Prior to being named Tribeca, the area was known as Washington Market. Washington Market served as New York’s main food market beginning in the mid-19^th century after New York City’s piers moved to the Hudson River. The market was a gritty place, once described by The New York Times as a “dirty, degraded little rat hole.”¹ Amidst the unfavorable conditions of the market were some of New York City’s most historic buildings, including a few of the world’s first cast-iron structures.² The neighborhood was also home to numerous warehouses and loft buildings that suited its use as a commercial center.³ Many of these buildings were constructed in the Italianate or Romanesque Revival styles.⁴ The neighborhood began to see a turnaround in the 1970s when the area attracted artists who were looking to get away from the changing nature of SoHo. Artists embraced the warehouses and lofts that the former Washington Market offered and took up residence there.⁵ At this time the neighborhood also got a new name – TriBeCa – an acronym for Triangle Below Canal.⁶ Following the new name and new population, the neighborhood continued to attract New Yorkers. These new residents saw the architectural and historic value of the neighborhood and led the fight to preserve its character.

The Tribeca Historic Districts (sometimes listed as Tribeca West Historic District, Tribeca East Historic District, Tribeca South Historic District, and Tribeca North Historic District) were designated between 1991 and 1992 with a district extension designated in 2002. The Tribeca Historic Districts are largely residential areas. There is a continued campaign for the extension of these districts.

1984: The Committee for the Washington Market Historic District is established

June 14, 1988: The Community Board 1 Resolution is passed in support of creation of the Washington Market Historic District

May 7, 1991: Tribeca West is designated a historic district

December 2, 1992: Tribeca East is designated a historic district

December 8, 1992: Tribeca North and South are designated historic districts

November 19, 2002: The Tribeca South Extension is designated

The first efforts to preserve the Tribeca area were created when the Committee for the Washington Market Historic District was formed in 1984. However, it was not until the late 1980s and early 1990s that Tribeca got its first designated historic districts. In 1989, after years of small campaigns, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission had countered the Committee’s demands for one, large historic district with the proposition of four small, separate districts: Tribeca North, Tribeca South, Tribeca East, and Tribeca West.⁷ These four small districts were not what the Committee had intended for the neighborhood, but with a fear of the issue being pushed aside, they fought in favor of these four districts.⁸ 
Over the next few years, the Committee for the Washington Market Historic District acted in support of the four Tribeca historic districts. The first success came in May 1991, when the Tribeca West Historic District was designated.⁹ The battle for Tribeca did not end there, as there were three more districts waiting for landmark designation. The remaining three Tribeca Historic Districts were designated in December 1992.¹⁰

One of the biggest historic preservation battles before the designation of the four historic districts in Tribeca was the fight over 55 White Street. 
In the summer of 1986, controversy arose over a planned tower atop a century old cast-iron building at 55 White Street in Tribeca. The proposal called for an 11-story tower to top the five-story building, to be used as apartments.¹¹ Tribeca residents who had formed the Committee for the Washington Market Historic District were not fond of the idea saying that the structure would be "totally out of character."¹² By the fall of 1986, Tribeca residents were involved in a campaign against the tower. Hal Bromm, chair of the Committee for the Washington Market Historic District, led the fight and utilized the artistic population with a benefit auction of residents' artwork.¹³ By 1987, the campaign had achieved some success when 55 White Street was slated for a hearing by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to determine whether or not the building would be protected.¹⁴ This measure and the eventual designation of the district as a whole halted the construction of a tower atop the building.

• Hal Bromm Tribeca Files
  New York Preservation Archive Project
  174 East 80^th Street
  New York, NY 10075
  Tel: (212) 988-8379
  Email: info@nypap.org
  
  
• Oral Histories with Oliver Allen, Hal Bromm, and Carole De Saram
• New York Preservation Archive Project
• 174 East 80^th Street
• New York, NY 10075
• Tel: (212) 988-8379
• Email: info@nypap.org