To The East

            The East River has a rich ecological history that is often overshadowed by the abuse, misuse and degradation that it has suffered throughout industrialization. Commonly known as a “river”, the East River is actually a tidal straight that separates Manhattan and Long Island. The retreat of the Washington glacier 11,000 years ago and the merging of the Atlantic Ocean first created the river. Swirling tides and the narrow channels of the river plagued sailors throughout history and a Dutch explorer, Adrian Block in 1614 gave name to a dangerous midway point in the River, known as “Helegat” (Hell’s Gate), or bright passage. Hell’s Gate was a point of dangerous rocks and subsequent whirlpools where countless ships lie in ruin at the bottom of the river. In 1885, the largest non-atomic explosion caused by man rid the river of the reefs of Hell Gate but the swift currents still made many problems for traveling. 

Many communities along the shores of the East River sprouted early due to its great location in relation to New York’s harbors and the rest of the world. The river sheltered and fostered industries that spread American commerce all over the world and became a major site for immigration into New York. But the river has throughout history been a site of abundant source of life and environmental interactions. Native Americans fished extensively in the river, as well as sustained cultures through a vast network of trading extending all the way to the Carribean. European settlers and cattle used the river ceremoniously and the tidal energy through the marshes turned mills on Dutch colonial farms. It is almost hard to imagine this idyllic place in relation to the state of the river today, from the heavy polluting of industrial waste to unrestricted dumping that continues to plague this tidal straight. 

There are many islands that line the East River, and these islands have been important sites of “out of sight, out of mind” mentalities that exist in the city. They have been used as such due to the rivers intrinsic tidal current that can “sweep” these unwanted conditions and people away from society. Riker’s Island, located between Bronx and Queens, was purchased in 1884 and was originally a landfill. Currently it is the Department of Corrections main base of operation. North Brother Island housed “Typhoid Mary Mallon”, who was instituted on the island until death to prevent the outbreak of her disease into society. Blackwell’s Island, known now as Roosevelt Island, held a smallpox hospital, a prison, and housed one of the biggest Insane Asylum’s in New York, which held double its carrying capacity in inmates. 

Hell Gate being blasted in October, 1885