No matter how messy politics may seem today, it’s difficult to imagine a gun-duel on Wall Street. But that’s exactly what happened on July 11, 1804, when long-simmering animosity between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton came to a head. That’s just one of many New York tales Wall Street Walks reveals during tours of downtown Manhattan.

“People who think Wall Street is just about the latest leveraged buy-out are stunned to hear about all the characters who lived and worked here, but that’s what our tour is all about,” said Annaline Dinkelmann, owner, Wall Street Walks. “Downtown is where New York City began, so it is rich with great material. We take our guests to the same spots where these things happened.”

The tour weaves together the diverse lives and happenings that occurred in downtown New York from its early days as New Amsterdam to the city as it is today. Many of the stories feature food connections reaching back to a time when the rich, the poor, the influential, the lawful and the not-so-lawful gathered for a drink, a bite to eat and some action — all at the local tavern. The tour visits two original—  and still-open taverns: Fraunces Tavern and The White Horse Tavern.