Research | Han20

3/17/2021

In viewing Randall’s Island (also known as Randall’s and Wards Island) today, it has all the appearance of an aesthetic space for either relaxation or enjoyment. The island is filled with long paths for the average visitor to walk on and admire the island, sport fields for the athletic to partake in physical activity, and occasionally, social events that take place on the island providing a wide range of entertainment. Randall’s Island is the ideal place for anyone to rewind, relax, and enjoy what the island has to offer. However, people do not often think about the history behind what they are enjoying and what it took to create it. Before the beauty, Randall’s Island was directly linked to war, and evolved into a prison-like “home” for the many outcasts that were sent to be isolated from the mainland.

Randall’s Island was originally two separate islands, Randall’s Island and Wards Island, renamed as Little Barn Island and Big Barn Island respectively, when they were purchased by Dutch settlers from the Lenape natives in 1637. During this time, the islands were used for farming purposes, until Little Barn Island (Randall’s Island) was bought by British Captain John Montresor in 1772 (5). Having private ownership of the island, he renamed it Montresor’s Island. Both islands maintained this status until the Revolutionary War struck the colonies, turning each in active military sites. Montresor’s Island (Randall’s Island) “…was used by the British to launch attacks on Manhattan until their evacuation in 1783…and throughout the war’s timeframe, he turned the island into an officers’ hospital,” (5). Big Barn Island (Wards Island) was established as a military base. Shortly after the end of the Revolutionary War in 1784, Montresor’s Island (Randall’s Island) was bought by and renamed after a farmer named Jonathan Randel, despite the spelling error made by the city. Under ownership for about 50 years by Randel, the island was finally bought by New York City in 1835, who kept the name Randall’s Island (11). Wards Island was also purchased by New York City in 1851 (5).

Now under the ownership of the city, Randall’s Island and Wards Island were put to public usage, though for dreary purposes. Both islands were used as mass graves for the unknown and unclaimed dead of Manhattan and contained institutions for the unwanted and ill. Stretching throughout the 1800s, Randall’s Island came to house “…an orphanage, children’s hospital, and a reform school called The House of Refuge…the Idiot Asylum, a homeopathic hospital, the Inebriate Asylum, and the City Insane Asylum,” (5). Similarly, Wards Island was used for hospitalizing and containing “… ‘sick and destitute immigrants’…” in the State Emigrant Refuge (5). The public use of both these islands through the later 1800s fell along the same line of isolation of the unwanted and unable. “Based on the idea of John Carpenter’s Escape From New York, the patients were to remain on this strip of island and remain there, a body of water preventing them from escaping and returning to civilization,” (13). The more fortunate of society thrived on the mainland, while the “problems” of society were cast aside. The state that they arrived in was poor and unstable, and the conditions that were maintained in on the islands were not suitable for living as well. Infants arrived abandoned in rags and sent “…to the Infants’ Hospital on Randall’s Island…” though “…Few outcast babies survive their desertion long,” (8). Patients were admitted and abandoned in hospitals and institutions, such as Christian Ashinfelber, who suffered from conditions such as mental instability, speech difficultly, and dyspnea (10). The homeless and criminals in the House of Refuge labored for the state by force in unideal conditions and were punished for misbehaving (5) (13). And as seen through the fire in Manhattan State Hospital on Ward’s Island, buildings were old, poorly made, overcrowded, and had no safety measures against hazards (15).

(See gallery for additional images)

It was during the 1900s that the islands finally started to see transformational and recreational movements to the state of maintenance. When realizing how Randall’s and Wards Islands could help benefit the city, New York City began to construct methods of transportation between the islands and the mainland. In 1917, the Hell Gate Bridge was completed alongside the New York Connecting Railway, which connected the islands, Queens, and the southern Bronx, and the Triborough Bridge soon followed in 1929 (4). During the 1930s, the islands underwent some of the greatest changes under the new ownership of the Department of Parks and Recreation, which was the removal of the institutions, children’s hospital, and the House of Refuge, the addition of a sewage treatment plant, and the refocusing of recreating the island. “Over the following years, the islands began to see the construction of numerous fields and tennis courts, as well as the construction of Triborough Stadium,” and by turning the space between Randall’s Island and Wards Island into a landfill, the two islands became one, known together as Randall’s Island (5). New York City has also overseen the quality of the remaining psychiatric hospitals on the island and the construction of more shelters to house the homeless and address their problems (3). In the more recent times, the Triborough Stadium was demolished and replaced with the construction of Icahn Stadium, largely thanks to the $10 million donation of Carl Icahn, whom it was named after (14). In the spirit of the recreation of Randall’s Island, Icahn hoped that the island would be put to good use, stating that “The city doesn’t do

(12) Icahn Stadium

(9) Plans for the Triborough Stadium

enough to help our kids – the poor ones especially – get away from the television set. Every kid deserves the right to exercise and to compete,” (2). Now, after much construction and additions made, Randall’s Island today is a recreational center in New York, filled with bike paths, pedestrian bridges, sports centers, and even restored wetlands (1) (5). The island also hosts many concerts and music festivals, and other social events such as the LuminoCity Festival of 2020-2021, which displayed a dazzling light park for visitors (7).

(6) LuminoCity Festival

Completely different from how it started, Randall’s Island has grown to host a multitude of pleasures and enjoyment for all. From farmlands to tactical and medical war uses, both Randall’s Island and Wards Island shifted to become the location of many lifeless sources of abandonment. Filled with those cast aside by society, the islands housed the mentally ill, the orphaned, the criminals, and the unwanted in unsuitable conditions. But with the recognition that things could be better, the islands underwent a drastic transformation that not only joined them together but improved the contents of each island. Randall’s Island grew to improve the conditions of the remaining less-fortunate individuals and evolved into a source of life and entertainment for all visitors.

(1) BUBBINS, HARRY, and Bobby Hoffman. "Randalls Island Fields and Accessibility." New York Times (1923-Current file), Jan 28, 2007, pp. 1. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/historical-newspapers/randalls-island-fields-accessibility/docview/848101563/se-2?accountid=14068.

(2) "Built for Speed, and Local Pride; Track Stadium Emerges on Randalls Island."ProQuest, Aug 20, 2004, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/blogs,-podcasts,-websites/built-speed-local-pride-track-stadium-emerges-on/docview/2228873117/se-2?accountid=14068.

(3) CHARLES KRAMEREDWARD A RAYMOND, MDSTANLEY M BOGENTIMOTHY KELLEYGEORGE,E.FAHIDGOLDINE TRIANTAFYLLOU. "Letters: As Medical Malpractice Insurance Grows Costlier Keep Oil Prices Up Lest Glut Create Gluttons Amtrak Fully Booked? A Double Standard on Middle East Arms Sales Wards Island is the Wrong Haven for Homeless Wards of New York." New York Times (1923-Current file), May 22, 1981, pp. 1. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/historical-newspapers/letters/docview/121820420/se-2?accountid=14068.

(4) "HELL GATE BRIDGE TO BE OPEN TODAY: WILL LINK NEW ENGLAND WITH THE SOUTH AND WEST." The Washington Post (1877-1922), Apr 01, 1917, pp. 10. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/historical-newspapers/hell-gate-bridge-be-open-today/docview/145560430/se-2?accountid=14068.

(5) Leicht, Alexandra M. History of New York City, 7 Nov. 2017, blogs.shu.edu/nyc-history/2017/11/07/randalls-island/.

(6) LuminoCity Festival, www.luminocityfestival.com/.

(7) "LuminoCity Festival Lights the Night at Randall's Island Park again with Dazzling Display of Outdoor Sculptures and Installations: LuminoCity Festival, the Stunning Holiday Spectacular of Light Sculptures, Announced Today its Return to Randall's Island Park in New York City from November 27th, 2020 - January 10th, 2021. Presenting a Brand New Theme and Never-before-seen Art Installations, LuminoCity Will Pop-Up for 29 Nights and Offer Visitors a Unique Opportunity to Venture through a Wonderland of Fantastical Ancient Civilizations, Lush Luminated Jungles, and Mystical Towering Light Art Displays Over 30ft. High. the Immersive Outdoor Event Will be a Festive, Socially-Distanced, and Timed-Entry Experience for Guests of all Ages." PR Newswire, Oct 01, 2020. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/wire-feeds/luminocity-festival-lights-night-at-randalls/docview/2447505044/se-2?accountid=14068.

(8) Markel, Howard. "Caring for the Foreign Born: The Health of Immigrant Children in the United States, 1890-1925." Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, vol. 152, no. 10, 1998, pp. 1020-7. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/scholarly-journals/caring-foreign-born-health-immigrant-children/docview/198471205/se-2?accountid=14068.

(9) "NEW CITY STADIUM WILL SEAT 35,000: PLANS FOR $1,000,000 ARENA ON RANDALL'S ISLAND PROVIDE FOR FOOTBALL FIELD. DEMOLITION CONTRACT LET WORK OF REMOVING OLD HOUSE OF REFUGE BUILDING EXPECTED TO TAKE TWO WEEKS." New York Times (1923-Current file), Jul 12, 1935, pp. 20. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/historical-newspapers/new-city-stadium-will-seat-35-000/docview/101446385/se-2?accountid=14068.

(10) PUTZEL, L. “Randallʼs Island Hospital: Service for Nervous Diseases.” The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, vol. 9, no. 2, 1882, pp. 273–276., doi:10.1097/00005053-188204000-00003.

(11) "RANDALL'S ISLAND HAD MANY NAMES: PRESENT DESIGNATION CAME FROM YOUNG FARMER WHO BOUGHT IT IN 1784. SOLD TO CITY FOR $50,000 CAPT. MONTRESOR,. BRITISH ARMY ENGINEER IN REVOLUTION, ONE OF EARLY OWNERS. RANDALL'S ISLAND HAD MANY NAMES." New York Times (1923-Current file), May 20, 1934, pp. 2. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/historical-newspapers/randalls-island-had-many-names/docview/101210777/se-2?accountid=14068.

(12) “RZAPS (Ricardo Zurita Architecture & Planning, P.C.).” World-Architects.com, world-architects.com/ca/rzaps-ricardo-zurita-architecture-and-planning-p-c-new-york/project/icahn-stadium.

(13) Sixsmith, William. “Randall's and Wards Island.” Blogs@Baruch Site, 16 May 2019, blogs.baruch.cuny.edu/histmed3450/?p=72.

(14) Steinhauer, Jennifer, and Karin R. Compiled by. "Metro Briefing New York: Manhattan: Randalls Island Arena." New York Times, Jan 29, 2004, pp. 5. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/newspapers/metro-briefing-new-york-manhattan-randalls-island/docview/432645951/se-2?accountid=14068.

(15) "THE WARD'S ISLAND TRAGEDY." New York Times (1923-Current file), Feb 20, 1923, pp. 16. ProQuest, https://www-proquest-com.jerome.stjohns.edu/historical-newspapers/wards-island-tragedy/docview/103234963/se-2?accountid=14068.