Manhattan Pilings

"Manhattan Pilings"

Location: Brooklyn, New York 

Picture was taken on the waterfront park along the East River at Brooklyn Bridge Park, which overlooks downtown Manhattan and the Freedom Tower. These pilings are the skeletal remains of once was a series of thriving industrial warehouses. What caused commerce to spring up at this particular location was a ferry landing that was established all the way back in 1642 [1] (before the birth of the United States).

A ferry landing at this location caused the development of a small town called "het Veer", meaning "the Ferry" to be built.[2] As het Veer grew throughout the 17th century, it became known as the "Road to the Ferry".[3] On August 29, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, het Veer served as a crucial strategic location for George Washington and the Continental Army in the Battle of Long Island. In the middle of the night, Washington's troops evaded the quickly advancing British Army by escaping across the East River to Manhattan.[4] Unbeknowst to Washington's troops at the time, they took Monte Pyton's advice to "Runaway!"

It's estimated that over 13,000 pilings were put into the ground in this relatively small waterfront area situated across form Manhattan.  With the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge (1883) and Manhattan Bridge (1909), this caused the demise of a what once was a thriving waterfront area. With access to more highways, roads and bridges, more inland development occurred and there was no longer a need to set up trading operations near the transportation bottle neck (i.e. the ferry).

All our prints are shipped in high quality aluminum frames. Our EFX watermark will not be printed on the final artwork. All of our products are printed on archival quality UV light resistant polyester.

Color Changing Fine Art Print 
Photographer: David Groves
Composition by: EFX Gallery
© 2022 EFX™ Gallery

Sources:

1. "Brooklyn Bridge Park: Site History". Archived from the original on April 21, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2013.
2. Stiles, H. (2012). A History of the City of Brooklyn. Making of America. University of Michigan. p. 381. ISBN 978-1-4585-0028-1. Retrieved July 9, 2019.
3. Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), Chapter 7. Historical Resources (PDF) (Report). December 12, 2005. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
4. "Battle of Long Island, 26–29 August 1776". Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. Retrieved September 6, 2013. Military History Encyclopedia on the Web
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Bridge_Park#As_a_port