Bulls Ferry (also Bull's Ferry) is an area along the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

, just north of

Weehawken Port Imperial Port Imperial is a community centered around an intermodal transit hub on the Weehawken, New Jersey, waterfront of the Hudson River across from Midtown Manhattan, served by New York Waterway ferries and buses, Hudson–Bergen Light Rail, a ...

in the towns of

West New York West New York is a town in the northern part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, situated upon the New Jersey Palisades. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 52,912, an increase of 3,204 (+6.4%) from ...

, Guttenberg and

North Bergen North Bergen is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 63,361, an increase of 2,588 (+4.3%) from the 2010 census count of 60,773, ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. It takes its name from a pre-Revolutionary settlement belonging to the Bull family, who operated a row-and-sail

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

to the burgeoning city of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

across the river. During the Revolutionary War, the British built and occupied a

blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...

in the area of Bull's Ferry, an area known to the British as Block House Point. This fort was the site of several skirmishes between the British and American forces. Brigadier General

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military expl ...

led American troops from New Bridge on a raid against the blockhouse on July 20, 1780, in the Battle of Bull's Ferry. After the raid, the blockhouse was abandoned when British troops decamped to the

fort A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...

Bergen Neck Bergen Neck is a peninsula in the United States, located between the Upper New York Bay and the Newark Bay in the Hudson County, New Jersey municipalities of Bayonne and Jersey City. Its southernmost tip, Bergen Point, is separated from Staten ...

. Like

Burdett's Landing Burdett's Landing, also called Burdett's Ferry, is a site on the west bank of the Hudson River located in Edgewater, New Jersey. Ferries initially used Burdett's Landing as a departure point for transporting agricultural produce from New Jersey acr ...

to the north, Bull's Ferry was a crucial crossing point well into the 19th century. Ferry service continued for several decades until

steam ferries Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

, notably from

Hoboken Hoboken ( ; ) is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's popula ...

, replaced the earlier, brute-force rowing service. Larger terminals to the north at Edgewater and south at the West Shore Railroad Terminal operated until the 1950s. Modern ferries still commute to Manhattan out of Port Imperial in Weehawken, Hoboken and

Paulus Hook Paulus Hook is a community on the Hudson River waterfront in Jersey City, New Jersey. It is located across the river from Manhattan. The name Hook comes from the Dutch word "hoeck", which translates to "point of land." This "point of land" has ...

Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

(as well as Sandy Hook on the Jersey shore). A number of roads ran down the

Hudson Palisades The Palisades, also called the New Jersey Palisades or the Hudson River Palisades, are a line of steep cliffs along the west side of the lower Hudson River in Northeastern New Jersey and Southeastern New York in the United States. The cliffs s ...

to the ferry slip. Bull's Ferry Road was the original name of Park Avenue and Woodcliff Avenues up on the palisades in North Hudson, and is still used for a street winding around the Stonehenge Tower and descending from

Boulevard East Boulevard East (officially John F. Kennedy Boulevard East, and sometimes referred to as JFK Boulevard East) is a two-way street, two-way, mostly two lane, scenic county road in the municipalities of Weehawken, New Jersey, Weehawken, West New Yor ...

to River Road in

. Another, simply called Ferry Road, passes under the Galaxy Towers which overlook the neighborhood. The slip itself was close to the part of Edgewater once known as Shadyside. Since the 1980s, previous industrial and maritime uses of the area at the foot of the Palisades have given way to residential, institutional and recreational development, including the

Palisades Medical Center Palisades Medical Center (PMC) is a 186-bed hospital located in North Bergen, New Jersey, United States, that serves a population of 400,000 in Hudson County and in Southern Bergen County. The non-profit medical center is part of the Hackensack M ...

and the

Hudson River Waterfront Walkway The Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, also known as the Hudson River Walkway, is a promenade along the Hudson Waterfront in New Jersey. The ongoing and incomplete project located on Kill van Kull and the western shore of Upper New York Bay and t ...

. The district's major thoroughfare is commonly known as River Road, which is served by New Jersey Transit routes 158 and 188 and

NY Waterway NY Waterway, or New York Waterway, is a private transportation company running ferry and bus service in the Port of New York and New Jersey and in the Hudson Valley. The company utilizes public-private partnership with agencies such as the Por ...

buses, with connecting service to

. In April 2011, Guttenberg, and

agreed to jointly build a park south of Palisades Medical Center, which would include a waterfront promenade. The

is an

esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

along the water's edge from

Bayonne Bayonne () is a city in southwestern France near the France–Spain border, Spanish border. It is a communes of France, commune and one of two subprefectures in France, subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques departments of France, departm ...

to Fort Lee.

References

{{Authority control North Bergen, New Jersey Neighborhoods in Hudson County, New Jersey Historic towns of Hudson County, New Jersey New Jersey populated places on the Hudson River New Jersey in the American Revolution Colonial forts in New Jersey

See also

References