History and architecture
Pier A, a picturesque structure jutting into Upper New York Bay, is the last survivor of a maritime complex in the area that once included a firehouse and wharf, a breakwater, a boat landing, and just to the north of Pier A, Pier New 1 with its magnificent granite arches. The building and the pier itself of Pier A are the oldest of their types still standing in Manhattan.
For many years distinguished visitors to the city who arrived by sea were officially greeted at Pier A. The clock of the tower, installed in 1919, was the first permanent World War I memorial in the United States. It is one of two clocks in the eastern seaboard whose chimes ring the hours in ship's time. Long the headquarters of the New York City Department of Docks and the Harbor Precinct of the Police Department, the pier served as the headqarters of the Marine Division of the Fire Department.
Sources and further reading
This history comes from the Landmarks app’s historical catalog. Names and building uses may reflect the period described.