| |
|
As a district, it encompasses roughly the area south of City Hall Park but excluding Battery Park and Battery Park City. The heart of the Financial District is often considered to be the corner of Wall Street and Broad Street, both of which are contained entirely within the district.
Although there are a few residential apartments within the district itself, as well as several hotels, the neighborhood is considered to be primarily a destination for daytime traders and office workers from around New York City and the surrounding areas.
Although the term is sometimes considered to be synomomous with "Wall Street", the latter term is usually taken to imply the financial markets as a whole, whereas the Financial District is implies an actual geographical location.
The neighborhood is roughly coterminous with the boundaries of the New Amsterdam settlement in the late 17th century. A few urviving examples of Dutch colonial architecture amidst the skyscrapers can be found along southern Pearl Street.