Columbus Circle, New York City, Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

Columbus Circle is the busy roundabout at the southwest corner of Central Park in New York City, where Broadway, Eighth Avenue, Central Park South and Central Park West meet. It is anchored by a tall column topped with a statue of Christopher Columbus, and beside the park entrance stands the gilded Maine Monument, a memorial to American sailors lost in 1898. It is also where a mob boss was shot in broad daylight in 1971.

The story behind it

The gilded sculpture at the park edge is the Maine Monument, which honors the sailors who died when the battleship USS Maine exploded in Havana harbor in 1898. Cuba was then under Spanish rule. The cause of the blast has never been settled, but the incident helped push the United States into the Spanish-American War. The figure on top is Columbia Triumphant, riding a shell-shaped chariot pulled by three hippocampi, creatures that are half horse and half fish. Some of the bronze is said to come from the guns of the Maine itself. Columbia and the figure of Peace below were modeled on Audrey Munson, one of the best-known artists' models of her day.

The circle has a darker chapter too. On June 28, 1971, the Italian American Civil Rights League held an Italian Unity Day rally here. Its founder, Joseph Colombo, was also the head of the Colombo crime family, and critics saw the League as a way to soften the image of organized crime. A gunman shot Colombo at the rally and was killed on the spot. Colombo survived but never recovered fully. Suspicion fell on the rival Gallo family, though no one was ever convicted of ordering the attack.

What to look for

• Look up at Columbia Triumphant on top of the Maine Monument and count the three hippocampi pulling her shell chariot.
• Study the figures at the base of the monument, including the reclining male figures that stand for the oceans.
• Find the tall granite column at the center of the circle, crowned with Columbus, and note how it stands in the middle of the traffic.
• Stand near the park entrance and picture the 1971 rally crowd gathered on this open ground.

Tips for your visit

• Plan for 15 to 20 minutes at the circle itself, longer if you continue into Central Park or the shops and restaurants close by.
• It is an outdoor public space, so you can see everything from the sidewalk and it costs nothing to look around.
• Morning light is good for photographing the gilded Maine Monument, and the circle is quieter earlier in the day.
• Central Park is steps away, and Midtown landmarks are an easy walk south and east. Check current opening hours for any museum or venue you plan to enter.

See it on a quest

Midtown New York: Mob Hits & Hangouts reaches Columbus Circle on foot as one stop on a longer route through Midtown. The app tells you about each place as you arrive and sets a puzzle in what is in front of you. It suits anyone drawn by the 1971 shooting and the city's underworld past. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.

Midtown Manhattan: Unexpected Adventures in the Big Apple brings you here as one stop among many in the area. You walk from place to place at your own pace, hear the story of each spot as you reach it, and solve a puzzle on the spot. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group.