| Marine Park | |
|---|---|
 In winter | |
 Interactive map of Marine Park | |
| Location | Marine Park,Brooklyn, New York |
| Nearest city | New York City |
| Coordinates | 40°35′53″N73°55′15″W / 40.598047°N 73.920836°W /40.598047; -73.920836 |
| Area | 798 acres (323 ha) |
| Created | 1924 |
| Operated by | New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |
| Open | 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. |
| Status | open |
Marine Park is apublic park located onJamaica Bay in the neighborhood ofMarine Park in Brooklyn, New York. Its 798 acres (3.2 km2) surround the westernmost inlet of the bay. Most of the land for Marine Park was donated to New York City to be turned into public park land by theWhitney family in 1920 and byFrederic B. Pratt andAlfred Tredway White, who jointly donated 150 acres (0.61 km2) in 1917.[1] The land donated consists of the area between the current day Fillmore Avenue and Gerritsen Avenue and East 38th Street. Originally almost 2,000 acres (810 ha), over half of which has been donated to theNational Park Service as part of theGateway National Recreation Area, the park is mainly a fertilesalt marsh which is supplied with freshwater fromGerritsen Creek.
Marine Park consists of recreational park areas and theSalt Marsh Nature Center, where marsh birds, cottontail rabbits, horseshoe crabs, and oyster toadfish can be found.
The area was a hunting and fishing ground forNative Americans from the nearby village of Keshawchqueren. Pits for cooking and preparing food dating from 800 to 1400 AD were uncovered in Marine Park, along with deer and turtle bones, oyster shells, and sturgeon scales. In the 17th century, the Dutch began to settle in the area, which had similarities to the marshland and coastal plains of the Netherlands. The land proved to be fairly good farmland and there was an abundance of clams, oysters, and game from the region as well.
In the early 20th century, asindustrialization swept the nation, developers made plans to turnJamaica Bay into a port and prepared to dredgeRockaway Inlet to allow large ships into the proposed harbor. Speculators anticipated a real estate boom and bought land along the Jamaica Bay waterfront. However, donors includingAlfred Tredway White andFrederic Pratt turned the land over to the city, with the requirement that it become parkland.[2][3] Development was slow, but with new land purchases, the park grew to 1,822 acres (737 ha) by 1937. That same year, the Board of Aldermen named the site "Brooklyn Marine Park". The park's architect,Charles Downing Lay, won anOlympic silver medal in architecture for the park's design in 1936.[4]
The salt and fresh water mixture of the nature preserve and trail on the park land has had its own history. In the 18th century,George Washington made a stop for several days on the land nearby. There was agristmill on the water at the time; in 1938, the mill burned down to the water level, leaving only the low tide wood pilings across the water that can be seen to this day. In the mid-20th century, the area was abused by trash and abandoned cars. At one point, it became a landfill, and trash piled to 60 feet (18 m) in certain areas. After a massive cleanup effort in the 1990s, the area was restored to its former glory, with exception of a few rusty car parts riddling the area and teens littering and causing arson to the dry tallPhragmites from time to time.
The park gained its land mass as a dump, leading to so many rats in the area that local children hunted them with bows and arrows in the 1960s.[5] One neighborhood boy was bitten by a rat in his sleep.[5]
Recreational facilities were built in the decades to follow, including the Pratt-White athletic field (1939) that was dedicated to the two fathers of Marine Park. A 210-acre (0.85 km2) golf course opened in 1963,[6]: 213 and theJohn V. Lindsay Model Airport was dedicated in 1971. The golf course was designed by renowned course architectRobert Trent Jones and hosts several pro-am golf tournaments, including the Brooklyn Open and the Jamaica Open NY Golf Tournament. New ballfields were opened in 1979 and named for baseball-loving NYPD Officer Rocco Torre in 1997. Nature trails established along Gerritsen Creek in 1984-85 invite parkgoers to observe a wealth of flora and fauna. Ongoing improvements at the end of the 20th century include the reconstruction of basketball, tennis, andbocce courts; of baseball fields; and of Lenape Playground at Avenue U. A new nature center opened in 2000, and the Carmine Carro Community Center opened in 2013.
Eight pickleball courts were completed in 2023,[7] but they were beginning to deteriorate by 2025.[8]
Marine Park boasts the most park facilities in the borough of Brooklyn. It offers2 Baseball fields11 Softball fields10 Basketball courts3 Bocce courts4 Cricket fields2 Football fields10 Handball courts6 Pickleball courts10 Soccer fields12 Tennis courts4 Playgrounds with spray showers1 Adult Fitness Area60+ Garden beds2 Parking lots1 Bike rental concession1 Golf course15 miles of walking paths including the .8-mile Oval track for bicycles, walkers and runnersSeveral sports fields, and 0.83 mile-long running path were all built on the ancient Keshawchqueren burial ground.[9] Part of the park, including the fields north of Avenue U, were built atopGerritsen Creek.[6]: 213
Marine Park also contains a golf course, which occupies the park's eastern half.[10] The 210-acre (85 ha) golf course opened in 1963 and contains a driving range.[6]: 213
New York Road Runners hosts a weekly 2.5-mile Open Run.[11]
Marine Park contains most of the remaining length of Gerritsen Creek. The head of the creek is located adjacent to the Salt Marsh Nature Center.[6]: 212 The creek's headwaters originally were located eight avenues north of its current source atAvenue U,[12] but the northern part of the creek was buried in a storm sewer in 1920. The creek has been described as one of the "fingers" that formed the original shoreline of Jamaica Bay.[13]
Mau Mau Island, also called White Island, is an artificial island within the park, located between two branches of Gerritsen Creek.[14] Created possibly by 1934,[6]: 213 it was made out of garbage.[15] It was supposed to be included within an expansion of the golf course, which was never built; a temporary bridge was the only object erected from this plan, and only the footers from this bridge remain.[6]: 213
The eastern part of Marine Park, to the east of Mau Mau Island, was originally part of an island called Riches Meadows. The island was bounded by two creeks, Mill Creek and Deep Creek, which then led toMill Basin, located acrossFlatbush Avenue to the northeast.[6]: 213
The Carmine Carro Community Center, named for Carmine Carro, a local activist and park advocate who served as president for the Marine Park Civic Association, opened in March 2013.[16] The building's “green” elements includesolar panels, ageothermal heating and cooling system, and agreen roof. Because of these energy-saving features, the Parks Department is seekingLEED Silver certification for the building.[17]
The more recent research showed the various stages of the modern history of Gerritsen's Creek, including how it used to extend approximately eight blocks further north than its current ending point at Avenue U in Brooklyn, N.Y.
"Gerritsen Creek is one of the original "fingers" of the great "hand" of Jamaica Bay, and over the last century it has been the victim of human intrusions that have damaged its ecological functioning," said Parks Commissioner Benepe.
