On July 4th, 1976, New York City hosted a massive bicentennial celebration, which included a procession of tall ships and fireworks—it brought a lot of people downtown. Recently, a remnant of the day was unearthed near 4 South Street in the Seaport area, which is currently subject to some controversial development. Underneath a facade that was taken down, this perfectly preserved piece of the bicentennial was discovered.
Reader Mary Pendergast sent these photos along, noting that there's "at least 30 feet of graffiti all dating from 7/4/76." The "graffiti" is more akin to what you'd find etched onto a tree in the countryside—hearts, declarations of love, So-And-So Was Here, that kind of thing. The markings all look like they could have been put up yesterday, but they're nearing 40 years old. Click through for a look.
Here's some Super 8 footage of the day, shot around nearby Battery Park:
And here's ABC's coverage:
