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Rat Island is a privately owned island in New York City. It is approximately 2.5 acres (1.0 ha) in size and located in City Island Harbor, which is a part of Long Island Sound. It is about halfway between City Island and Hart Island and south of High Island. It is one of the Pelham Islands.
Description
The small irregular island is about 2.5 acres (1.0 ha) in area. It has an odd dual humped appearance and is mostly a lump of Manhattan schist bedrock. There is a small channel that cuts into the bedrock on the southern side of the tiny island that was used for launching small boats. This channel is filled with mussel shells. There is a purple-bluish "beach" made of mussel shells mixed with bird bones on the west side of the island with some reed grass. The entire island is littered with broken glass from beer bottles. The highest point on the island is usually covered in gull bird guano and is underwater during high tide storms. The largest inhabitant of the island is usually a Great Blue Heron that sleeps on the island during daytime.
History
Rat Island was included in the purchase by Thomas Pell in 1654. During the typhoid fever scares of the 1800s, Rat Island was used by Pelham, New York as a typhoid quarantine hospital for about 40 infected people called the "Pelham Pesthouse". The remains of cobblestone walls and foundations are still there. It was abandoned due to storm floods. Local legends say there was also a lighthouse for a while. New York City purchased the island in 1888. It became a mini colony for writers and artists in the early 20th Century. It was bought by Dr. H. A. Parmentier in 1908. He subsequently leased the island to the Mount Vernon Club in 1931. It was owned by a Brooklyn lawyer until 1972 when it was sold to Edmund "Red" Brennen who still owns it. He said he bought it to do salvage work and store equipment. For many years crane buckets and lattice booms and other equipment were visible. In March 2009, Brennan, put Rat Island up for sale for $300,000. Many locals still falsely think it is owned by the NYC Department of Parks. In fact they are trespassing on private property. In summer months, it may have as many as 30 people on it, mostly fishermen. Some can be seen pitching tents. Others swim off the east side. In the summer the Parks Department puts waste drums so they may contain their garbage. Sometimes, the local first responders use it to practice rescue missions with boats and helicopters.
Name
It is not known how the island received its name. It has been proposed by Red Brennan and others including former prison workers that prisoners escaping from Hart Island nearby, nicknamed "rats", used the small island to rest before swimming on to City Island and freedom.
References
- ^ Samuels, Tanyanika (March 24 2009). "For enough cheese, Rat Island is yours: Family wants 300G for spot near City Island". Daily News. New York. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Rat Island p.551, New York City Guide, Federal Writers' Project, 1939.
Further reading
- Bill Twomey (2007). The Bronx: In Bits and Pieces - Rat Island. Rooftop Publishing. p. 89. ISBN 1-60008-062-6.
- Rat Island p. 551, New York City Guide, Federal Writers' Project, 1939.
40°51′18″N 73°46′51″W / 40.85500°N 73.78083°W / 40.85500; -73.78083
| Islands of New York City | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major islands |  | ||||
| Pelham Islands | |||||
| New York Bay |
| ||||
| Jamaica Bay | |||||
| North River (Hudson River) | |||||
| Former islands shown in italics | |||||