Over the years, the term Wall Street has come to represent the world of high finance, but it’s also just a street! And before that, it was actually a wall--hence the name.

The wall used to protect New Yorkers from attacks by Native American Indians. But eventually, the English knocked the wall down. There are a number of important landmarks on Wall Street. Here are a few of them.

TRINITY CHURCH

Trinity Church is located at the intersection of Wall Street and Broadway. The original church was destroyed in the Great New York City fire of 1776. The current church was built in 1846. These days, Trinity Church has several choirs, and offers free classical and contemporary music concerts.

FEDERAL HALL NATIONAL MEMORIAL

Federal Hall was built in 1700 as New York’s City Hall. Later, it became the first capitol building of the United States of America. It was the place where George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States in 1789, and it is also where the United States Bill of Rights was drafted. These days, the building is run by the National Park Service as a museum commemorating the historic events.

THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE

The New York Stock Exchange is a neo-classical building located at 11 Wall Street. It is the world’s largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies. You can visit the building and watch from the third floor as traders buy and sell shares from companies around the world.

BANKERS TRUST COMPANY BUILDING

At 14 Wall Street you can find the Bankers Trust Company Building. It’s a 227-metre skyscraper that occupies an entire block. The building was originally the headquarters of Bankers Trust. These days, it serves as the American headquarters of Deutsche Bank.