In the early 17th century, several prominent European countries were in the middle of settling the North American continent. Among the group was the Dutch Republic, a predecessor of the present-day Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Dutch Republic was then at the height of its power, having cultivated extensive international trading networks across the globe. One area in particular that drew the attention of the Dutch was New York Bay, specifically the area near the mouth of the Hudson River. Finding the land suitable for agriculture, the Dutch sent an expedition to the location in the early 1620s. Sponsoring the entire endeavor was the Dutch West Indies Company, which hoped to create a fur trading outpost within the settlement. Nevertheless, in 1623, the first settlers arrived in present-day New York Harbor, coming ashore at the southernmost tip of a landmass they referred to as “Manhattan.” The Dutch subsequently spent the next few years developing the city of “New Amsterdam” upon the site, gradually growing it to encompass numerous municipal blocks. Many commercial and residential structures soon lined the shoreline of New Amsterdam as such, giving rise to a prosperous local economy that would thrive for years.

However, the Dutch became nervous that New Amsterdam was vulnerable to attack and commissioned the creation of an earthen fortress called “Fort Amsterdam.” While Fort Amsterdam instilled confidence in New Amsterdam for a time, the Dutch nonetheless began to consider enhancing the city’s defenses. Central to these growing concerns was the intense rivalry the Dutch Republic had formed with England, which had colonies located nearby in New England. Those fears were seemingly realized when the First Anglo-Dutch War erupted between the two countries during the 1650s. To prevent a possible English assault, the Dutch constructed a wooden palisade along the border of a street named “Het Cingel” or “the Belt.” The palisade essentially acted as the official northern border for New Amsterdam, although newer Dutch settlers routinely raised farms beyond it. Fortunately for the Dutch, the English never attempted to attack New Amsterdam throughout the course of the conflict. But that was not the case when another war broke out a decade later, with the English successfully capturing the city without a shot being fired.

Even though the Dutch briefly recaptured the settlement during the third and final Anglo-Dutch War, the settlement—renamed as “New York City”—was firmly under the control of the English (and British) for the next century. With no clear foreign enemies to threaten the community, the English eventually deconstructed the palisade. But the wall had become a cultural landmark for the residents of New York City, who had taken to calling the neighboring road “Wall Street.” The name stuck for many decades thereafter, even as the rest of the city began extending well north of the erstwhile wall. Meanwhile, the site of the original Dutch settlement was increasingly connected to finance. In fact, merchants started to gather regularly underneath a buttonwood tree at the foot of Wall Street in order to exchange various stocks. As their practices evolved, the traders realized that they needed a codified set of rules to guide them. The businesspeople thus created the Buttonwood Agreement shortly after the end of the American Revolution, which laid the foundation for the modern New York Stock Exchange. (Wall Street also functioned as the home for several important civic institutions, including Federal Hall—the original national capitol building.)

Lower Manhattan’s affiliation with the young American financial sector only continued to grow throughout the 19th century, with Wall Street serving as the epicenter for all its business dealings. The traders themselves formed specialized firms that made a profit exclusively speculating on stock. Several of the firms would produce legendary investment bankers, as well, like J.P. Morgan. (Not only did Morgan create one of the most powerful banks—the self-eponymously named “J.P. Morgan & Co.”—he also formed the nucleus for the nation’s corporate finance industry during the Gilded Age.) Driving this development was the emergence of New York City as a major economic hub in the United States, as American companies sought to leverage the monetary might of the Wall Street financiers to fund their own projects. Many corporations even relocated to New York City to strengthen their ties with those firms, such as John D. Rockefeller’s prolific Standard Oil. Various financial institutions on Wall Street grew in significance as a result, especially the New York Stock Exchange. The business activity changed the geography of Wall Street, too, as both the street and the surrounding neighborhood saw the construction of towering skyscrapers. This development lasted for years, which gradually forced most of the residents to move to locations elsewhere in the city.

By the dawn of the 20th century, the entirety of Lower Manhattan had been transformed into a sprawling cityscape that many across the nation took to calling the “Financial District.” Wall Street even became synonymous with the district itself, thus establishing its place within modern America’s collective consciousness. The region has since remained one of the most economically important sites in the country today, having come to act as the home for numerous influential financial establishments. The New York Stock Exchange in particular has become the largest stock exchange in the world, although it has not always enjoyed continuous prosperity as evidenced by the 1929 Stock Market Crash and the 2007—2008 Global Financial Crisis. Furthermore, Wall Street is close to many New York City landmarks, such as the Federal Hall National Memorial, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the World Trade Center site, and Trinity Church, which is where Founding Father Alexander Hamilton is buried. The U.S. Department of the Interior has even listed Wall Street and its neighboring thoroughfares as a district in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Fewer areas in New York City are as truly monumental as historic Wall Street and the greater Financial District.

Originally designed by the architectural firm Clinton & Russell, The Wall Street Hotel displays architectural motifs inspired by the famous Beaux-Arts movement. Preston himself was accomplished in the use of Beaux-Arts architecture, having graduated from the renowned École des Beaux-Arts many years prior in 1861. Located in the heart of Paris, the École des Beaux-Arts was an art school where the Beaux-Arts first took shape during the 1830s. There was much resistance to the Neoclassism of the day among French artists, who yearned for the intellectual freedom to pursue less rigid design aesthetics. (This is especially ironic given Preston’s later fascination with Neoclassic architecture during his time in Boston.) Four instructors in particular were responsible for establishing the movement: Joseph-Louis Duc, Félix Duban, Henri Labrouste, and Léon Vaudoyer. The training that these instructors created involved fusing architectural elements from several earlier styles, including Imperial Roman, Italian Renaissance, and Baroque. As such, a typical building created with Beaux-Arts-inspired designs would feature a rusticated first story, followed by several more simplistic ones. A flat roof would then top the structure. Symmetry became the defining character, with every building’s layout featuring such elements like balustrades, pilasters, and cartouches. Sculptures and other carvings were commonplace throughout the design, too. Beaux-Arts only found a receptive audience in just a few countries though, as most Western architects gravitated toward British design principles. That being said, Beaux-Arts was received incredibly well throughout the United States, emerging as one of its most enduring architectural forms. Indeed, many Beaux-Arts-designed structures still survive in America today, with some even bearing a listing in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.