Wooster Square
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Neighborhood of New Haven
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Wooster Street archway decorated with an Cherry Blossom tree, a symbol of New Haven
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Wooster Square within New Haven
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| Coordinates: 41°18′14″N 72°55′05″W / 41.304°N 72.918°W / 41.304; -72.918 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Connecticut |
| City | New Haven |
Wooster Square is a neighborhood in the city of New Haven, Connecticut, to the east of downtown.[1] The name refers to a park square (named for the American Revolutionary War hero, David Wooster) located between Greene Street, Wooster Place, Chapel Street and Academy Street in the center of the neighborhood. Wooster Square is also known as Little Italy: a bastion of Italian American culture and cuisine, and is home to some of New Haven's (and the country's), best-known pizza (specifically, apizza) eateries, including Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana and Sally's Apizza. The square and much of the neighborhood are included in the Wooster Square Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.
An annual Cherry Blossom Festival in Wooster Square Park commemorates the planting of 72 Yoshino Japanese cherry blossom trees in 1973 by the New Haven Historic Commission in collaboration with the New Haven Parks Department and neighborhood residents. The festival, founded and organized by the Historic Wooster Square Association, has grown from a modest event in the early 1970s with a local band entertaining a handful of neighbors under lighted trees to a major New Haven event that in 2016 attracted over 10,000 visitors.
The Wooster Square neighborhood consists of the area between the Amtrak railroad tracks (serving as the boundary with Downtown New Haven) and Interstate 91 (between Exits 1 and 3), bounded on the south by the Oak Street Connector. It is bordered on the west by Downtown New Haven, on the south by Long Wharf, on the east by the neighborhood of Mill River, and on the north by East Rock.
Wooster Square takes its name from Revolutionary War General David Wooster, who had a warehouse near Water Street. In 1825 the land was purchased by the city of New Haven and incorporated into the city. At that time, the area was close to the city's waterfront (it is now farther inland due to harbor filling), and by the 1840s it had become a residential area where ship captains and wholesale grocers built large houses near the port.[2] As a result, Wooster Square now includes a concentrated collection of distinctive 19th-century residential architecture, including several buildings by New Haven architect Henry Austin. Included are examples of the Federal, Greek Revival, Islamic Revival, and Italian Villa styles, Late Victorian Italianate row houses, and Second Empire and Queen Anne homes.[3]
By the late 19th century, increased industrial activity in the vicinity made Wooster Square less desirable as a residential neighborhood, and Italian immigrant families began to move in and operate small stores out of their homes. This commercial activity damaged the neighborhood's reputation, and the area was targeted for demolition and redevelopment as early as the 1930s. In the mid-1950s, plans called for building Interstate 91 through Wooster Square Park, but the Wooster Square Project, which started in 1958, began a neighborhood revival and resulted in re-routing of the highway.[2][3]
Wooster Square made headlines on June 24, 2020, when its Christopher Columbus statue was removed by a city-hired crew in the aftermath of the George Floyd Protests. City officials later announced the commission of a new statue to replace the Columbus statue. The new statue, which was installed in May 2024, depicts an Italian family.[4][5]
Wooster Square is home to restaurants and bakeries known for their pizza and Italian pastries, local businesses, and a weekly farmer's market, City Seed.[6] Its walkable proximity to Downtown New Haven, its architecture, and its neighborhood feel, make it one of the most sought-after New Haven neighborhoods in which to live. It also has a thriving art scene.
Asycamore tree on the west side of Wooster Square Park has been said by some observers to resemble an outline image of Jesus Christ.[7]
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