“Historic Images of the Palisades”
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The images on this page are from the exhibit “Palisades Interstate Park (NJ), A Pictorial History: 1900-1950,” which appeared at the Belskie Museum of Art and Science in Closter, New Jersey during June 2003. The text is from the brochure prepared for the exhibit.
The Palisades Interstate Park Commission was created in 1900 for the express purpose of halting the work of a number of large stone quarries operating to devastating effect along New Jersey’s Palisades Cliffs, and to turn this scenic 13-mile stretch of the Hudson River waterfront into a unique public “playground.” So began the story of the NJ Section of the Palisades Interstate Park (the Commission would soon after begin to acquire parklands in New York State as well).
From that beginning as a milestone in the fledgling American conservation movement, the NJ Section, with its beaches and riverside groves, soon became a recreational destination for millions. This role took added meaning during the crisis of the Great Depression, as hard times limited the mobility enjoyed previously by countless families in the region. Also during the Depression, the park became a worksite for some of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal” agencies, as hundreds of unemployed men were sent to work on projects within the park.
A host of factors, from the George Washington Bridge to America’s entry into World War Two, saw a change in the park’s role as it entered its second half-century, and its Hudson River beaches—formerly its largest draw—were closed.
This exhibit presents a sampling of the rich photographic legacy of these times and the people who lived—and worked, and played—through them.
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Images 1–9 show the late 1930s and the 1940s, when the park was undergoing a change: due to “conditions occasioned by the war,” many facilities were closing. Ultimately, much of the Palisades would revert back to its natural state.
- Pages from Thirty-ninth Annual Report of the Commissioners of the Palisades Interstate Park (for the year 1938). This rockslide became known as the “Hitler” face, first noticed several years later.
- Photo of the rockslide north of Twombly’s Landing, Alpine, 1938. This remains the largest rockslide ever recorded during the Commission’s stewardship of its Palisades properties.
- The Yonkers Ferry departs Alpine Boat Basin, 1939. This ferry service ceased operation in 1957, due to competition from the new Tappan Zee Bridge.
- Clipping from the Northern Valley Tribune, 18 April 1941. The story was picked up by the national wire services as well.
- The “Hitler” face, c. 1941 (photo taken by the Yonkers Ferry Corporation). Another rockslide obliterated the face after the close of World War II.
- Park policeman on snowshoes, 8 Jan. 1948, Fort Lee. Photo by Charles “Buzz” Quadri.
- Park policeman on snowshoes, 8 Jan. 1948, Fort Lee. Photo by Charles “Buzz” Quadri.
- Page from Forty-fifth Annual Report of the Commissioners of the Palisades Interstate Park (for the year 1944). Alpine’s was the last beach in the park to close, and the only one closed due to pollution.
- Rockslide on Henry Hudson Drive, Englewood Cliffs, 7 Apr. 1947.
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Images 10–23 show the park’s recreational facilities, in particular its Hudson River bathing beaches, during the decade of the Depression—the period of peak attendance at the park. (See also “The Mystery of the Beaches.”)
- Undercliff Bathing Beach and Bathhouse, Englewood Cliffs, c. 1932. The bathhouse was built in 1922.
- Detail: Undercliff Bathing Beach, Englewood Cliffs, c. 1932.
- Children at the playground at the Bloomer’s area, Englewood Cliffs, Aug. 1939. Bloomer’s Beach was named for the Bloomer family, which lived in the area during the nineteenth century.
- Bloomer’s Bathing Beach and Bathhouse, Englewood Cliffs, 14 Jul. 1935. The bathhouse was built by the Civil Works Administration (CWA) the year before.
- Wading pool at the Alpine Area, 1939.
- Lifeguard at Undercliff Bathing Beach, Englewood Cliffs, c. 1932.
- Bloomer’s Bathing Beach, Englewood Cliffs, 14 Jul. 1935.
- Picnickers near Bloomer’s Bathing Beach, Englewood Cliffs, 14 Jul. 1935.
- Swim platform at the Alpine Area, 2 Jul. 1939.
- Fountain at Bloomer’s Bathhouse, Englewood Cliffs, 1940. The beach closed after 1941, due to the discontinuation of ferry service from Manhattan.
- Cabin at Ross Dock, Fort Lee, c. 1938. The cabins were built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1937.
- Bloomer’s Bathing Beach, Englewood Cliffs, 1940, Spuyten Duyvil across the river.
- Page from Thirty-first Annual Report of the Commissioners of the Palisades Interstate Park (for the year 1930).
- Parking area at Englewood Boat Basin - Bloomers area, c. 1931.
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Images 24–36 show construction work in the park during the Depression, including images relating to the “New Deal” agencies.
- WPA crew building bridal paths in the State Line area, Alpine, 6 Nov. 1935.
- Page from Thirty-fifth Annual Report of the Commissioners of the Palisades Interstate Park (for the year 1934).
- Construction on Henry Hudson Drive, Fort Lee, c. 1933.
- WPA crew installing parapet stones, Alpine Approach Road, 13 Mar. 1936.
- Construction on Henry Hudson Drive, Fort Lee, c. 1933.
- Construction on Henry Hudson Drive, Fort Lee, c. 1933.
- Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) erosion control project on Henry Hudson Drive, 1938.
- CCC Camp, Greenbrook area on the top of the cliffs, Tenafly, c. 1933.
- CCC erosion control project on Henry Hudson Drive, 1939.
- Maintenance work at Forest View Boat Basin, Alpine, c. 1933. This area was accessible only by trail or by boat (personal craft or excursion boats).
- Rockslide on Henry Hudson Drive, 8 Mar. 1933.
- Rockslide on Henry Hudson Drive, 8 Mar. 1933.
- Clipping from the New York Times, 30 Nov. 1929, the day after the “Black Tuesday” stock market crash.
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Images 37–42 show ferry traffic to the park, and the construction (and effects) of the new George Washington Bridge (opened to traffic Oct. 1931).
- George Washington Bridge construction, c. 1931.
- Dyckman Ferry terminal, Englewood Cliffs, c. 1930.
- Page from Thirty-second Annual Report of the Commissioners of the Palisades Interstate Park (for the year 1931).
- Surveyor on Hudson Terrace, Fort Lee, in vicinity of the George Washington Bridge, c. 1931.
- George Washington Bridge construction, c. 1931.
- Dyckman Ferry Road, Englewood Cliffs, c. 1920.
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–53 show the park in its first decades of development and use, 1900-1929.Images 43
- Boys cooking on shore, c. 1920.
- Hazard’s bathing area and bathhouse, Fort Lee, c. 1920. This bathhouse, the first in the park, was constructed in 1916.
- Reproduction of Henry Hudson’s Half Moon at Alpine, part of the “Hudson-Fulton” celebration of 1909.
- Picnickers on shore, c. 1915.
- Picnickers on shore, c. 1915.
- Group on swim platform, Alpine, c. 1920
- Picnickers on shore with tent, canoes, c. 1915.
- Construction of Forest View area, Alpine, Dec. 1914.
- Hazard’s bathing area, Fort Lee, c. 1920.
- Man in rowboat, date unknown.
- Construction of Henry Hudson Drive using horses, c. 1915.
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–61 show the destruction caused by stone quarries on the Palisades—objection to which led to the creation of the Interstate Commission in 1900.Images 54
- Clipping from the New York Times, 27 Aug. 1895.
- View of the talus slope of the Palisades, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- Carpenter Brothers’ Quarry, Fort Lee, c. 1897.
- Palisades quarry in operation, 1904.
- Part of Carpenter Brothers’ Quarry, Fort Lee, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- Palisades quarry and dock, 1897.
- Part of Carpenter Brothers’ Quarry, with steamboat Juno, Fort Lee, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- Clipping from the New York Times, 31 May 1899.
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Images 62 – 78 provide a sense of the Palisades at the time of the Commission’s creation—and what life was like along the Palisades in the latter part of the nineteenth century. Also shown are some of the cliff-top estates that remained occupied until the time the Palisades Interstate Parkway was proposed in the 1930s or shortly after (the Commission subsequently acquired these properties, and the estates were demolished).
- Looking north from Cape Fly Away, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- Looking south from Alpine Landing, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- The Kearney house at Alpine Landing, c. 1897. This house, built c. 1760 and for many years a Hudson River homestead and tavern at the Closter Dock, is open to the public today as a museum. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- Looking south from “Fisherman’s Village,” Englewood (Cliffs), c. 1895.
- Houses at “Cape Fly Away,” Alpine, c. 1900. Photo courtesy of Robert Wilson.
- Entrance and roadside well, “Falcon Lodge,” the Lamb estate, Alpine, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- Fisherman’s cottage on the Lamb estate, Alpine, c. 1897. Photo courtesy of the Lamb family.
- The Lamb family, residents of the Palisades, c. 1885. The Lambs were noted artists who specialized in stained glass. Photo courtesy of Barrie T. Collins. (Image not available on website.)
- “Penlyn,” estate of Henry Herbert Oltman and family (present-day park headquarters), Alpine, c. 1930. Photo courtesy of Margaret Dean. (See also “Penlyn.”)
- Demolition of “Gray Cliff,” estate of William Buck and Catherine Floyd Dana, Englewood Cliffs, 29 Oct. 1935. William B. Dana was one of the principal owners of the Palisades Mountain House and one of the first Commissioners of the Interstate Park.
- Dr. Ernest Cadgene residence, Englewood Cliffs, prior to demolition in 1941.
- “Gray Crag,” John Ringling summer residence, at start of demolition, 19 Nov. 1935. Ringling’s year-round residence was in Sarasota, Florida.
- Architect’s drawing of the Palisades Mountain House hotel, built in Englewood (Cliffs) in 1871, burned in 1884. Drawing courtesy of Edwin Rizer.
- Advertisement from the New York Times, 28 June 1872.
- Clipping from the New York Times, 5 June 1884. (See also “Fire on the Mountain.”)
- Census data sheet from the Eighth Federal Census of the United States, for the Closter Dock (Alpine) area, 1860.
This exhibit was developed
by the staff of the Kearney House
Palisades Interstate Park
NJ Section
Anthony G. Taranto Jr.
Photographer
Eric Nelsen
Director (Kearney House)
Emory Davis
Christina Fehre
Veronica Sison
The Belskie Museum of Art and Science
Mike Lewis
President
Special Thanks
Robert Boylan
August Di Sciascio
Carol A. Hoernlein
Gilbert J. Kearney
Paul Merino
The entrance to the exhibit; Christina Fehre gives a tour of the exhibit to 8th graders from the Tenakill Middle School.
08/29/2009
2010 Area Information & Fee Schedule (.pdf file, 4 pages)
