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The Staten Island boat graveyard is a marine scrapyard located in the
The abandoned and decomposing vessels, mostly cargo ships and tugboats, come from "all decades of the 20th century". They sit in the mud and shallow water until they are dismantled or salvaged. Some of them are historic, so that the place has been called an "accidental marine museum". Vessels of historic interest include the submarine chaser , the first
Donjon Recycling
Wikimapia
{{coord, 40.555503, -74.215738, scale:3500, display=title Ship graveyards Ship disposal Port of New York and New Jersey Contemporary archaeology Maritime archaeology 1930s establishments in New York City Buildings and structures in Staten Island Tourist attractions in Staten Island
Arthur Kill
The Arthur Kill (sometimes referred to as the Staten Island Sound) is a tidal strait in the New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary between Staten Island (also known as Richmond County), New York, and Union and Middlesex counties, New Jersey. It ...
in Rossville, near the Fresh Kills Landfill
The Fresh Kills Landfill was a landfill covering in the borough of Staten Island in New York City, United States. The name comes from the landfill's location along the banks of the Fresh Kills estuary in western Staten Island.
The landfill op ...
, on the West Shore of Staten Island
Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...
, New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. It is known by many other names including the Witte Marine Scrap Yard, the Arthur Kill Boat Yard, and the Tugboat Graveyard. Its official name as of 2014 is the Donjon Iron and Metal Scrap Processing Facility.
History
The scrapyard was founded in the 1930s by John J. Witte and managed by him until his death in 1980. It was then taken over by his son-in-law, Joe Coyne, who described it as similar to an automobile salvage yard, with the boats serving as a source of parts to sell. It is now managed by John Witte's son Arnold. It contains about 100 boats and ships, down from an earlier high of 400.Site
The abandoned and decomposing vessels, mostly cargo ships and tugboats, come from "all decades of the 20th century". They sit in the mud and shallow water until they are dismantled or salvaged. Some of them are historic, so that the place has been called an "accidental marine museum". Vessels of historic interest include the submarine chaser , the first World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
US Navy ship to have a predominantly African-American crew; and the New York City Fire Department
The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) is the full-service fire department of New York City, serving all Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs. The FDNY is responsible for providing Fi ...
fireboat
A fireboat or Fire-float Pyronaut, fire-float is a specialized watercraft with pumps and nozzles designed for fighting shoreline and shipboard fires. The first fireboats, dating to the late 18th century, were tugboats, retrofitted with ...
'' Abram S. Hewitt'', which served as the floating command post at the 1904 sinking of the passenger ferry , a disaster that killed more than a thousand people.
The site is hard to reach and posted with "No trespassing" signs. Nevertheless, there are some visitors: marine historians explore the area via boats or kayaks, while the decaying ships are a popular subject for photographers and artists. Because of its eerie environment, the location has become a tourist attraction, despite its remote location and difficult accessibility via "a makeshift path of street signs and wood planks into muddy marshland and to the edge of the water where the boats are visible."
Media
A documentary, ''Graves of Arthur Kill'', was filmed in 2012. Scenes from the 2010 thriller ''Salt
In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
'' were filmed on site.
References
External links
Donjon Recycling
Wikimapia
{{coord, 40.555503, -74.215738, scale:3500, display=title Ship graveyards Ship disposal Port of New York and New Jersey Contemporary archaeology Maritime archaeology 1930s establishments in New York City Buildings and structures in Staten Island Tourist attractions in Staten Island