Roosevelt Island, the East River’s Island of Asylums
Roosevelt Island is a narrow island in the East River, between Manhattan and Queens, about two miles long. Once known as Blackwell’s Island and later Welfare Island, it was home to institutions the city preferred to keep at a distance. Today it is a residential neighborhood with a waterfront promenade, a Gothic smallpox hospital ruin and an old lighthouse, all within easy reach of Manhattan.
For well over a century this thin island held asylums, a penitentiary and a smallpox hospital, and was nicknamed “Farewell Island.” Today you reach it by cable car, and its ruins sit in a park.
The history of Roosevelt Island, from Blackwell’s Island to today
The island was known as Minnehanonck, a Lenape name often translated as “long island,” to the Native people of the area. The Dutch called it Varken Eylandt, meaning Hog Island. After the British took over New Netherland in 1664, John Manning acquired it, and it was later passed to his stepdaughter Mary, who was married to Robert Blackwell. The Blackwell family lived on the island for four generations, farming it, and it became Blackwell’s Island. The Blackwell House, one of the oldest farmhouses still standing in the city, dates from around 1800.
In 1828 New York City bought the island and began filling it with institutions. A penitentiary opened in 1830, and the New York City Lunatic Asylum, with its Octagon tower, followed in 1839. Almshouses, a prison hospital, a workhouse and, in the 1850s, a Smallpox Hospital were added, and at one point there were 26 institutions on the island. Conditions were often poor. Charles Dickens described the asylum in 1842, and in 1887 the journalist Nellie Bly published her account of going undercover as a patient in the women’s asylum. By the 20th century it was nicknamed “Farewell Island,” a name linked with fear and despair.
In 1921 the island was renamed Welfare Island in the hope of improving its image. The jail was moved to Rikers Island in the 1930s, and the last inmates left in 1936. New chronic-care hospitals opened, including Goldwater Memorial Hospital in 1939 and Coler Hospital in 1952, but much of the old complex was left empty. By 1960 about half of the island was abandoned, and the fire department trained among the vacant buildings. A reporter in 1967 called it a ghost town.
Redevelopment began in 1969, when the state’s Urban Development Corporation signed a 99-year lease on the island with the city. The architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee drew up a master plan for two residential neighborhoods, Northtown and Southtown. The island was renamed Roosevelt Island in 1973, after President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the first residents moved in during 1975. The aerial tram opened in 1976 and the subway station in 1989. In the 21st century Four Freedoms Park opened at the southern tip in 2012, and the Cornell Tech campus opened in 2017 on the site of the former Goldwater Hospital. The island now has about 12,000 residents.
Little-known facts about Roosevelt Island
- The island has had many names: Minnehanonck for the Lenape, Hog Island for the Dutch, Manning’s Island, Blackwell’s Island, Welfare Island since 1921, and Roosevelt Island since 1973.
- The aerial tram opened in 1976 and was meant to be a temporary connection until the subway station opened; the subway took until 1989, and the tram was completely rebuilt in 2010.
- The Roosevelt Island station is one of the deepest in the New York subway, more than 100 feet below ground.
- Garbage is sucked away through pneumatic tubes. The system, installed in 1975, was the second of its kind in the United States and serves 16 residential towers.
- Until the 1950s the island was reached by a ferry from Manhattan’s 78th Street and an elevator from the Queensboro Bridge, and a guard once banned most visitors, including all children under age 12.
- The island’s south tip is home to the Smallpox Hospital, a Gothic-style ruin from 1857 that served as the first smallpox hospital in the United States.
Roosevelt Island on screen
Wikidata lists one film with a filming location on the island.
- The End of the Road (1919) – Film recorded in Wikidata with Roosevelt Island as its filming location; no further details are given.
Tours near Roosevelt Island
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting Roosevelt Island: what to see and how to get there
- Roosevelt Island is open to visitors and is a residential neighborhood. A publicly accessible promenade circles the island, and Main Street, paved in red brick, runs through its length.
- You can reach it by the Roosevelt Island Tramway to Midtown Manhattan, the F or M subway at the Roosevelt Island station, the NYC Ferry Astoria route, or the Roosevelt Island Bridge from Astoria in Queens. Check current service and accessibility information before you go.
- At the southern end, Southpoint Park holds the Smallpox Hospital ruin and the Strecker Laboratory, and Four Freedoms Park, designed by Louis Kahn, ends the island at its tip. Check the current opening hours and any fencing around the ruin before you go.
- At the northern tip, Lighthouse Park surrounds the Blackwell Island Light, built by prisoners in 1872, and the Octagon from the old asylum stands nearby. Along Main Street are the Blackwell House and the Chapel of the Good Shepherd.
- The six New York City landmarks on the island are the Blackwell House, the Chapel of the Good Shepherd, the Blackwell Island Light, the Smallpox Hospital, the Strecker Laboratory and the Octagon.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Roosevelt Island is
Photos of Roosevelt Island
Questions
What is Roosevelt Island known for?
It is known for its past as a hospital and prison island, its Gothic ruins and old lighthouse, its aerial tram and its car-light residential neighborhoods. It is a quiet, little-known corner of Manhattan borough.
How do you get to Roosevelt Island?
By the aerial tram from Midtown, the F or M subway, the NYC Ferry from Astoria, or the bridge from Queens. Check current service before you go.
Why was Roosevelt Island called Blackwell’s Island?
It took the name of the Blackwell family, who owned and farmed it for four generations after Robert Blackwell married the stepdaughter of its previous owner, John Manning. It became Welfare Island in 1921 and Roosevelt Island in 1973.
What are the ruins on Roosevelt Island?
The best known is the Smallpox Hospital, a Gothic-style ruin at the southern end built in 1857 as the first smallpox hospital in the United States. The Octagon, at the northern end, is the only structure left from the 1839 asylum.
Is Roosevelt Island part of Manhattan?
Yes. It lies in the East River, between Manhattan and Queens, and is administratively part of the borough of Manhattan, although many emergency services come from Queens.
Can you walk around Roosevelt Island?
Yes. A public waterfront promenade circles the island, and there are several parks. Check the current rules and opening hours for individual sites.
Also nearby
The Octagon
The Octagon · last remnant of a historic asylum, on Roosevelt Island
850 m away
Blackwell Island Light
Blackwell Island Light · a Gothic stone beacon in the East River
1.5 km away
Smallpox Hospital
Smallpox Hospital · Gothic ruin at the tip of Roosevelt Island
1.5 km away
Pepsi-Cola Sign
Pepsi-Cola Sign · a neon landmark on the Queens waterfront
2 km away