Staten Island (New York, USA) - description, history, location, reviews, photos and map.
Among 5 districts of New York, Staten Island holds a special place. Although it is the third in terms of area, it is the last in terms of population. Its 151 sq km has no more than 500 thousand inhabitants, which is very small for a metropolis. The development is dominated by low-rise buildings and condominiums, immersed in lush greenery. The impression is as if a quiet town from the American hinterland was simply rearranged here. But this is if you do not look into the southern part of the island, where rusty skeletons of ships still stick out of the water and abandoned paths lead to dilapidated workshops.
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| Staten Island |
A bit of history
The first European navigator to visit New York Harbor in 1524 was Giovanni Verranzano, after whom the two-tiered cable-stayed bridge connecting Staten Island to Brooklyn is named. But the name of the island was not given by him, but by Henry Hudson, when in 1609, on the instructions of the Dutch East India Company, he explored these shores and first passed the Narrows Strait. In honor of the States General, he named the Staten Island. The Dutch tried to settle here three times, but were massacred by the Indians. Only half a century later, it was possible to secure the territory for the white people.
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| Staten Island |
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the island had only one city, Richmond, and many farms. But in 1898 Steten Island became part of the Greater New York and its northern part was turned into a giant junkyard and ship graveyard. Residents tried several times to secede from the metropolis, but failed. After the construction of the Verranzano Bridge in 1964, a new era began, the landfill was closed, land reclamation is underway, there are so many parks that the island is seriously called the "lungs of New York".
What to see
The best way to travel to Staten Island for new experiences is the 24-hour free ferry from Battery Park near South Ferry Tube Station. An additional bonus is a beautiful view of the deck of the Statue of Liberty. From the pier in St. George to Verranzano Bridge, there are miles of wide beaches that New Yorkers love to come to for the weekend. The only trouble is that the water is dirty - few decide to swim in it. But sunbathing and strolling along the wooden hinged Roosevelt embankment is always pleasant.
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| Staten Island |
Not far from the bridge are the gray walls of Fort Wadsworth, a once formidable fortress that defended the entrance to New York Harbor. Now it is a museum, a magnificent panorama of Brooklyn opens from the wall. In Staten Island, history is generally loved and appreciated; not far from the pier there is a whole quarter of antique shops and shops selling items of American and European antiquity.
The Richmond Reconstruction Museum will help you get to know more about the life of the islanders in the 18th century. On a small territory, several houses, a school, a shop, and offices have been collected and restored. The museum staff are dressed in costumes of that time, they are always ready to teach visitors their crafts. It regularly hosts festivals, fairs, holidays based on scenarios of real historical events.
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| Staten Island |
Theater lovers are welcome at the 100-year-old St. George Theater, where the world's best troupes perform on tour. Contemporary fine arts are represented in the Museum of Science and Arts, and children will surely love the small but interesting zoo. Fans of Buddhism are attracted by the Jacques Marchais Center for Tibetan Art with the largest collection of religious objects, musical instruments, costumes and paintings of a Lamaist temple in America.
Practical Information
Location: New York, Staten Island.
How to get there: By ferry or Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge from Brooklyn, Bayonne, Outerbridge Crossing and Gothals Bridges from New Jersey.