Published by The History Press
Charleston, SC 29403
www.historypress.net
Copyright 2015 by Stephen Paul DeVillo
All rights reserved
First published 2015
e-book edition 2015
ISBN 978.1.62585.490.2
Library of Congress Control Number: 2014959986
print edition ISBN 978.1.62619.968.2
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PREFACE
This book began with a boy walking along the Bronx River with his grandfather more than fifty years ago. Living in the northern Bronx, we often took our walks along a riverside ribbon of parkland left from a bypassed stretch of the old Bronx River Parkway. On one occasion, we spotted a lone man paddling a canoe down the Bronx River. Astonished at the sight, we agreed that we had never seen such an absurdity. Back then, people didnt do things such as paddle canoes in the Bronx River. Neglected and polluted as it was, people didnt go near the river, let alone paddle canoes in it. Yet there it was, running through what later became known as Shoelace Park but then was the geographic axis of a boys childhood universe.
To my mind, though, the Bronx River wasnt really a river at all. Its name was only an empty grandiosity applied to a noisome flow of olive-colored water barely a lazy stones toss wide. My six-year-old sensibility knew, from all the old black-and-white Tom Sawyer movies on TV, just what a real river was supposed to look like. A real river was the Mississippi, big and wide, with steamboats, towboats and ironclads; Mark Twain and Civil War battles; and tall tales and legendary charactersnone of which was to be found on the lowly Bronx River.
The boy grew up, but he never left the Bronx River, and in time, he grew to learn that the Bronx River, in its own way, has all these things. It, too, has its legends and folklore, its history and battles and its authors, painters and poets who once walked along itEdgar Allan Poe and Fenimore Cooper and, yes, Mark Twain. The once skeptical boy today shares these things with equally dubious visitors and explains that the Bronx River has everything a true river is supposed to have. It has its own story; in fact, it has many stories to tell us, if we but pause to listen.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
History is not a solitary pursuit, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many individuals and organizations that have generously and graciously contributed to the creation of this book.
I especially thank my grandfather Ray Augustus Edwards, who many years ago first introduced me to the Bronx River and to the wonders that history can reveal, with additional thanks to my grandmother Neta Edwards. I extend particular thanks to my mom, Patricia Edwards Clyne, who has given me much professional insight into the craft of research and writing and whose personal library of New York State history has been an invaluable resource. Thanks also to my dad, Francis Clyne, with whom Ive shared many rockhounding expeditions that gave me a hands-on appreciation of the regions geology.
A note of appreciation goes to the official Bronx historian, Lloyd Ultan, who has mentored more than one generation of Bronx historians, and to Angel Hernandez, educator at the Bronx County Historical Society, who together with Professor Ultan and Gary Doc Hermalyn promotes the awareness of the Bronx as an interesting and special place. In addition, I am grateful to Laura Tosi, librarian of the Bronx County Historical Society, for access to its vertical files, which have been a treasure-trove of information. Thanks also to the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation and Westchester County Parks for maintaining and expanding the rivers accessibility.
A note of appreciation goes to the New York Public Library, New York Universitys Bobst Library, the Yonkers Library, the Eastchester Historical Society, the Westchester County Historical Society, the White Plains Historical Society and the Yonkers Historical Society. To the members of the Mount Pleasant Historical Society, I want to say that I enjoyed your company on the Kensico Dam walking tour, and I learned a lot from you all that day.
Tremendous thanks are due to the corps of Bronx historians of the East Bronx History Forum, who have been more than generous in sharing their knowledge, insights and research discoveries with me in the course of writing this book. The conviviality Ive found at the forums monthly meetings at the old Huntington Library on Westchester Square encouraged me to pursue this project, and I extend particular thanks to the following individuals for their contributions.
The support and enthusiasm of the late Bill Twomey will be dearly missed, along with his weekly history column in the Bronx Times that never ceased to turn up new surprises. Tom Casey and Tom Vasti have given me much valuable research, and their awesome collections of old-time Bronx postcards have often proven valuable documentation of things that are no longer there. Fellow Bronx River Rambler Hank Stroobants, Woodlawn and Wakefield historian, has given me his invaluable friendship and support and with Mike Gupta has taught me a lot of things I never knew about my old neighborhood on the river. Jorge Santiago deserves special credit for freely sharing his many historical discoveries. Nicholas Di Brino, historian of Morris Park, has generously shared his research, insights and recollections as someone intimately familiar with the Bronx, both back in the day and now. The invaluable map he provided of old West Farms was especially helpful in sorting out the history of what might otherwise have been an indecipherable palimpsest of layered urban development. The late Morgan Powell made his brilliant research available through his Bronx River Sankofa website, and his memorable walking tours brought to life the rivers African American community history. Thanks also to Nick Vitale and to Peter Ostrander of the Kingsbridge Historical Society, who has shared his knowledge of the areas Revolutionary War history. Rich Vitacco has worked to preserve and present the history of Van Nest and Morris Park and, moreover, has taken the lead to restore the respectful commemoration of the communitys fallen veterans. Bob Apuzzo, aboard the restored tugboat The Bronx, has done much to recall and preserve the rivers maritime heritage, and his research into the lost frigate Hussar has breathed new life into an old legend. Anthony Pisciotta has energetically salvaged many artifacts of Bronx history that might otherwise been lost, and his acquisitions have often been fascinating stories in themselves. Nilka Martell has shared her enthusiasm for the Bronx River in her articles in the Bronx Free Press. Chuck Vasser has given me many environmental and historical insights and, as founder of the Butterfly Project, has made a special contribution to the rivers revitalization. A special salute goes to Toby Liederman, Violet Smith and Giles and Eleanor Rae, whose own Hutchinson River Restoration Project is undertaking the daunting task of revitalizing a river that, like its sister the Bronx, has suffered much environmental abuse.
