The Circling Union Square
Scavenger Hunt

Hunt where presidents roamed and artists ambled

Every day is a festival day in Union Square and its surrounding streets. On market days the north and west sides of the park fill with vendors offering delicious foods straight from farms. The paths in the park are filled with people relaxing and a pageant of pedestrians. A statue of Lincoln holds down the north end, just blocks away from Gramercy Park, where a sculptor of Hamlet honors the brother of Lincoln’s assassin! On Broadway grand buildings were once department stores along the Ladies’ Mile, while young Teddy Roosevelt grew up around the corner on 20th St.

You’ll uncover the hidden history of this neighborhood and many personalities as your team searches for answers to tricky questions and poses for photo challenges. For this Union Square scavenger hunt, no prior knowledge is necessary—just sharp eyes, comfy shoes, and a love of adventure.

Highlights include

• Presidential locations linked to Washington, Lincoln, and Kennedy, as well as two men who lost the presidency.
• A building that was home to Andy Warhol’s famed Factory—where he was shot by a crazed hanger-on
  
• James Cagney’s Gramercy Park home and other regal residences facing exclusive Gramercy Park
  
• A hotel where Humphrey Bogart married and Kate Hudson was Almost Famous 
• An old-time tavern where O. Henry penned famous stories

You might tackle such questions as…

• Face 14th St. and find the hand that seems to belong to someone swallowed up in an explosion. You can also see the same hand nearby. Who does it belong to? Answer: The hand sticking out of the artwork on the south side of the street is a copy of the hand of George Washington on a horse across the street.
• Across from Gramercy Park, the National Arts Club occupies the former mansion of Samuel J. Tilden, who in 1876 became the first presidential candidate to win the popular vote but lose the election. A popular movie location, it appears in The Age of Innocence and Manhattan Murder Mystery. But what writer gets top billing outside the National Arts Club? Answer: Shakespeare appears at the top left of a relief with the heads of famous writers on the facade of the club.

Contact us to learn more—and find more fun on NYC team-building games in and near Union Square!