Governors Island, Park on Governors Island in New York Harbor, United States
Governors Island is a 172-acre park on an island in New York Harbor, about half a mile south of Lower Manhattan. The site combines meadows, man-made hills, bike paths, and waterfront promenades offering views of the skyline and the Statue of Liberty.
The Lenape gathered chestnuts, hickory nuts and acorns on the island they called Paggank, and Dutch settlers landed there in May 1624. Fort Jay was built between 1806 and 1809 on earthworks raised in 1776, and from the 1870s to 1966 the post was an Army headquarters.
Visitors come here to see art installations in old military buildings or attend open-air music events during summer. The name goes back to Dutch colonial times when the island was reserved for the governor.
The island has operated year-round since 2021, after decades of summer-only access. Ferries from Manhattan and Brooklyn are the only way to reach it, and there are no full-time residents. A waterfront promenade circles the entire shoreline, and Yankee Pier on the southeast shore is the landing point.
The hill area was created starting in 2014 using construction debris and soil from city tunnel projects. From there, a slide over 57 feet (17 m) long winds down through the man-made landscape.
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