Haverstraw Bay, located in

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 * ...

, is the widest portion of 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 ...

. The width of Haverstraw Bay is approximately , the length approximately from river kilometer 58 (river mile 36) at Croton Point to river kilometer 66 (river mile 41) at Stony Point. The bay is bordered by the

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

of Haverstraw, in

Rockland County Rockland County is the southernmost county on the west side of the Hudson River in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population is 338,329, making it the state's ...

, to the west and the village of

Croton-on-Hudson Croton-on-Hudson ( ) is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 8,327 at the 2020 United States census over 8,070 at the 2010 census. It is located in the town of Cortlandt as part of New York City's northern ...

, in

Westchester County Westchester County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York, bordering the Long Island Sound and the Byram River to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The county is the seventh most populous cou ...

, to the east.

Geography

Haverstraw Bay is bordered to the west by the

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and village of Haverstraw and to the east by the northern portion of the town of Ossining, village of

and the southern portion of the town of Cortlandt. Haverstraw Bay is approximately 35 miles (56 kilometers) to the north of

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 ...

. A major feature of the bay is the large

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

that forms its southern downstream border,

Croton Point Croton Point Park is a Westchester County park in the village of Croton-on-Hudson. The park has several public attractions including a miniature aircraft airport, boat launch, tent and RV camping, cabin rental, cross-country skiing, fishing, gr ...

, which juts almost halfway across the Hudson from the eastern shore. Croton Point Park is a popular birding location, including frequent sightings of the

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...

. The moderately saline bay is the northern, upstream boundary of the lower Hudson River estuary.

Ecology

The bay's physical and biological characteristics make it one of the most significant

estuarine An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

areas in the

. The bay is deeper on its western side with a shipping channel of minimum 32 feet in depth and 300 feet in width. The bay's eastern side is shallower with most of that section of bay not more than 10 feet deep. Shallow depths with ample sunlight lead to robust aquatic vegetation. Inflows of brackish Atlantic Ocean water overlaid with fresh stream water promote a nutrient rich environment for myriad invertebrate, fish, and bird species. The bay's ecology plays a central role in the health of fish populations in the Hudson River, including the endangered

shortnose sturgeon The shortnose sturgeon (''Huso brevirostrum'') is a small and endangered species of North American sturgeon. As with most sturgeons, it is an anadromous bottom-feeder, which migrates upstream to spawn but spends most of its life feeding in rive ...

and the larger, more abundant

atlantic sturgeon The Atlantic sturgeon (''Acipenser oxyrinchus'') is a large species of sturgeon native to both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, and associated river basins. It is a member of the family Acipenseridae, and, along with other sturgeon, it is sometimes ...

. New York State has designated Haverstraw Bay a "Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat". Up to the mid-1950s, Haverstraw Bay was once a productive

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...

habitat. As with the rest of the Hudson, at the microbial level the bay's health is affected by oxygen concentrations. The bay's water chemistry is affected rain fall, tidal variations, and human induced waste and runoff, as well as by seasonal changes in temperature and light.

History

Sandford Robinson Gifford - Morning in the Hudson

In 1609, the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...

had financed

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

navigator

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the Northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...

to search for the

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea lane between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, near the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Arctic Archipelago of Canada. The eastern route along the Arctic ...

. In an attempt to find this undiscovered route, Henry Hudson decided to sail his ship up the

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

that would later be named after him (

). As he continued up the river, its width expanded, into Haverstraw Bay, leading him to believe he had successfully reached the Northwest Passage. In 1780, spy

Major John André Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

landed at Snedeker's Landing (a.k.a. Waldberg Landing) on the west shore of the bay in the woods below Haverstraw village to meet

Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold (#Brandt, Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American-born British military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of ...

.Adams, Arthur, The Hudson River Guidebook (Fordham University Press, New York, 1996, pp. 146) In 1801,

Charles Willson Peale Charles Willson Peale (April 15, 1741 – February 22, 1827) was an American painter, military officer, scientist, and naturalist. In 1775, inspired by the American Revolution, Peale moved from his native Maryland to Philadelphia, where he set ...

traveled up the Hudson and sketched Stony Point from the bay. The bay appears in the 1975

James Lincoln Collier James Lincoln Collier (born June 29, 1928) is an American journalist, professional musician, jazz commentator, and author. Many of his non-fiction titles focus on music theory and the history of jazz. He and his brother Christopher Collier, a ...

and Christopher Collier novel, '' My Brother Sam Is Dead''. The bay is currently traversed by NY Waterway's

Haverstraw–Ossining Ferry The Haverstraw–Ossining Ferry is a passenger ferry over the Haverstraw Bay and Hudson River, which connects Haverstraw with Ossining in the U.S. state of New York. The ferry operates during rush hours on weekdays only, primarily transporting ...

Tourism

Landmarks and places of Interest

*Rockland County September 11 Memorial at Haverstraw Bay Park.

References

External links

Hudson River Almanac

Testimony on Haverstraw Bay as ecological engine of the Hudson River to NAOA (2002)

Microbial Ecology of the Hudson River Estuary

{{coord, 41, 12, 09, N, 73, 55, 50, W, display=title, type:waterbody Hudson River Bays of New York (state) Bodies of water of Rockland County, New York Bays of Westchester County, New York