Commissioners' Plan of 1811

The Commissioners ' Plan of 1811 was a proposal from the state government of New York, which was adopted in 1811 to perform the proper development and sale of land on Manhattan between 14th Street and Washington Heights. This plan is the most famous implementation of a grid plan and is considered by many historians for the creation time of an extremely visionary. Some, however, have criticized his monotone to arrangement compared to irregular road patterns of older cities. The plan was drafted by a three -member commission, which was composed of Gouverneur Morris, the lawyer John Rutherfurd and the surveyor Simeon De Witt.

It provided for a uniform network of roads and property boundaries, without regard to the topography of the island of Manhattan itself into consideration. There were plans for twelve numbered streets (in this context in engl called Avenues. ), Which ( in the broadest sense - Manhattan is slightly inclined in the northeast-southwest direction) in a north-south direction, should largely run parallel to the shoreline of the Hudson River, and 155 at right angles intersecting streets. The points at which these intersecting roads should run, when the borders were established at 5 acre parcels into which the country was divided before.

Every Avenue was one hundred feet ( about 30 meters) wide. The Avenues in the center of the island should be 922 feet (about 281 m ) apart, closer together something closer to the banks of the river Avenues. It was at this time assume that the roads would be frequented more close to the port facilities than those in the middle of the island, as the commercial and industrial centers were close to the water, so would a denser placement of Avenues there for the benefit of all its. The intersecting in (relative ) east-west direction roads was only a distance of 200 feet (about 61 m ) thought that had a grid of about 2000 long, narrow blocks result. The width of the cross- roads included, exactly 20 blocks are one mile ( 1.6 km).

It is worth noting that the huge Central Park, which today extends from the 8th to the 5th Avenue and from 59th to 110th Street, was not originally part of this plan since before 1853 any thoughts on it were used. There is much room for speculation about the level of development, the houses and population density, and the importance that New York would have today if the Central Park would never have been established.