The neighborhood of Huguenot began to be established in the middle of the seventeenth century.  At this time, the area was known as Bloomingview. Pierre Billiou and his wife Francoise were some of the first Huguenots to settle on Staten Island. Huguenots were people that were a part of the Protestant Reformed Church of France. At that time, their people were being prosecuted for not converting to Catholicism and those who were lucky enough fled their homeland for America.
By 1849, there were many Huguenots living in Bloomingview and, thanks to religious freedom, the Church of the Huguenots was established. Just two years later, the church was built and was known as "The Brown Church" or "The Church of the Huguenots". Â By 1918, the church had caught on fire, but a new church was built by 1924. This church still stands today at the corner of Huguenot Avenue and Amboy Road; it was dedicated as a New York City Landmark and is known as The Reformed Church of Huguenot Park.
Around the middle of the nineteenth century, the area of Bloomingview was renamed as Huguenot. This name came about from the Huguenot settlers that lived in the area. By 1860, the Staten Island Railway was being extended down to Tottenville, where it would pass through Huguenot. At that time, Huguenot received its own station, called Huguenot Park. It wasn't until about the 1970s that the train station's name got changed to Huguenot.
Between 1908 and 1923, there was a hotel known as the Terra Marine Inn that was located by the Huguenot Beach, along the Raritan Bay. This hotel had many visitors while it was in operation and brought more attention to the area. At that time, Huguenot was filled with enchanting woodlands, which many people gravitated towards.
After the 1970s, Huguenot became a popular area to live in and the neighborhood started to be further developed. Today, Huguenot still has a good amount of woodlands in the neighborhood and close by. The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation preserved some of these woodlands by making them parks. One of these sites is known as Kingdom Pond Park.
Kingdom Pond Park is a little more than four acres of woods. This park is bound to the north by Jansen Street and to the south by Hylan Boulevard. It sits in between Huguenot Avenue and Arbutus Avenue, which are its western and eastern boundaries respectively.   The park is separated into two lots on either side of Kingdom Avenue. Kingdom Pond Park received its name most likely from the street, Kingdom Avenue, which separates the two parcels of land, and for the fact that a pond sits within the park.
When the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation obtained this area, they left it as a natural habitat. Kingdom Pond Park is filled with many tree and plant species, animals that both live in and visit the habitat, and a freshwater pond. This park is a nice place for nature lovers who like to go exploring.
Posted by Anthony Licciardello on
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