Governors Island
Governors Island is a 172-acre island in New York Bay just to the
south of Manhattan Island in New York City. Although the Lenape
likely visited the island, the absence of supplies of fresh water
made it inadequate for long term residence. The first permanent
European settlement was made by the Dutch West India Company
in 1624. The island was officially acquired by the British
in 1698 and later designated as belonging to "His Majesty's
Governors," yielding the name Governors Island.
The island's location in the harbor gave it strategic
military importance and it was fortified by Continental
troops in 1776 before falling to the British. Fort Jay
was completed in 1798 and deterred the British from
attacking the city during the War of 1812. The Army
established a major arsenal on the island in 1833
and although advances in naval armaments reduced its
tactical importance, the island remained an important military
base through the second World War. In 1966 the base
was transferred to the Coast Guard, and finally decommissioned
in 1996.
After years of debate about options for redeveloping the decaying
facility,, it was finally transferred by the Federal government to
New York State in 2003 for one dollar. 22 acres of the island were designated
the Governors Island National Monument with plans to convert the
rest of the island into a public park with some private development.
I visited the island in August of 2010 just before moving out of the
city. This photo tour approximately follows a counter-clockwise circuit
of the island starting at the ferry dock on the northern tip.
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Ferry terminal |
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Ferry terminal |
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Ferry terminal |
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Ferry terminal |
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Ferry terminal ramps |
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Slip #6 sign |
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Leaving the ferry terminal |
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Ferry |
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Ferry |
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SI Ferry Terminal (left), Gov. Island Ferry Terminal (right) |
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Brooklyn Heights / Brooklyn Queens Expressway |
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Soissons Dock |
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Ramp onto island |
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Crowds leaving the ferry |
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Security office / bookstore |
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Soissons Dock |
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Water Taxi Beach stage |
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Island history sign |
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American Flag at Fort Jay |
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Bldg. 111 - Andes Road |
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Library |
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Library interior |
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Bldg. 112 |
Castle Williams
was one of a series of fortifications built in the early 19th century to defend
New York Harbor. This circular red sandstone fort was built between 1807 and 1811
and named after its designer, Jonathan Williams. It was under renovation
when I visited in the Summer of 2010.
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Castle Williams |
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Castle Williams renovations |
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Castle Williams gun port |
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Scaffolding around Castle Williams |
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Downtown Manhattan viewed from Carder Road on Governors Island |
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Some kind of surveillance device |
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Corrosion along the Craig Rd. N. bulkhead |
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Unnumberd buildings on Craig Rd. N. |
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Unnumberd buildings on Craig Rd. N. |
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Building 555 - Craig Rd. at Clayton Rd. |
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Building 555 |
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Bikers on Craig Rd. N. |
Between 1901 and 1912, 4,787,000 cubic yards of fill extracted for the
construction of the Lexington Avenue Subway (4/5/6 trains) were used
to expand Governors Island from 69 to 172 acres. The southern part of
the island is built from this fill and the bulk of the architecture
there is from the mid 20th century. The western side was primarily
apartment housing that rapidly fell into decay when the base was
decommissioned. Some of that housing was used by the NY Fire Department
for experimentation. The largest building is the 11-story Cunningham
Apartments, built in 1972 and named after a Coastguardman
Earl Cunningham
who gave his life in 1936 attempting to save two Michigan fishermen.
When I visited in August of 2010, all of these buildinges were planned
for removal to make way for undetermined public and/or private development.
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Abandoned buildings |
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"West" marker |
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Abandoned buildings. |
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Abandoned apartment tower |
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Mising windows |
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NYFD sign |
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Overgrown recreational area |
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Ellis Island historical sign |
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Abandoned apartment tower |
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Coast Guard housing historical sign |
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Abandoned apartments - Craig Rd. N. at Bear Rd. |
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Cunningham Apartments - West side |
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Cunningham Apartments (Bldg. 877) |
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Cunningham Apartments - South side |
6/9/2013 12:00 AM
Demolition (NY Times) |
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Tram on Craig Rd. N. |
The southern tip of the island brightens considerably as derelict housing
gives way to Picnic Point, an open recreation area build on land that was
cleared by demolishing the Liberty Village Apartments.
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Picnic Point entrance at Escanaba Rd. |
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Statue of Liberty historic sign |
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Playground with Cunningham Apartments looming over |
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Statue of Liberty rededication plaque (1986) |
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Statue of Liberty rededication plaque on rock |
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Picnic Point lawn |
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Picnic Point lawn |
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Picnic Point lawn with Cunningham Apartments in background |
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Picnic Point lawn |
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Picnic Point lawn |
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Picnic Point lawn |
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Picnic Point lawn |
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Light beacon on southwest tip of the island |
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Craig Rd. curving around the southern tip of the island |
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Line for ice cream |
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Staten Island historic sign |
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Picnic tables |
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South plaque |
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Wind Gap by Bob Emser |
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Red Hook warehouses viewed across the harbor |
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Street signs |
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Port of New York historic sign |
The southeast quadrant of the island is where pastoral living
gave way to the business side of military activity. The service buildings
of various kinds were in logical proximity to three piers on the waterfront.
The east side of the island also gives excellent views just across
the harber of derelict and reactivated shipping insfrastructure in Red Hook.
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Dumpsters |
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Craig Rd. S. headed north |
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Craig Rd. S. headed north |
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Warehouses |
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Concrete anchorages in the water |
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Warehouses |
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Bikers on Craig Rd. S. |
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Warehouses - Cunningham Apts. in background |
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Southern pier |
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Southern pier |
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Southern pier |
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Oyster Restoration Research Project |
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Service pier |
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Decommissioned diesel tank |
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Exchange Service Center |
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Exchange Service Center |
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Piles of aggregate |
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The Coast Guard Life historic sign |
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Craig Rd. S. |
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Gourmet Annex |
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Gourmet Annex / Hair Care Center |
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Craig Rd. S. |
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Middle pier |
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Middle pier |
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Container Redemption Center |
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Container cranes in Red Hook |
This set of low-rise barracks on the West side of the island appeared to
be of 1980s origin and were in remarkably bad condition for their comparative
youth. By contrast to the careful craftsmanship embodied in the older buildings on
the North tip of the island, the architectural barrenness likely indicated their
use by lower ranking servicemembers, as well as an implication that they were not
meant to last. Buildings with no respect for the past cannot expect to be
respected by the future.
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Overgrown parking lot |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Pod by Yasmin Gur |
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Climate change sea level markers |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Holes in the roof |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Abandoned barracks |
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Coast Guard Children historic marker |
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Optic Motion - Rob de Oude |
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Optic Motion - Rob de Oude |
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Service building |
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Northern pier (Yankee pier) |
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Northern pier |
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Yankee Pier |
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Yankee pier |
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Red Hook cranes |
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Red Hook cranes |
Returning to the older, northern part of the island at, appropriately enough,
Division Road, the architecture becomes considerably more satisfying.
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Transition to older, northern part of the island |
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Bulkhead on southeast edge of the island |
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Division Rd. |
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Building 315 |
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Building 315 |
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Swimming Pool - Clayton at Cartigan Roads |
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Wading pool |
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Swimming Pool |
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Fort Jay Theatre |
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Fort Jay Theatre |
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Fort Jay Theatre historic sign |
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Fort Jay Theatre |
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Fort Jay Theatre |
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Fort Jay Theatre |
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YMCA (Bldg. 324) |
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Building 333 dehumidifier |
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Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Chapel |
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Catholic Chapel |
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Catholic Chapel |
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Rear of the Chapel |
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Parade Ground - trapeze |
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Parade Ground |
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Parade Ground |
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Kite flying on the Parade Ground |
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Parade Ground |
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Parade Ground |
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Comfort Road memorial sign |
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Liggett Hall |
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Liggett Hall / Clayton Rd. |
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Liggett Hall interior |
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Colonel's Row historic sign |
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Colonel's Row |
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Colonel's Row |
This English Gothic style Episcopal chapel was built under the
leadership of Reverend Edmund Banks Smith and dedicated in 1906.
It is names after St. Cornelius the Centurion, an early convert to
Christianity. Trinity Church sponsored the church as part of
its parish, although the facility was made available for services
by other denominations.
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St. Cornelius Chapel |
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St. Cornelius Chapel historic sign |
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Carillon chimes dedication plaque |
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Chapel interior |
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Chancel |
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Baptismal font |
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Chapel interior |
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St. Michael window |
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Chapel viewed from the south |
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Old cannon on Evans Road |
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Oyster historic sign |
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NY Harbor ecology sign |
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Building 12 |
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Building 12 |
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Beach area on east side |
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Outrigger canoers in the harbor |
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NYC Police boat |
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Red Hook cranes |
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Kimmel Road |
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Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges viewed from Governors Island |
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Kimmel Road |
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Pump building |
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Officers Housing on Berry Rd. |
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Officers Housing |
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Garages behind officer housing |
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Officers Housing |
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We Be - Max Pelzman |
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We Be |
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Contemporary service building by Pier 102 |
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Kimmel Road memorial sign |
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Service building on Kimmel Road |
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Brooklyn ferry dock |
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Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel ventilation tower |
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Pershing Hall historic sign |
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Pershing Hall |
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Building interior (Andes Rd.) |
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Building interior |
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COMLANTAREA Quarters (COMmander, atLANTic AREA) |
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COMLANTAREA Quarters |
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COMLANTAREA Quarters |
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COMLANTAREA Quarters |
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COMLANTAREA Quarters |
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Building 25 |
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New York Arsenal historic sign |
Fort Jay was initially built in 1776 to protect New York City
from the British Navy, and although it was not completely successful, concerns
about the fort aided Washington's strategic retreat after the defeat
in the Battle of Brooklyn. The fort was named for John Jay, one of the country's founding fathers.
In the 1790s, the earthworks were rebuilt in anticipation of a war with France that
never materialized and the gatehouse may date from that time. From 1806 to 1809 the
earthworks were replaced with granite and brick walls and a dry moat designed by
Army Chief Engineer Jonathan Williams. The fort's importance diminished with the construction of Fort
Hamilton and Fort Wadsworth in the Narrows and brick barracks were built to replace
wooden barracks inside the fort. During the Civil War the fort was ringed with
50 Rodman cannons and the barracks were used to temporarily house captured Confederate
officers. Although advances in artillery made the fort obsolete in
the early 20th century, the cannons survived until 1942 when all but three were
scrapped for the war effort.
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Fort Jay entrance |
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Fort Jay historic sign |
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Southeast dry moat |
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Northeast dry moat |
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Soldiers and Sailors of Freedom plaque |
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Entry ramp |
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New York Community Trust plaque |
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Entry tunnel |
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Courtyard |
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Barracks |
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Columns |
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Interior of barracks |
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Courtyard |
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Barracks |
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Magazine diagram |
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Magazine chamber |
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Magazine chamber |
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Magazine chamber |
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Pathway to cannons |
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Eastern cannon |
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Three surviving cannons |
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Western 10' Rodman Gun |
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Central 15' Rodman Gun |
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15' Gun |
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Looking down into the northern moat |
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Looking down the barrel |
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15' Gun |
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Eastern 10' Gun |
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Eastern 10' Gun |
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Looking down into the eastern moat |
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The central and eastern cannons |
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The northeast moat |
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Unused cannon mounts |
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Governors Island map |
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Resting on the northern glacis |
The ferry serving Governors Island is significantly smaller than the
Staten Island Ferries. While capacity was not an issue during my vist, the ferry is a
bit slow and cumbersome to load, making the trip at highly-trafficked
times rather tedious.
7/31/2010 05:08 PM
Line for the return trip |
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Boarding the boat |
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Boarding the boat |
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Boarding the boat |
7/31/2010 05:21 PM
Bikes on the boat |
7/31/2010 05:42 PM
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