New York City´s Roosevelt Island is known by its present name only since 1971. Before that it was called Welfare Island, Blackwell´s Island, Manning´s Island, Hog Island, and finally, by its original Algonkin-Indian name, Minnahannock. Because of its isolated location the island has been used as a safe place for a penitentiary and diverse medical institutions, like the Penitentiary Hospital, the City Hospital, the Smallpox Hospital and the infamous New York City Lunatic Asylum. The last-mentioned came to the world´s attention when journalism´s first investigative reporter Nellie Bly was admitted to the asylum as a patient in an undercover plot, to expose the institution´s harsh and inhuman conditions.

Today all of the institutions have been closed and shut down, respectively moved, and Roosevelt Island has evolved into a residential area, formally belonging to the borough of Manhattan. The island north of Queensboro Bridge is the residential part, and south of the bridge is going to be the location of a graduate school of applied sciences, once the renovation and transformaton of a former hospital will be completed. Also on the southern part, behind the future school, extending to the tip of the island, is the Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park. After coming to the island with the very unique Tramway, taking a walk along the western river bank down to the park, especially in the late afternoon hours when the sun starts sinking behind the silhouette of the Upper East Side, is a very special experience. Don´t miss it, it´s a New York thing to do.

Setting off with the Tramway heading east toward Roosevelt Island. From this perspective one can see

that the Tramway runs parallel to the Queensboro Bridge.

Views from the Tramway.

Ruins of the Smallpox Hospital which was opened in 1856.

The southern tip of Roosevelt Park.

Roosevelt´s Four Freedoms.

View of the Upper East Side to the north towards Queensboro Bridge.

The bridge was completed and opened in 1909.

Views like this are the main reason to take a stroll on the island.

Heading back to the bustling city.

See more pics of Roosevelt Island and Manhattan.