The Jefferson Market and Firetower
photo of tower and market, around 1860 Before the Courthouse

From New York's Greenwich Village, Edmund T. Delaney, 1968:
"For nearly one hundred and fifty years, the Jefferson Market area on the Village Square (in truth a triangle) at Sixth Avenue and Christopher Street had been one of the centers of Village life. Founded in 1832, Jefferson Market was one of the principal food markets of the city and was readily recognizable by its wooden fire-lookout tower."
The firewatcher's balcony, one hundred feet above the ground, provided an uninterrupted view of Greenwich Village. A bell in the tower alerted volunteer firemen, and the location of the fire was communicated by the number of times the bell sounded. The original bell still hangs in the clocktower.

drawing of the original firetower and market