Hoffman Island
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Hoffman Island is an Template:Convert artificial island in the Lower New York Bay, off the South Beach of Staten Island, New York City.<ref name=hw/> A smaller, Template:Convert artificial island, Swinburne Island, lies immediately to the south.<ref name=nyt1/> Created in 1873 upon the Orchard Shoal<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> by the addition of land fill, the island is named for former New York City mayor (1866–1868) and New York Governor (1869–1871) John Thompson Hoffman.<ref name="Citycyclopedia">Template:Cite enc-nyc</ref>
During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Hoffman and Swinburne Islands were used as a quarantine station, housing immigrants who, upon their arrival at the immigrant inspection station at nearby Ellis Island, presented with symptoms of contagious diseases.<ref name=hw>Template:Cite news</ref>
World War II
Starting in 1938 and extending through World War II, the United States Merchant Marine used Hoffman and Swinburne Islands as a training station.<ref name="Citycyclopedia"/><ref>"The Ship That Never Sails." Popular Mechanics, February 1942, pp.66-69/164.</ref> The Quonset huts built during this period are no longer evident on Hoffman Island. As of 2017, their remnants remain on Swinburne Island. During World War II the islands also served as anchorages for anti-submarine nets intended to protect New York Bay and its associated shipping/naval activities, from enemy submarines entering from the Atlantic Ocean.<ref name="Citycyclopedia"/>
Post–World War II
Since World War II, several proposals for utilizing Hoffman and Swinburne Islands have been presented. In the 1950s, city planner Robert Moses and political consultant Bernard Baruch advocated transforming the islands into a city park, but this plan was not realized.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1962, the New York City Board of Estimate had approved the purchase of rock excavated from the Richmond Tunnel for a bulkhead to join the two islands, but the rock dug out from the tunnel was of poor quality and was instead dumped on the North Shore of Staten Island.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In 1965 on Hoffman Island, eleven people, including the filmmaker Leon Gast, were arrested on charges including trespassing and indecent exposure for their roles in creating a Nudie film on the island.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In the 1980s, in response to plans of New York City to open new homeless shelters amidst Staten Island's residential neighborhoods, some of the potentially affected residents proposed a never-implemented plan to construct a homeless shelter on Hoffman Island, Swinburne Island or both.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Current use
Hoffman and Swinburne islands are managed by the National Park Service, as part of the Staten Island Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area. The island was transferred from the city to the National Park Service in 1974.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> To protect the islands' avian residents, which include great egret, snowy egret, black-crowned night heron, glossy ibis, double-crested cormorant and great black-backed gull, the island is off limits to the public. Beginning in 2001, harbor seals have been observed wintering on and near the islands.<ref name=nyt1>Template:Cite news</ref>
References
Further reading
- Seitz, Sharon & Miller, Stuart. (2003) The Other Islands of New York. Template:ISBN.
External links
- "A Little Island Near New York Peopled With Babies" - The New York Times, Magazine Section. November 27, 1910
- "First U. S. Maritime Service Training Station" - Mast Magazine, March 1944
- "...to the New York Islands" at Forgotten NY
- NYC Audubon Harbor Herons Project
- Harbor Herons Nesting Survey -recent reports on wading bird, cormorant, and gull nesting activity at Hoffman Island
- NYC Audubon's Harbor Herons Project
- Hoffman Island Radio Association
Template:Staten Island Template:New York City Islands Template:Portalbar
- Pages with broken file links
- Islands of New York City
- Artificial islands of New York (state)
- History of immigration to the United States
- History of New York City
- Protected areas of Staten Island
- Islands of Staten Island
- Gateway National Recreation Area
- Nature reserves in New York (state)
- Islands of New York (state)
- 1873 establishments in New York (state)
- Military facilities in New York City