We are lucky enough to live in Broad Channel, a little fishing village in Queens, New York. Located at the center of a wildlife preserve, Broad Channel is the only inhabited island in Jamaica Bay, and two thirds of our island is part of the sanctuary, as well.
Sometimes referred to as the “Venice of New York,*” most of the homes have private docks, and we get all the benefits (and hazards) of living on the water without the steep NYC prices and property taxes of most waterfront property. During prohibition, Broad Channel and nearby Ruffle Bar were key locations for rum-running and provided much of the illegal alcohol consumed in NYC. Actually, come to think of it, the Channel is still pretty popular with the drinkers. For all those reasons and more, I love it completely and never want to live anywhere else. If you are interested in learning more about Jamaica Bay, blogger NYCEdges has done a rather nice job of summing up and illustrating its history in two parts (Part 1, Part 2).
(*I more often refer to it as the Staten Island of Queens, which is only funny to New Yorkers who are not from Staten Island)
There’s another island in New York City I learned about recently that has wildlife AND ruins, so I guess they win the prize for most photogenic. In the Bronx where New York Harbor meets Long Island Sound, there squats the slightly ominous but hauntingly beautiful North Brother Island, which originally housed Riverside Hospital between the 1880s and 1930s. During its use, it housed hundreds of patients with the most communicable diseases; smallpox, typhus, scarlet fever, even leprosy. It was also where the cook Mary Mallon, better known as the infamous “Typhoid Mary,” was forcibly quarantined for the last 23 years of her life, and where she eventually died. The first known healthy carrier of the disease, although she inadvertently caused at least 47 illnesses and 3 deaths, Mary asserted until her death that she had been unjustly detained. Rumor has it she and other unhappy former residents of the island haunt it still. This place just gets better and better!
“North Brother Island has been used to house things that the city would rather not think about.”
The island is now off limits, so the only way to get there is to sneak on with a kayak or small boat. Hmmm . . .
Epilogue: Nuts. I totally forgot today I was going to try “Wordless Wednesday,” the blog challenge where your entire post is visual rather than textual. Maybe I’ll instead invent “Stick a Sock In It Thursday” or “Shut the Fork Up Friday.”
July 23, 2014 at 9:20 am
The pictures are really cool!! Love them!
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July 23, 2014 at 9:28 am
Thanks!
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July 23, 2014 at 10:09 am
Get the kayak out….I’ll pack lunch! Very interesting and your home island sounds lovely! Always great to live in a unique place~
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July 23, 2014 at 10:25 am
Agreed!
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July 23, 2014 at 12:09 pm
I grew up in Brooklyn, and I used to hang out in Broad Channel occasionally. I also lived in Sheepshead Bay for a while. I love those places that retain their fishing village qualities in the middle of New York.
Great history lesson, by the way. And I love the pictures. 🙂
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July 23, 2014 at 1:41 pm
Thanks!
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July 23, 2014 at 12:21 pm
Spectacular and eerie. Thank you for sharing!
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July 23, 2014 at 1:41 pm
Thank you for the visit!
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July 23, 2014 at 3:32 pm
I’ve lived in NY forever nearing hearing of Broad Channel. The pictures are amazing…love history it was very appreciated.
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July 23, 2014 at 5:33 pm
And that’s why our house prices are so low! Thanks for the visit.
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July 24, 2014 at 5:42 am
I will visit again…always behind on my reading but I put you in my cue. Loved the whole site, and I rarely say that 🙂
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July 24, 2014 at 8:49 am
That’s great to hear, Susannah. Thank you!
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July 23, 2014 at 5:17 pm
You remind me of the great diversity we enjoy in our city. Thank you! xoM
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July 23, 2014 at 5:33 pm
Thank you! What a great thing to say!
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July 23, 2014 at 7:11 pm
I grew up on LI–there are so many ghosts there. My Dad told me the history of N Brother, and it used to give me the thrilling creeps as a kid. Fun to be reminded to do the same to my own, thanks.
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July 23, 2014 at 8:18 pm
Well, don’t keep those stories to yourself. Share!
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July 24, 2014 at 7:52 am
This is really beautiful, Donna. Reminds me of the unrestored parts of Ellis Island. You can really feel other presences there. BTW, I really enjoy your blog. You are a very engaging writer.
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July 24, 2014 at 8:49 am
Thank you, Katie! Those nuns taught us well! I’m ashamed to admit I’ve never been to Ellis Island, but if it’s anything like this place, I’ve got to go!
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July 24, 2014 at 8:03 am
Wonderful photographs.
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July 24, 2014 at 8:51 am
I’m glad you like them. I was so thrilled to find them!
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July 30, 2014 at 7:11 am
I was born on Broad Channel and still have contact with people who also grew up there. My father was the original Smitty on 9th Road and my blog is connected to the Broad Channel Historical Society website, thanks to Barbara Toborg! I miss that special island and hope to make it back before I pass on. We need more sites mentioning her and her special people!
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July 30, 2014 at 9:13 am
How lovely! I can’t imagine how you ever left. I knew I was home the first time the street flooded. (I’m a little simple, I guess.)
Hope you do make it back for a visit. Let me know if you’re coming. We’ll knock one back at Grassy’s!
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August 2, 2014 at 5:49 am
My father used to work at Grassy Point some times, especially since my god-father’s brother owned it then. It is so great to hear about the place!
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