Greenwich Village occupies an area that used to be marshland, cleared and developed by Dutch settlers in the early 1600s. After the English takeover of the Dutch settlement, the area was officially established as a village (separate from the southern settlement of New York City) in 1713.
Greenwich Village is defined east-west from Broadway to the Hudson River, and north-south from 14th Street to Houston Street. Another neighborhood called the East Village lies east of Broadway, but this neighborhood is considered part of the Lower East Side and not Greenwich Village. A large portion of the neighborhood has been designated a Historic District where development is heavily restricted.
Since Greenwich Village was originally developed separately from New York City, its street layout is quite different from the grid pattern used in most of the city. Many streets are narrow and run at odd angles to the usual east-west or north-south orientation of city streets. Also, many of the streets use their original names instead of the more modern numbering system.
On June 28, 1969, police raided the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, known to be popular with gay and lesbian drifters and hustlers. Such raids were common at the time, but the patrons of the Stonewall Inn fought the police and incited a violent riot. This event is credited as the start of the gay and lesbian rights movement in the United States.
Greenwich Village has been known as an enclave of counterculture throughout its history. Folk music and beat poetry flourished there, and residents Allen Ginsberg and William S. Burroughs wrote about edgy topics such as drug use and sexuality. Many say the neighborhood has lost touch with its bohemian roots as high rents have pushed artists to other neighborhoods.
