart attack at the site.