The Gouverneur Street Ferry was a ferry

Ferry

A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...

 route connecting Manhattan

Manhattan

Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...

 and Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

, New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, joining Gouverneur Street (Manhattan) and Bridge Street (Brooklyn) across the East River

East River

The East River is a tidal strait in New York City. It connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island from the island of Manhattan and the Bronx on the North American mainland...

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History

The ferry, originally the Walnut Street Ferry and later the Jackson Street Ferry or Hudson Avenue Ferry, was established on December 1, 1817, connecting Walnut Street (now Jackson Street) in Manhattan with Little Street (just east of Hudson Avenue, then Jackson Street) in Brooklyn. At some point, the Manhattan landing was moved to Gouverneur Street. Cyrus P. Smith and William F. Bulkley gained control by May 1852, and, effective May 23, 1853, the Brooklyn side was moved from Hudson Avenue to Bridge Street. Being unable to compete with the one-cent fare adopted by the Brooklyn Union Ferry Company in November 1850, it was sold to the new Union Ferry Company of Brooklyn

Union Ferry Company of Brooklyn

The Union Ferry Company of Brooklyn was a ferry company, operating routes across the East River between Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York City, United States.-History:...

 (the successor to the Brooklyn Union) in December 1853. The lease expired on September 12, 1856, but the company continued to operate the ferry. They petitioned the City of New York to abandon the Roosevelt Street Ferry

Roosevelt Street Ferry

The Roosevelt Street Ferry was a ferry route connecting Manhattan and Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, United States, joining Roosevelt Street and Broadway across the East River.-History:...

, in exchange for continuing Gouverneur Street operations and expanding the Manhattan landing. The city refused, and operations ended in January 1857.

A new ferry, known as the Navy Yard Ferry or Hudson Avenue Ferry, was established on July 8, 1859 between Jackson Street in Manhattan and Hudson Avenue in Brooklyn, almost exactly where the Gouverneur Street ferry started out in 1817. The Hudson Avenue Railroad opened a streetcar line from the ferry to Prospect Park in late 1867. The ferry shut down in early June 1868, leading the railroad to move its line to the Bridge Street Ferry

Bridge Street Ferry

The Bridge Street Ferry was a ferry route connecting Manhattan and Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, United States, joining James Slip and Bridge Street across the East River.-History:...

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