Fort Totten, Queens
Encyclopedia
40°47′31.3"N 73°46′33.9"W
Fort Totten is a former U.S. Army installation near Bayside, Queens
in Queens County, New York. It is located on the north shore of Long Island, on a peninsula named Willets Point. Fort Totten is at the head of Little Neck Bay, which is also the place where the East River widens to become Long Island Sound. While the U.S. Army Reserve continues to maintain a presence at the fort, the property is now owned by the City of New York.
, along with Fort Schuyler, which faces it from Throgs Neck
on the opposite side of the river entrance. The fort was named in 1898 after Joseph Gilbert Totten
.
In 1954, the fort became a Project Nike
air defense site. Although no missiles were located at Fort Totten, it was the regional headquarters for the New York area; administrative offices and personnel housing was located at the fort. Fort Totten was also the headquarters for the 66th Anti-Aircraft Missile Battalion, Battery D, whose missiles were located at nearby Fort Slocum
on Hart Island. Headquarters of the 41st AAA Gun Battalion was also stationed here. 90MM cannon Batteries of the 41st were located throughout Long Island. During the mid-1950s the 90 MM guns were replaced with Nike missiles. This use of Fort Totten was discontinued in 1974.
Much of the fort has become a public park and is open for tours by the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. It is accessible by the Cross Island Parkway
and Brooklyn-Queens Greenway
. The Fort Totten Visitor's Center has been refurbished and houses a museum with exhibits about the history of Fort Totten.
Parts are used by the New York Police Department and the New York Fire Department as a training center.
During the winter months, a large variety of migratory waterfowl can be observed in the surrounding waters: Little Bay to the west, Long Island Sound
to the north, and Little Neck Bay
to the east. Most buildings are dilapidated and unused. Fort Totten is also a sports complex, with an outdoor pool, baseball fields and three soccer fields used for youth soccer.
The Fort Totten Officers' Club
, known as "the Castle," is home to the Bayside Historical Society, which hosts events, historic exhibitions and cultural programs. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1986.
The Officer's Club can be clearly seen in the closing scene of an April 2009 episode of the TV series Fringe
, filmed at the Fort, in which the FBI delivers to an undisclosed location a child found to have been sealed for years in a building vault.
The Fort is a New York City Historic District and the Club a Designated Landmark. The club building was apparently designed by Robert E. Lee
in his pre-Civil War capacity as a military engineer, although some historians believe that the actual design was done by a subordinate and merely approved by Lee. The building was designed in the neo-Gothic style popular at the time and was not created specifically for Fort Totten but rather was a generic design approved by the Army for use at military installations. Identical structures were built at other Army forts and the Castle design was adopted by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers as their insignia, although the reason for this action is murky. A local tradition is that the Corp of Engineers symbol derived from the Fort Totten building, but the reverse is more likely: the building design was based on a Castle in part because this symbol had long been identified with Army engineers. When Fort Totten's Castle was restored in the 1990s, the Corp of Engineers was contacted in the hope that they would participate, particularly since the Fort Totten Castle was occupied at one time by the Corp of Engineers, but the military failed to show any interest.
Bayside, Queens
Bayside is a suburban neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York, New York in the United States. Bayside is known as one of the most expensive areas to live in Queens, with well kept homes and landscaping...
in Queens County, New York. It is located on the north shore of Long Island, on a peninsula named Willets Point. Fort Totten is at the head of Little Neck Bay, which is also the place where the East River widens to become Long Island Sound. While the U.S. Army Reserve continues to maintain a presence at the fort, the property is now owned by the City of New York.
History
Construction began on Fort Totten in 1862 after the land was purchased by the U.S. Government in 1857 from the Willets family. The fort is close to the neighborhoods of Bay Terrace, Bayside, Beechhurst and Whitestone, and it is close to the northeast corner of Queens County, New York. The original purpose was to protect the East River approach to New York HarborNew York Harbor
New York Harbor refers to the waterways of the estuary near the mouth of the Hudson River that empty into New York Bay. It is one of the largest natural harbors in the world. Although the U.S. Board of Geographic Names does not use the term, New York Harbor has important historical, governmental,...
, along with Fort Schuyler, which faces it from Throgs Neck
Throgs Neck
Throggs Neck is a narrow spit of land in the southeastern portion of the borough of the Bronx in New York City. It demarcates the passage between the East River , and Long Island Sound...
on the opposite side of the river entrance. The fort was named in 1898 after Joseph Gilbert Totten
Joseph Gilbert Totten
Joseph Gilbert Totten fought in the War of 1812, served as Chief Engineer and was regent of the Smithsonian Institution and cofounder of the National Academy of Sciences.-Early life and education:...
.
In 1954, the fort became a Project Nike
Project Nike
Project Nike was a U.S. Army project, proposed in May 1945 by Bell Laboratories, to develop a line-of-sight anti-aircraft missile system. The project delivered the United States' first operational anti-aircraft missile system, the Nike Ajax, in 1953...
air defense site. Although no missiles were located at Fort Totten, it was the regional headquarters for the New York area; administrative offices and personnel housing was located at the fort. Fort Totten was also the headquarters for the 66th Anti-Aircraft Missile Battalion, Battery D, whose missiles were located at nearby Fort Slocum
Fort Slocum (New York)
Fort Slocum, New York was a US military base occupying Davids' Island and Hart Island at the western end of Long Island Sound. The fort was named for Major General Henry W...
on Hart Island. Headquarters of the 41st AAA Gun Battalion was also stationed here. 90MM cannon Batteries of the 41st were located throughout Long Island. During the mid-1950s the 90 MM guns were replaced with Nike missiles. This use of Fort Totten was discontinued in 1974.
Much of the fort has become a public park and is open for tours by the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. It is accessible by the Cross Island Parkway
Cross Island Parkway
Cross Island Parkway, also known as the 100th Infantry Division Parkway, is a parkway within New York State. The parkway is a part of the Belt Parkway system that runs along the perimeter of the borough of Queens in New York City...
and Brooklyn-Queens Greenway
Brooklyn-Queens Greenway
The Brooklyn-Queens Greenway is a bicycling and pedestrian path connecting parks and roads in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, connecting Coney Island in the south to Fort Totten in the north, on Long Island Sound...
. The Fort Totten Visitor's Center has been refurbished and houses a museum with exhibits about the history of Fort Totten.
Parts are used by the New York Police Department and the New York Fire Department as a training center.
During the winter months, a large variety of migratory waterfowl can be observed in the surrounding waters: Little Bay to the west, Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
to the north, and Little Neck Bay
Little Neck Bay
Little Neck Bay is an embayment in western Long Island, New York, off Long Island Sound. Little Neck Bay forms the western boundary of the Great Neck Peninsula, the eastern boundary of which is Manhasset Bay. The political boundary between Nassau County and the borough of Queens runs through the bay...
to the east. Most buildings are dilapidated and unused. Fort Totten is also a sports complex, with an outdoor pool, baseball fields and three soccer fields used for youth soccer.
The Fort Totten Officers' Club
Fort Totten Officers' Club
Fort Totten Officers' Club is a historic clubhouse located at Fort Totten in Bayside, Queens, New York. It was built in the 1870s and expanded to its present size in 1887. It is a large Late Gothic Revival style building. It is a two story, rectangular frame building with a projecting central...
, known as "the Castle," is home to the Bayside Historical Society, which hosts events, historic exhibitions and cultural programs. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1986.
The Officer's Club can be clearly seen in the closing scene of an April 2009 episode of the TV series Fringe
Fringe (TV series)
Fringe is an American science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The series follows a Federal Bureau of Investigation "Fringe Division" team based in Boston, Massachusetts under the supervision of Homeland Security...
, filmed at the Fort, in which the FBI delivers to an undisclosed location a child found to have been sealed for years in a building vault.
The Fort is a New York City Historic District and the Club a Designated Landmark. The club building was apparently designed by Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
in his pre-Civil War capacity as a military engineer, although some historians believe that the actual design was done by a subordinate and merely approved by Lee. The building was designed in the neo-Gothic style popular at the time and was not created specifically for Fort Totten but rather was a generic design approved by the Army for use at military installations. Identical structures were built at other Army forts and the Castle design was adopted by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers as their insignia, although the reason for this action is murky. A local tradition is that the Corp of Engineers symbol derived from the Fort Totten building, but the reverse is more likely: the building design was based on a Castle in part because this symbol had long been identified with Army engineers. When Fort Totten's Castle was restored in the 1990s, the Corp of Engineers was contacted in the hope that they would participate, particularly since the Fort Totten Castle was occupied at one time by the Corp of Engineers, but the military failed to show any interest.
External links
- A recent photoessay on the abandoned Fort Totten Hospital
- Fort Totten - NYC Dept. of Parks & Recreation
- Bayside Historical Society
- 1920 map of Fort Slocum, Fort Totten, and Fort Schuyler (PDF)
- Coast Defense Study Group
- Fort Totten, NY Alumni
- New York State Military Museum - Information about Fort Totten
- Pictures of Fort Totten Park