Westchester Creek, from Clason Point Park

Westchester Creek (also known as Frenchman's Creek) is a tidal inlet of the

East River The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Quee ...

located in the south eastern portion of

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. It is 2.1 miles (3.39 km) in length. The creek formerly traveled further inland, to what is now Pelham Parkway, extending almost to

Eastchester Bay Eastchester Bay is a sound between City Island and the mainland Bronx in New York City, New York. Technically, it is not a bay, since it is open to larger bodies of water at both ends. The northern end connects via a narrow channel to Pelham ...

and making

Throggs Neck Throggs Neck (also known as Throgs Neck) is a neighborhood and peninsula in the south-eastern portion of the borough of the Bronx in New York City. It is bounded by the East River and Long Island Sound to the south and east, Westchester Creek on ...

into an island during heavy storms. However, much of the route has been filled in, replaced by such structures as the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, an affiliate agency of the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Opened on October ...

's Westchester Yard and the Hutchinson Metro Center. Westchester Creek's present-day head is at

Herbert H. Lehman High School Herbert H. Lehman High School is a public high school at 3000 East Tremont Avenue, in the Westchester Square section of the Bronx, New York City. The school is named after former New York State Governor Herbert Henry Lehman (1878–1963). The sch ...

; the remaining portion is largely inaccessible and surrounded by industrial enterprises or empty lots. Westchester Creek is traversed by the Bruckner Interchange at about its midpoint. Pugsley Creek, historically known as Maenippis Kill and Cromwell's Creek, is a right bank tributary of Westchester Creek and is surrounded by a park of the same name. The creek formerly extended north to Westchester Avenue, but was later truncated to Bruckner Expressway and then to its current terminus at Lacombe Avenue. Most of the former creekbed has been developed, though a single block of Bolton Avenue on the creek's path remains undeveloped. Ferry Point Park is on the east bank. The first permanent European settlement in the Bronx,

Westchester Square Westchester Square is a residential neighborhood geographically located in the eastern section of the New York City borough of the Bronx. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: East Tremont Avenue and Silver Street, Bl ...

, was established in 1654 by Thomas Pell and 15-20 settlers at the head of navigation of Westchester Creek. The creek's original headwaters was buried in the 1930s to make way for the construction of the Hutchinson River Parkway. A 30-slip marina called Metro Marine was built on the creek in 1957. The creek has become polluted over the years due to heavy industrial use. However, in 2014, the Friends of Ferry Point Park announced plans to restore Westchester and Pugsley Creeks for $100 million.

References

External links

Bronx County Historical Society
Long Island Sound Rivers of New York (state) Rivers of the Bronx Westchester Square, Bronx {{NewYork-river-stub

See also

References

External links