Conference House Park is a park in Tottenville, Staten Island,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. The park is located along the Arthur Kill coast where the kill opens into

Raritan Bay Raritan Bay is a bay located at the southern portion of Lower New York Bay between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey and is part of the New York Bight. The bay is bounded on the northwest by New York's Staten Island, on the west by Per ...

. It contains clay bluffs, part of the

terminal moraine A terminal moraine, also called end moraine, is a type of moraine that forms at the terminal (edge) of a glacier, marking its maximum advance. At this point, debris that has accumulated by plucking and abrasion, has been pushed by the front edge ...

, formed when the

Wisconsin Glacier The Wisconsin Glacial Episode, also called the Wisconsin glaciation, was the most recent glacial period of the North American ice sheet complex. This advance included the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which nucleated in the northern North American Cord ...

receded 10,000 years ago. Ward's Point, the southernmost point in New York state, is in the park.

History

Conference House Park is named after the historic

Conference House Conference House (also known as Billop House) is a stone house in Tottenville, Staten Island, New York City built by Captain Christopher Billopp some time before 1680. It is located in Conference House Park near Ward's Point, the southernmost ...

, a 1680 stone manor house in which a peace conference was initiated between British and American forces on September 11, 1776, in an effort to halt the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. The area of the park was once part of Bentley Manor owned by the Billop family. The Henry Hogg Biddle house constructed between 1845 and 1853 is another historic structure in the park. The park contains several other buildings such as the Ward House, the Biddle House, and the Rutan-Beckett House. A new pavilion opened in 2002. The park was slated for improvements during 2008-2009, including the restoration of the Biddle House, new educational exhibits, and a second playground, one of five which are planned for Staten Island as part of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's

PlaNYC PlaNYC was a strategic plan released by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2007 to prepare the city for one million more residents, strengthen the economy, combat climate change, and enhance the quality of life for all New Yorkers. The plan ...

initiative. The extensive renovation finally started in 2017.

Features

A Lenape Indian campsite and burial ground, known as

Burial Ridge Ward's Point is the southernmost point in the U.S. state of New York and lies within Tottenville, Staten Island, New York City. It is located at the mouth of Arthur Kill, across from Perth Amboy, New Jersey, at the head of Raritan Bay. The sit ...

, are in the boundaries of the park, set back from the clay bluffs. In the late 18th century, George H. Pepper of the American Museum of Natural History conducted archaeological digs on the site, unearthing the remains of Lenape buried there. There are still shell middens visible along the shore line that become exposed due to erosion. The Lenape graveyard was looted for many years by area inhabitants and others seeking to recover the grave goods buried with the bodies.The Indians of Manhattan Island and Vicinity
/ref> The

New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...

designated about of the park as the Aakawaxung Munahanung (Island Protected from the Wind) Archaeological Site in 2021. The name "Aakawaxung Munahanung" is from the language of the Raritan people. It also houses a pavilion on the west beach with a characteristic turquoise roof, paths for walking and biking, and the Lenape playground (named for the area's original Native American inhabitants), which is frequented by residents of the Tottenville and Tottenville Beach neighborhoods. The park is the southernmost point in both

and

New York state New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

, at Ward's Point at the southern terminus of

Hylan Boulevard Hylan Boulevard is a major northeast-southwest boulevard in the New York City borough of Staten Island, and the longest street in the city. It is approximately long, and runs from the North Shore neighborhood of Rosebank, then along the enti ...

. Many community events are held there every year, including a locally popular fireworks show every 4th of July. From 2002-2004 the park was renovated and upgraded, during which the aforementioned pavilion, paths, and playground were constructed, as well as a new visitors' center and visitor parking. The park has also been referred to as Swinnerton Park, usually with respect to the Lenape playground, which is located at the end of Swinnerton Street. The footpaths offer views of waterside

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

towns across Raritan Bay, while the pavilion overlooks the Arthur Kill and

Perth Amboy, New Jersey Perth Amboy is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey. Perth Amboy is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 55,436. Perth Amboy has a Hispanic majority population. In the 2010 census, th ...

References

External links

* {{Protected areas of New York City Parks in Staten Island Tottenville, Staten Island