North River is an alternate name for the southernmost portion of the Hudson River in the vicinity of New York City.[1][2][3][4][5] The colonial name for the entire Hudson given to it by the Dutch in the early seventeenth century, the term fell out of general use for most of the river's 300+ mile course during the early 1900s.[6] However it still retains currency in the New York City area as an alternate or additional name among local mariners and others[7][8][9] as well as appearing on some nautical charts[10] and maps. The term also lives on in the names of a variety of Manhattan facilities along the waterway such as the North River piers, North River Tunnels, and the North River Wastewater Treatment Plant..
At different times "North River" has referred to the entire Hudson; the portion of it running between Manhattan and New Jersey; and/or just the short length flowing between Lower Manhattan and Hoboken, New Jersey roughly corresponding to the location of the North River Piers. Its history is strongly connected to New York City's shipping industry, which disappeared rapidly in the mid-20th century due to the opening of the Holland Tunnel (which connected Manhattan Island to New Jersey), the advent of containerization, and other factors.[11]
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"North River" on maps
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Hagstrom Maps, the leading mapmaker in the New York City area, has labeled all or part of the Hudson adjacent to Manhattan as "North River" on several of its maps. For instance, on a 1997 Hagstrom Map of Manhattan, the stretch of river between Hoboken, New Jersey and Lower Manhattan (roughly corresponding to the location of the North River piers) was labeled "North River", with the label "Hudson River" used above Midtown Manhattan.
On a 2000 map of "Northern Approaches to New York City" (part of Hagstrom's New York [State] Road Map), the entire river adjacent to Manhattan was labeled "Hudson River (North River)", with just "Hudson River" (no parenthetical) appearing further north at Tappan Zee. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's current charts call the river west of Manhattan merely the "Hudson",[12] and the United States Geological Survey lists "North River" as an alternative name of the Hudson River without qualifying it as any particular portion of the river.[13]
Origin of the name
The origin of the name North River is generally attributed to the Dutch, in describing the names of the rivers in their American New Netherland colony, designating what is now the Hudson as the North River, the Connecticut as the Fresh River, and the Delaware as the South River.[14] Another story of its origin has it that the rivers connected to New York Harbor are named the "North" River and "East" River based on what direction of travel they permit.[15]
North River piers
Piers along the Hudson shore of Manhattan were formerly used for shipping and berthing a number of ocean-going ships. In shipping notices, they were designated as, for example, "Pier 14, North River". Most of the piers that once existed in lower Manhattan have fallen into disuse or have been destroyed, although a number have been adapted to new uses. As with the river, the name "North River piers" has largely been supplanted by "Hudson River piers", or just by a pier and number, e.g., "Pier 54".
The remaining piers range from Pier 25 at N. Moore Street, scheduled to be rebuilt in 2009,[16] to Pier 99 at 59th Street, which houses the West 59th Street Marine Transfer Station, used by the New York City Sanitation Department. Many of these piers and the waterfront between them are part of the Hudson River Park which stretches from 59th Street to the Battery. The park, a joint project between New York City and New York State commenced in 1998, consists of several non-contiguous parcels of land and piers totaling 125 acres (0.51 km2), plus another 400 acres (1.6 km2) of the river itself.[17] Several piers are actively being rebuilt as part of the park project, with approximately 40% of the planned work complete as of early 2009.[18]
Piers above Pier 40 have addresses approximately that of Manhattan's numbered streets plus 40 – thus North River Pier 86 is at West 46th Street.
Historical and current use
- What little remained of Piers 1 through 21 were buried under landfill from the World Trade Center construction project in 1973 and turned into Battery Park City.
- Pier 34 is a pair of narrow piers which connect to a ventilation building for the Holland Tunnel. Pier 79 connects to a Lincoln Tunnel vent shaft.
- Pier 51 and 84 house two water-themed playgrounds, part of the Hudson River Park project.[19][20]
- The Chelsea Piers entertainment complex is located at piers 59 through 62, from West 17th to West 22nd Street. In the early 1900s, Chelsea Piers was used by the Cunard and White Star lines, and was the intended destination of the Titanic as well as the final berth of the Lusitania.
- Pier 66 has a public boathouse.
- Pier 79 is used by the NY Waterway ferry service and Pier 83 by Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, a sightseeing boat operator. The two companies played a prominent role in the rescue of passengers from US Airways Flight 1549, which made an emergency water landing on the Hudson in January 2009.
- Pier 84 is a stop for New York Water Taxi and has a bicycle rental shop and other businesses serving primarily tourists.
- Pier 86 at West 46th Street is home to the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum, the centerpiece of which is the USS Intrepid, an aircraft carrier that served from World War II to the Vietnam War.
- Piers 88 through 92 are part of the New York Passenger Ship Terminal, where a number of modern cruise ships and ocean liners dock. In 1942, the USS Lafyette (formerly SS Normandie) caught fire at Pier 88, remaining capsized there for a year.
- Pier 94 was formerly part of the Passenger Ship Terminal, and now houses the "Unconvention Center", the second-largest exhibition hall in New York City.[21][22]
- The massive North River Wastewater Treatment Plant opened in phases between 1986 and 1991 and is located between 137th and 145th Street in Upper Manhattan.
See also
References
- ^ The Random House Dictionary (2009) ("Part of the Hudson River between NE New Jersey and SE New York.")
- ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,'Fourth Edition (2006) ("An estuary of the Hudson River between New Jersey and New York City flowing into Upper New York Bay.")
- ^ Webster's New World College Dictionary (2005) ("The lower course of the Hudson River, between New York City & NE N.J.")
- ^ The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary (2009) ("An estuary of Hudson River between SE New York & NE New Jersey" )
- ^ Joint Report With Comprehensive Plan and Recommendations New York, New Jersey Port and Harbor Development Commission (1926)
- ^ Steinhauer, Jennifer."F.Y.I",The New York Times, May 15, 1994. Accessed January 17, 2008. "The North River was the colonial name for the entire Hudson River, just as the Delaware was known as the South River. These names went out of use sometime early in the century, said Norman Brouwer, a historian at the South Street Seaport Museum."
- ^ North River Historic Ship Society
- ^ The Great North River Tugboat Race and Competition
- ^ North River Power Squadron
- ^ "SEA PADDLE NYC"
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=yE1Pyui4GpkC&pg=PA46
- ^ http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/12335.shtml
- ^ http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:970226
- ^ Roberts, Sam. "Brooklyn Murders, Depression Love, a Glamorous Librarian", The New York Times, June 24, 2007. Accessed January 6, 2008. "You may even be directed to the sewage treatment plant in West Harlem, practically the last vestige of the name that, legend has it, the Dutch bestowed on the tidal estuary navigated by Henry Hudson to distinguish it from the South River, now known as the Delaware."
- ^ Dougherty, Steve. "MY MANHATTAN; Away From the Uproar, Before a Strong Wind", The New York Times, May 31, 2002. Accessed January 17, 2008. "'Because it's the river you sail to go north,' Captain Freitas explained. 'To sail east, to Long Island Sound, you would take the East River.'"
- ^ http://www.lowermanhattan.info/construction/project_updates/hudson_river_park_tribeca_23103.aspx
- ^ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F04EFDA123CF932A35755C0A9669C8B63&pagewanted=all
- ^ http://www.hudsonriverpark.org/construction/index.asp
- ^ http://www.hudsonriverpark.org/explore/playgroundscw.html
- ^ http://www.hudsonriverpark.org/explore/playgroundspier84.html
- ^ Pier 94 New York—The Unconvention Center
- ^ Fried, Joseph P. (2009-08-13). "The City Hopes to Double the Size of Manhattan’s No. 2 Convention Center, in the West 50’s". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/13/nyregion/13piers.html. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
Further reading
- A Guide to a Hudson River Park Walk from Battery Park to Riverside Park
- Wired New York - Hudson River Piers
- North River Historic Ship Society: Historic Vessels of New York Harbor
Coordinates: 40°47′12″N 73°59′31″W / 40.78667°N 73.99194°W
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