Staten Island History 
A look back at history across Staten Island and New York City. Get fast facts about Staten Island, and the events that shaped what the borough is today.
There are currently 16 blog entries related to this category.
The Staten Island Railway (SIRT) today...
Thursday, May 24th, 2012 at 1:46pm. 342 Views, 0 Comments.
Today, the main line of the Staten Island Railway is still in operation and is quite popular. There are currently twenty-two stations being used. However, a station just before the last stop in southern Staten Island is planned and will replace the second- and third-to-last stops, which are quite close together. This station would be known as the Arthur Kill Road station, as that is where it will be located.
The first station of the Staten Island Railway is at the St. George Ferry Terminal, which is located at Bay Street and 
Richmond Terrace. This wheelchair-accessible station provides passengers with access to the ferry, as well as over one dozen buses which begin or end their routes here and travel to points all over the Island. These…
Staten Island Railroad- A historic look back
Thursday, May 24th, 2012 at 1:15pm. 1018 Views, 0 Comments.
Between April 23 and June 2 of 1860, Staten Island was given its very own rail line. The track consisted of eighteen stations which began at Clifton and traveled along the East Shore of the Staten Island all the way down to Tottenville. This line was known as the Staten Island Railroad and, soon after having been constructed, was purchased by Cornelius Vanderbilt, who had also owned the ferry terminals on this side of the Island.
Many people believed the railroad to be a prosperous business and so it went through a handful of owners. Since Cornelius Vanderbilt had owned the ferries, you can imagine what an impact it had on him when a boiler exploded on the ferry Westfield in 1871. This left Cornelius Vanderbilt bankrupt, which led to the purchasing…
The St. George / New Brighton Historic District Staten Island
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 9:33am. 578 Views, 0 Comments.
Between the years of 1835 and 1987, dozens of buildings were constructed at the northern tip of Staten Island. Over the years, architectural styles changed and the buildings began to stand out due to their individuality. Having been well-kept over the years, a hearing was held by the Landmarks Preservation Commission to designate the buildings, as well as their boundaries, as a Historic District. On July 19, 1994, the historic district was established as the St. George/New Brighton Historic District.
Several of the buildings in the district had been demolished over the years, leaving some scattered vacant lots. However, seventy-six of the St. George/New Brighton Historic District’s original buildings are still intact. The designated buildings…
Staten Island Historic District at St. George (Part 2)
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 7:25am. 559 Views, 0 Comments.
The latter half of the nineteenth century saw the popularization of Colonial Revival architecture, which lasted half-way into the next century. In 1890, Edward A. Sargent constructed a Colonial Revival-style home, at 103 St. Marks Place, for broker Frederick L. Rodewald. A few years later, in 1894, the home that he had constructed in the Gothic Revival-style at 83 St. Marks Place was extended and altered much, where it became a Colonial Revival-style home. At the turn of the century, between 1905 and 1906, lumber merchant George W. Allen had four of these types of houses constructed. Samuel R. Brick, Jr. built the first three, which were located at 29, 31, and 35 St. Marks Place. The last was designed by Edward A. Sargent and was located at 27…
The Historic District of St. George/New Brighton Staten Island (part 3)
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 7:24am. 832 Views, 0 Comments.
From 1880 until the turn of the century, the Shingle Style had become increasingly popular. These houses were influenced by the English Colonial, which were common from the early seventeenth century up until the middle of the nineteenth century. From 1886 until 1907, one dozen Shingle Style houses were constructed within the St. George/New Brighton Historic District. The first of these houses, built in the first couple of years for the wealthy banker, Anson Phelps Stokes, were located at 48, 52, and 56 St. Marks Place. Three more houses were built for the same man in 1890 at 7-8, 9-10, and 11 Phelps Place. These houses were designed by architect Douglas Smyth.
Edward A. Sargent, the well-known architect of whom we spoke earlier, designed a few of…
The St. George Historic District. Staten Island... (Part 4)
Saturday, November 12th, 2011 at 7:23am. 420 Views, 0 Comments.
Many houses are solely vernacular in architectural style. Four of these, which were built between the last half of the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century, are located within the St. George/New Brighton Historic District. The first home to be built in the District using local resources was erected between 1853 and 1874. It is uncertain whether this home, which is located at 17 Carroll Place, was built for Henry P. Robertson, who owned the oldest house in the District, or James Wilkinson, who was part of Crabtree & Wilkinson silk dyeworks.
The next three Vernacular-style homes were built during the early twentieth-century. In 1902, Norman Young built a home at 226 Hamilton Avenue for George Gregory. It has not…
The Outerbridge Crossing. New York State's southernmost bridge.
Tuesday, November 8th, 2011 at 2:07pm. 208 Views, 0 Comments.
On April 30, 1921, the Port of New York Authority was established as a bi-state authority between New York and New Jersey. Two years later, the port had announced that two bridges would be constructed under their authority between Staten Island and New Jersey. The bridges would connect northwestern Staten Island with Elizabeth, New Jersey and southwestern Staten Island with Perth Amboy, New Jersey. The bridge gave Staten Island’s South Shore Residents and commercial business access to New Jersey, which would ultimately lead to demise of Tottenville to Perth Amboy Ferry in the 1950’s.Today, the ferry terminal is abandoned, but still intact at the foot of the Tottenville Train Station.
The southwestern bridge was given a steel cantilever design…
The Staten Island Ferry and Terminal- Staten Island's Transportation Hub.
Sunday, November 6th, 2011 at 10:56am. 1479 Views, 0 Comments.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Staten Island was connected to Manhattan, Long Island, and New Jersey by ten different ferries that operated from different locations on the Island. This all ended in 1886, when St. George became the sole ferry terminal on Staten Island. By 1897, passengers had to pay five cents to take the one-hour ride to Lower Manhattan. In 1975, and again in 1990, the cost of the ferry became twenty-five cents and fifty cents, respectively. By 1997, however, the fare had ended and the ferry became, and remains, free for commuters and sightseers. The Staten Island Ferry Terminal is currently the main terminus for Staten Island’s ferries, its Railroad line, and many of the local buses.
There are four…
The Goethals Bridge, Staten Island
Wednesday, October 26th, 2011 at 8:12am. 863 Views, 0 Comments.
The Goethals Bridge, Staten Island
For years, ferries serviced the island, taking residents from Staten Island to New Jersey and vice versa. During the late 1860’s, the idea of a bridge connecting the two was introduced. In 1890, a railroad bridge was constructed, connecting Elizabethport, New Jersey and Staten Island’s Howland Hook Marine Terminal. After the First World War, which lasted from 1914 to 1918, the demand rose for a bridge that could accommodate automobile traffic. By 1923, the New York and New Jersey Bridge and Tunnel Commission announced that they would be constructing two bridges that would serve such a purpose; one connecting northwestern Staten Island to New Jersey and the other connecting southwestern Staten…
The Bayonne Bridge
Monday, October 24th, 2011 at 8:29pm. 234 Views, 0 Comments.
During the early part of the twentieth century, residents requested that a bridge be built which would simplify the commute into Bayonne, New Jersey from Staten Island. The governors of both New York and New Jersey accepted their request and sanctioned the Port of New York Authority to have the bridge built. On September 18, 1928, construction commenced, using the designs of Othmar H. Ammann and Cass Gilbert. By November of 1931, construction was complete and the bridge opened on the 15th of that month in the neighborhood of Port Richmond, making it the longest steel-arch bridge in the world. Over the years, of course, longer bridges have been built, but it is still currently in the top five, being the fourth-longest in the world and the second…
