Originally designed in 1871, Jacob Wrey Mould's ornate granite Victorian fountain, was installed in front of the Post Office that stood at the triangular tip of City Hall Park. Dubbed "Mullet's monstrosity", plans were underway to demolish the post office by 1920 and the fountain was disassembled and moved to Crotona Park in the Bronx. Because of a land-rights dispute between the city and federal authorities, the building stood until 1938, when the beautification of City Hall Park for the 1939 World's Fair hastened its demise.

When Rudy Giuliani observed the unfinished status of the park upon taking his second oath of office as mayor, he decided to do something about it. City Hall Park was renovated in 1999 to return to its pre-Civil War splendor as part of his legacy. Jacob Wrey Mould Fountain was returned from the Bronx to the Park, to replace the Delacorte Fountain, which opened in 1977. At night the fountain is lit by four gas bronze candelabras, reconstructed from Mould's designs, and underwater floodlights. The fountain is a granite basin with semi-circular pools on each side of a central cascade.