Penn South Playground

W. 26 St., 8 Ave. To 9 Ave.

Manhattan, 10001

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.

This playground, located on 26th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues, takes its name from Pennsylvania Station, commonly known as Penn Station. The original Penn Station was an above-ground structure designed by the eminent New York architectural firm McKim, Mead and White, and was located between 7th and 8th Avenue from 31st to 33rd Street. Built over a span of eight years, from 1902 to 1910, Pennsylvania Station would compete for traffic with Grand Central Station on the East Side. The eight-acre site on which the railroad was to build its new station contained 500 buildings, all of which had to be torn down before construction could begin.