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Inwood Hill Park is a public park in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, operated by the
New York City Department of Parks and Recreation The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, also called the Parks Department or NYC Parks, is the department of the government of New York City responsible for maintaining the city's parks system, preserving and maintaining the ecolo ...
. On a high schist ridge that rises above the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between New ...
from
Dyckman Street Dyckman Street ( ), occasionally called West 200th Street, is a street in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is commonly considered to be a crosstown street because it runs from the Hudson River to the Harlem River and inter ...
to the northern tip of the island, Inwood Hill Park's densely folded, glacially scoured topography contains the largest remaining old-growth forest on Manhattan Island, known as the Shorakapok Preserve after an historic Wecquaesgeek village. Unlike other Manhattan parks, Inwood Hill Park is largely natural and consists of mostly wooded, non-landscaped hills.


History


Site

Inwood Hill Park has a human history that goes back to the Pre-Columbian era. Through the 17th century, Native Americans known as the Wecquaesgeek inhabited the area. There is evidence of a main encampment along the eastern edge of the park, known as the village of Shorakapok. The Wecquaesgeek relied on both the Hudson and Harlem Rivers as sources for food. Artifacts and the remains of old campfires were found in Inwood's rock shelters, suggesting their use for shelter and temporary living quarters. Fort Cockhill, one of many forts built in New York by the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, stood in the northwestern extremity of the Park. A small, five-sided earthen structure equipped with two cannons, it overlooked the mouth of Spuyten Duyvil Creek, at its confluence with the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between New ...
. At the time, the area was known from Colonial to post–Revolutionary War times as ''Cox's Hill'' or ''Tubby Hook Hill''. Even though the area which is now Inwood Hill Park was the site of one of the last farms in Manhattan – which lasted to at least c. 1890 – by the 19th century it was largely the location of country retreats for some of the wealthier families of the community and the rest of New York's social elite. One such notable who had a summer estate in Inwood was Isidor Straus, co-owner of the
Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wit ...
department store and a passenger on the ill-fated voyage of the RMS ''Titanic''. The Lords of the Lord & Taylor department store chain owned two mansions built within the park; both mansions were destroyed by fire in the latter part of the 19th century. Additionally, an
orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or a ...
was located high on a bluff in what is now Inwood Hill Park in the nineteenth century. The site today includes a small paved area and park benches; no trace of the building remains. At least three freshwater springs arise in the park, one of which was used for drinking water by the workers who constructed the Henry Hudson Bridge. Some land in the north was formerly known as Cold Spring. Historically, the area now encompassed by Inwood Hill Park has been largely unaffected by development.


Use as park

Andrew Haswell Green Andrew Haswell Green (October 6, 1820 – November 13, 1903) was a lawyer, New York City planner, and civic leader. He is considered "the Father of Greater New York," and is responsible for Central Park, the New York Public Library, the Bronx ...
, who was in charge of the Central Park Commission, and responsible for laying out the streets on the Upper West Side and in Upper Manhattan, first suggested that a park be created in Inwood in 1895. His idea did not gain traction quickly, but the discovery of archeological finds in the area, the unique geology of the hill, historical associations (both true and merely rumored), the inherent beauty of the landscape and the views to be seen from it finally brought the city around,Eldredge & Horenstein, pp. 36–37 and between 1915 and the early 1940s, it purchased parcels of land that make up the park as it is today. The park was officially opened on May 8, 1926. Squatters who lived in the abandoned estates around the perimeter of the park were removed in the 1930s by Robert Moses and the
Works Project Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...
. The WPA also paved over some trails and illuminated them with lampposts, many of which are now in need of repair. Arson and dumping have damaged the park and its integrity, as have erosion-control measures which were not well conceived. In 1992, the central old-growth forest area was designated as Shorakapok Preserve, after the indigenous settlement there. On September 15, 1995, the Inwood Hill Nature Center was dedicated and opened to the public. It is located near the park entrance on 218th Street and Indian Road, and is on a peninsula that was formerly connected to the Bronx mainland before the digging of the
Harlem River Ship Canal Spuyten Duyvil Creek () is a short tidal estuary in New York City connecting the Hudson River to the Harlem River Ship Canal and then on to the Harlem River. The confluence of the three water bodies separate the island of Manhattan from t ...
. The center is located on Manhattan's only salt-water marsh, and has been designated as an interactive exhibit with ongoing monitoring of the natural area. It is also the focal point to watch the eagles that have been placed in the park to be freed when they are able to adjust to the environment.


Great Tulip Tree and Shorakapok Rock

The park's Shorakapok Preserve was formerly the site of a "Great Tulip Tree", a ''
Liriodendron tulipifera ''Liriodendron tulipifera''—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus ''Liriodendron'' (the other ...
'' considered the largest tree on Manhattan, as well as one of the oldest, and was championed and restored by Parks Commissioner
Charles Bunstein Stover Charles Bunstein Stover (July 14, 1861 – April 25, 1929) was a social activist and the Parks Commissioner for New York City from 1910 to 1913. Biography Stover was born in Riegelsville, Pennsylvania, on July 14, 1861. He attended Lafayette Col ...
. As part of care for the tree, a plaque was put up connecting it to Hudson's voyages, a couple of years after the
Hudson–Fulton Celebration The Hudson–Fulton Celebration from September 25 to October 9, 1909 in New York and New Jersey was an elaborate commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s discovery of the Hudson River and the 100th anniversary of Robert Fulton's ...
, commemorating the 300th anniversary of Hudson's work and the 100th anniversary of Fulton's. The original plaque also connected the tree to Native American archaeological finds nearby, speculating that some of the Native Americans at Shorakapok could have interacted with Hudson. Hudson actually engaged in a battle from his ship with Native Americans at nearby Nipinichsen, just north of Spuyten Duyvil Creek, on October 2, 1609. The tree survived for centuries until it was felled by a storm in 1933. Until the 1950s the stump was still to be seen, surrounded by a large iron fence, but as it rotted it was finally removed and a boulder and plaque replaced it. Peter Minuit Post 1247 of the
American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is made up of state, U.S. territory, and overseas departments, and these are in turn made up of lo ...
placed the boulder and the plaque in 1954, commemorating the 300th anniversary of New Amsterdam gaining municipal rights a year earlier. The plaque labels the boulder "Shorakkopoch" (a more recent Parks Department sign nearby calls it "Shorakapok Rock"), and claims that "according to legend" this is where Minuit negotiated the purchase of Manhattan Island from Native Americans. The account does not appear in any historical records, and some historians place any such meeting location in Lower Manhattan. The association of a "treaty tree" in different locations with land acquisition has been noted as a common myth that promotes a narrative of peaceful colonial settlement.


Geography

The park covers . The Henry Hudson Parkway and
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...
's
Empire Connection The West Side Line, also called the West Side Freight Line, is a railroad line on the west side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. North of Penn Station, from 34th Street, the line is used by Amtrak passenger service heading north via ...
railroad line run through it, and at its northern end the Henry Hudson Bridge and the rail-only
Spuyten Duyvil Bridge The Spuyten Duyvil Bridge is a railroad swing bridge that spans the Spuyten Duyvil Creek between Manhattan and the Bronx, in New York City. The bridge is located at the northern tip of Manhattan where the Spuyten Duyvil Creek meets the Hudson R ...
link Manhattan to the Bronx. The park's western boundary is the Hudson River, and the southern boundary is Dyckman Street. From
Dyckman Street Dyckman Street ( ), occasionally called West 200th Street, is a street in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is commonly considered to be a crosstown street because it runs from the Hudson River to the Harlem River and inter ...
to 204th Street the eastern boundary is Payson Avenue, from 204th to 214th Street it is Seaman Avenue, and from 215th Street to the park's end at 218th Street the eastern boundary is Indian Road. footpaths criss-cross the park, allowing easy access to Dyckman Street, Fort Tryon Park,
Fort Washington Park Fort Washington, located near the community of Fort Washington, Maryland, was for many decades the only defensive fort protecting Washington D.C. The original fort, overlooking the Potomac River, was completed in 1809, and was begun as Fort Wa ...
, and Riverside Park – part of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway. Some of these trails are former roads leading to what were once summer estates that later were brought under the control of the city in the creation of the park. Bolton Road, which was the main drive to the Bolton estate, is now the primary pedestrian pathway within the park; its entrance marked by a sign located on Payson Avenue. Inwood Hill Park is geologically diverse, with marble, schist, and limestone all prevalent in the area. The park is next to the seismologically active
Dyckman Street Fault The Dyckman Street Fault is a seismologically active fault in New York City which runs parallel along the southern border of Inwood Hill Park, crossing the Harlem River and into Morris Heights. As recently as 1989, activity of this fault caused a ...
which runs parallel along the southern border of the park. As recently as 1989, activity of this fault caused a magnitude 2 earthquake.


Economic Impact

Urban parks have a significant economic impact on surrounding communities.Clinton, J., Hwang, L., Egan, J., Hannon Sr, M., & Strickland, C. (2022). The Economic Benefits of Parks in New York City. Trust for Public Land. https://www.tpl.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/033022_Economic-Benefits-NYC_Final_v2.pdf. The development and evolution of Inwood Park's
flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or ''skin flora''. ...
and fauna are intrinsically linked to the financial stability of
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...
City and its residents. Fiscal investments of the state have a significant impact on the health and species diversity of flora and fauna in New York city parks. During the New York Fiscal crisis in the 1970s, the New York state government decided it would be prudent to cut funding for the maintenance of New York parks and redistribute the money to other areas of public and private services. Consequently, many public workers in New York City parks were laid off due to this decision. The Protected Native Plants Program was created in 1989 to provide regulatory protection for native New York state plants and was subsequently updated in 2012 in accordance with new data provided by th
New York Natural Heritage Program
In contrast to large parks such as
Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...
, which receive a substantial amount of funding from donations from the surrounding community, a majority of Inwood Hill Park's funding is provided by a combination of grants and property taxes, common methods of funding parks in low-income areas
Partnerships for Parks
a nonprofit organization, has partnered with the city of New York to maintain and manage parks and promote their use. Th
Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act
passed as a ballot initiative in the November 2022 New York state general election, As part of this approved initiative, New York plans to set aside 4.2 billion dollars in order to enhance, allocate and redevelop the natural landscape and environment of the state. 650 million dollars of these funds will be allocated to parks, open spaces and agricultural lands. This will involve the purchase of land for conservation, restoration/beautification of parks, and the expansion of the proportion of state-owned land. It is expected that the Clean Air, Water, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act will result in the creation of approximately 84,000 jobs. A six to nine month training program designed to provide employees with an understanding of the environment will be provided by th
Parks Opportunities Program
and will include training on soil composition, tree types, and plant and animal species.


Fauna and Flora

The area of the park along the Harlem River includes Muscota Marsh, one of Manhattan's last remaining natural
salt marsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is dominate ...
es, the other being Smuggler's Cove, which attracts large numbers of waterbirds. These waterfowl can be studied further via educational programs held at the Nature Center at the north end of the property.
Mallard The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argen ...
s,
Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), or Canadian goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is o ...
and
ring-billed gull The ring-billed gull (''Larus delawarensis'') is a medium-sized gull. The genus name is from Latin ''Larus'' which appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird. The specific ''delawarensis'' refers to the Delaware River. Description ...
s are year-round residents, using both the water and the nearby lawns and ballfields. Many wading birds and waterfowl pass through on the spring and fall migrations, and
heron The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychu ...
s and
cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven gen ...
s often spend the summer. Also in the
salt marsh A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is dominate ...
can be found fish, mollusks and
crustaceans Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group c ...
among the
cordgrass ''Spartina'' is a taxon of plants in the grass family, frequently found in coastal salt marshes. Its species are commonly known as cordgrass or cord-grass, and are native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean in western and southern Europe, north ...
and
bulrush Bulrush is a vernacular name for several large wetland grass-like plants *Sedge family (Cyperaceae): **''Cyperus'' **'' Scirpus'' **''Blysmus'' **''Bolboschoenus'' **'' Scirpoides'' **'' Isolepis'' **''Schoenoplectus'' **'' Trichophorum'' *Typha ...
es which can tolerate both salt and fresh water.Eldredge & Horenstein, pp.34-35 The woods support a wide variety of birds, including common species such as
blue jay The blue jay (''Cyanocitta cristata'') is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to eastern North America. It lives in most of the eastern and central United States; some eastern populations may be migratory. Resident populations are ...
s and cardinals, as well as
wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally d ...
s.
Birds of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators h ...
that breed in the park include
red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members with ...
s and owls. A five-year project that began in summer 2002 attempted to reintroduce the
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...
to Manhattan using hacking boxes in the park and eaglets brought in from the Midwest. In the first summer, three of the four introduced eaglets fledged successfully; three or four fledged each year of the program. The nesting structure was removed in 2009. Animals found in the park include Eastern and
meadow vole The eastern meadow vole (''Microtus pennsylvanicus''), sometimes called the field mouse or meadow mouse, is a North American vole found in eastern Canada and the United States. Its range extends farther south along the Atlantic coast. The weste ...
s, red-bellied salamanders,
southern flying squirrel The southern flying squirrel or the assapan (''Glaucomys volans'') is one of three species of the genus '' Glaucomys'' and one of three flying squirrel species found in North America. It is found in deciduous and mixed woods in the eastern half o ...
s, opossums, white-footed deer mice, and
cottontail rabbit Cottontail rabbits are the leporid species in the genus ''Sylvilagus'', found in the Americas. Most ''Sylvilagus'' species have stub tails with white undersides that show when they retreat, giving them their characteristic name. However, this ...
s, as well as the expected eastern grey squirrels and
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
s.
Foxes Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...
were also once residents, but the increasing number of
coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological n ...
s spotted in
Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...
and in the Bronx's Van Cortlandt Park may account for the foxes' apparent current absence. Though the park does not support large wild mammals, the local wildlife does include raccoons and skunks as well as the usual city rodents. Both locals and people from outside the neighborhood fish from the riverbank at the north end of the park. The park has both native and invasive plant species. While the presence of plant life is obvious, the fauna may not be as revealing.


Native and Non-Native Species

Nursery plants native species were added to the park providing more vegetation such as Abies balsamea (L) Mill., Acer rubrum L., A. saccharum March, Aesculus Pavia L., and Betula Lenta. Non- native species were also introduced to the park affecting the native species. Some of the non-native species present were Rubus phoenicolasius maxim (classified as a rare species), Broussonetia papryifera (L) Vent., Morus alba L, and Paulownia tomentosa (Thund.) Steudel. In the 1930s, a total of 83 species were found in which 32 were non-native species and were specified by Graves, Small and field trip club.


Usage

The park contains three children's playgrounds, baseball and soccer fields, and tennis and basketball courts. The Inwood Hill Nature Center at the north end of the park is both a location for educational programs and the local headquarters of the Urban Park Rangers. Inwood Hill Park's ballfields are heavily used by local and other city leagues during the baseball season. This usage places extreme pressure on the park, which, as a result, has required more active management in recent years. The peaceful environment of Hill Park also provides space for barbeque, dogs runs complementing, kayak, and canoe launch. The park highlight specific activities that contribute to the park usage such as the hiking trail and the Hudson River Bike Trail. The lack of green space in the eastern part of Inwood and the Bronx nearby creates an enormous demand for picnicking with barbecues and table/chair setups, activity that is either illegal or tightly controlled in most city parks; however, Inwood Hill Park has managed this by permitting such setups on the manicured, maintained peninsula portion of the park.


In popular culture

The park is a central location in the science fiction novel ''The Orion Project'', due to being a low population part of a brightly lit city.


References

Notes Bibliography *


External links


NYC Parks: Inwood Hill Park
{{Protected areas of New York City Inwood, Manhattan Nature centers in New York City Parks in Manhattan Urban public parks 1926 establishments in New York City Works Progress Administration in New York City Harlem River Individual trees in New York City