 Mosholu Parkway | |
|---|---|
 Mosholu Parkway highlighted in red | |
| Route information | |
| Maintained byNYCDOT | |
| Length | 3.03 mi[1] (4.88 km) |
| Restrictions | No commercial vehicles on freeway section |
| Major junctions | |
| South end |  Bronx River Parkway / Bronx Park East / Allerton Avenue inBronx Park |
| Major intersections |  I-87 inVan Cortlandt Park |
| North end |   Henry Hudson Parkway /Saw Mill River Parkway in Van Cortlandt Park |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| Counties | Bronx |
| Highway system | |
Mosholu Parkway is a 3.03-mile-long (4.88 km)parkway in theborough ofthe Bronx inNew York City, constructed from 1935 to 1937 as part of the roadway network created underRobert Moses. The roadway extends between theNew York Botanical Garden (where its southeast end meets theBronx River Parkway) andVan Cortlandt Park (where its northwest end meets theHenry Hudson Parkway). TheNew York City Department of Transportation is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the roadway while theNew York City Department of Parks and Recreation is responsible for the surrounding rights-of-way. The parkway is designated asNew York State Route 908F (NY 908F), an unsignedreference route, by theNew York State Department of Transportation.
Mosholu Parkway begins at exit 8W of theBronx River Parkway. It heads northward as aboulevard through the northern parts of the Bronx. The highway crosses throughBedford Park, passing Bainbridge Avenue. It intersects with theGrand Concourse afterwards, withJerome Avenue, Sedgwick Avenue andWest Gun Hill Road soon after. Within Van Cortlandt Park, the parkway becomes afreeway, with exits for the southboundMajor Deegan Expressway (Interstate 87) and theHenry Hudson Parkway near its northern terminus at theWestchester County line (where it turns into theSaw Mill River Parkway).[2]
A bikeway, part of theEast Coast Greenway, runs along the northeast side of the parkway fromBronx Park to Van Cortlandt Park, connecting through the park to other trails and playing fields and to Broadway.[2]
There are conflicting accounts as to what "Mosholu" is derived from. According to one account, "Mosholu" is anAlgonquin word meaning "smooth stones" or "small stones", and was first applied to the nearby creek now known asTibbetts Brook. The southern end of the parkway was once home to another creek called Schuil Brook, running under what is now Middlebrook Road, which supplied water to a British fort located on old Van Cortlandt Avenue East during theAmerican Revolutionary War.[3][4]
According to another etymology,Mosholu is a contraction of the name of theChoctaw chiefMushulatubbee. The Choctaw were not local to New York, but Mushulatubbee was well known for his assistance to the US during theWar of 1812. A variant form of the contracted name was given to two ships; the USSMashula (launched asUSSSevern in 1867) and the SSMoshulu. The latter ship was apparently named with the understanding that it was aSeneca word meaningfearless.[5]
In the 1870s, landscape architectFrederick Law Olmsted envisioned agreenbelt across the Bronx, consisting of parks and parkways that would align with existing geography.[6][7]: 47 However, in 1877, the city declined to act upon his plan.[8] Around the same time,New York Herald editorJohn Mullaly pushed for the creation of parks in New York City, particularly lauding theVan Cortlandt and Pell families' properties in the western and eastern Bronx respectively. He formed theNew York Park Association in November 1881.[7]: 49 [9] There were objections to the system, which would apparently be too far from Manhattan, in addition to precluding development on the parks' sites.[10][11] However, newspapers and prominent lobbyists, who supported such a park system, were able to petition the bill into theNew York State Senate, and later, theNew York State Assembly (the legislature'slower house).[10]: 56 [12]
In June 1884, GovernorGrover Cleveland signed theNew Parks Act into law, authorizing the creation of the park system.[10][11][13] The system consisted of three parkways and six parks, withBronx Park at the center of the system. Bronx Park was connected to Van Cortlandt Park in the northwest via Mosholu Parkway; toPelham Bay Park in the east viaPelham Parkway; and toCrotona Park in the south via Crotona Parkway. There were no direct connections toClaremont Park andSt. Mary's Park, the other two parks in the system.[7]: 48
The road was reconstructed between 1935 and 1937, including widening the entire parkway, making the section from the Saw Mill to Gun Hill Road, replacing the intersection at Jerome Avenue with an overpass, and installing a wide median between Marion Avenue and the Grand Concourse.[14]
The following bus routes serve Mosholu Parkway:
TheIRT Jerome Avenue Line has theMosholu Parkway station at Mosholu Parkway and Jerome Avenue.
The entire route is in theNew York Cityborough ofthe Bronx.
| Location | mi[1][15] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bronx Park | 0.00 | 0.00 | Bronx Park East / Allerton Avenue | Northern terminus of Southern Boulevard | |
| 0.03– 0.40 | 0.048– 0.64 | Bronx River Parkway –White Plains,Soundview Park,Bronx Zoo | Cloverleaf interchange; exits 8E-W on Bronx River Parkway | ||
| 0.53 | 0.85 | Southern Boulevard –Fordham Road,Botanical Garden | NY 908F transitions between Southern Boulevard and Mosholu Parkway; located nearBotanical Garden station | ||
| Norwood | 0.75 | 1.21 | Marion Avenue | ||
| 0.85 | 1.37 | Bainbridge Avenue | |||
| 1.20 | 1.93 | Van Cortlandt Avenue | |||
| Bedford Park | 1.38 | 2.22 | Grand Concourse | No northbound exit; formerNY 100 south; located nearBedford Park Boulevard station | |
| 1.50 | 2.41 | Jerome Avenue –Lehman College | Access via service roads; formerNY 100 north; located nearMosholu Parkway station | ||
| 1.70 | 2.74 |  Sedgwick Avenue toI-87 (Major Deegan Expressway) | |||
| 1.80 | 2.90 | Gun Hill Road | All trucks must exit | ||
| Southern end of freeway section | |||||
| Goulden Avenue | Southbound exit only; access via Dickinson Avenue | ||||
| Van Cortlandt Park | 2.30 | 3.70 |  I-87 south (Major Deegan Expressway) –RFK Bridge | Southbound exit and northbound entrance; exit 12 on I-87 | |
| 3.50 | 5.63 |    Henry Hudson Parkway south toNY 9A (US 9) –Manhattan Saw Mill River Parkway north –Yonkers | Northern terminus of Mosholu Parkway; exit 24 on Henry Hudson Parkway | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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