Brief History of Pelham Bay Park
Before the creation of Pelham Bay Park, the land it stands on today was part of Anne Hutchison’s dissident colony. It was part of New Netherland, which was destroyed in 1643 by the local Siwanoy. The attack destroyed the colony and served as reprisal for the massacres carried out by Willem Kieft’s Dutch West India Company that operated the New Amsterdam colony.
Almost a decade after the attack, the land was purchased by Englishman Thomas Pell in 1654. He bought 50,000 acres of the land from the Siwanoy, which later became the location for Pelham Manor after the Charles II 1666 charter. Later during the revolutionary war, the land served as a buffer between the British part of New York City and those held by the rebels. It was the battle site of what later became known as the Battle of Pell’s Point. Here the Massachusetts Militia hid behind the stone walls, some of which can (still be seen at the golf courses) and were instrumental in stopping the British from advancing.
Over two hundred years later, in 1888, the Bronx Parks Department created the park, primarily inspired by John Mullaly’s vision. The park was passed on to the city of New York when the Bronx east of the river was annexed to New York City in 1895. Later, Orchard Beach, which is one of the city’s most popular destinations, was created mainly by the effort put in by Robert Moses during the 1930s.
