Gallops Island
Encyclopedia
Gallops Island, also known as Gallups Island, is an island
in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area
, situated between Georges Island and Long Island
and just over 6 miles (9.7 km) from downtown Boston. The island has a permanent size of 23 acres (93,077.8 m²), plus an intertidal zone
of a further 28 acres (113,312.1 m²), and is composed of one large drumlin
, reaching an elevation of 79 feet (24.1 m) above sea level
. The island has a rocky beach and offers long vistas from the top of its grassy bluffs. Gallops Island is closed until asbestos remediation is completed.
The island is named after John Gallop, one of Boston Harbor's
first pilots, who lived on the island. Since then the island has been occupied by a restaurant
and inn
and a quarantine station
. During the Civil War
the island was occupied by a military camp housing 3,000 Union
soldiers, and during World War II
it was occupied by a radio school and a school for bakers and cooks.
The island contains a collection of ornamental trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants that date back to its earlier uses, with additional trees being planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps
in the 1930s. Photographs from the 1940s show that a tree lined street extended the length of the island. Although the buildings have been demolished, the pathways and foundations still exist and are lined with privet
hedges and surrounded by fruit, shade and coniferous trees, including lilac
s, mock-orange
, snowberry
, and forsythia
. Also present are self-sown sumac
, poplar
, poison ivy
, and bayberry
. The vegetation has been badly damaged in recent years by the island's population of rabbits.
Gallops Island was closed in 2000 due to the presence of asbestos-containing building debris from former military uses. The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation has determined that the island will be closed to the public until visitors can be welcomed back safely. As of August 2010, it was predicting a re-opening no earlier than 2015, presuming remediation funding could be obtained.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area
Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area
The Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area situated among the islands of Boston Harbor of Boston, Massachusetts. The area is made up of a collection of islands, together with a former island and a peninsula, many of which are open for public recreation and some...
, situated between Georges Island and Long Island
Long Island (Massachusetts)
This article is about the island Long Island, Boston. For other islands called Long Island, see Long Island .Long Island is situated in the middle of Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. The island is part of the City of Boston, and of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area...
and just over 6 miles (9.7 km) from downtown Boston. The island has a permanent size of 23 acres (93,077.8 m²), plus an intertidal zone
Intertidal zone
The intertidal zone is the area that is above water at low tide and under water at high tide . This area can include many different types of habitats, with many types of animals like starfish, sea urchins, and some species of coral...
of a further 28 acres (113,312.1 m²), and is composed of one large drumlin
Drumlin
A drumlin, from the Irish word droimnín , first recorded in 1833, is an elongated whale-shaped hill formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or ground moraine.-Drumlin formation:...
, reaching an elevation of 79 feet (24.1 m) above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
. The island has a rocky beach and offers long vistas from the top of its grassy bluffs. Gallops Island is closed until asbestos remediation is completed.
The island is named after John Gallop, one of Boston Harbor's
Port of Boston
The Port of Boston, , is a major seaport located in Boston Harbor and adjacent to the City of Boston...
first pilots, who lived on the island. Since then the island has been occupied by a restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
and inn
INN
InterNetNews is a Usenet news server package, originally released by Rich Salz in 1991, and presented at the Summer 1992 USENIX conference in San Antonio, Texas...
and a quarantine station
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
. During the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
the island was occupied by a military camp housing 3,000 Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
soldiers, and during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
it was occupied by a radio school and a school for bakers and cooks.
The island contains a collection of ornamental trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants that date back to its earlier uses, with additional trees being planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...
in the 1930s. Photographs from the 1940s show that a tree lined street extended the length of the island. Although the buildings have been demolished, the pathways and foundations still exist and are lined with privet
Privet
Privet was originally the name for the European semi-evergreen shrub Ligustrum vulgare, and later also for the more reliably evergreen Ligustrum ovalifolium , used extensively for privacy hedging. It is often suggested that the name privet is related to private, but the OED states that there is no...
hedges and surrounded by fruit, shade and coniferous trees, including lilac
Lilac
Syringa is a genus of about 20–25 species of flowering woody plants in the olive family , native to woodland and scrub from southeastern Europe to eastern Asia, and widely and commonly cultivated in temperate areas elsewhere....
s, mock-orange
Mock-orange
Mock-orange is a genus of about 60 species of shrubs from 1 to 6 m tall, native to North America, Central America, Asia and in southeast Europe....
, snowberry
Symphoricarpos
Symphoricarpos, with common names in English of Snowberry, Waxberry or Ghostberry, is a small genus of about 15 species of deciduous shrubs in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae. All species are natives of North and Central America, except one native to western China...
, and forsythia
Forsythia
Forsythia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Oleaceae . There are about 11 species, mostly native to eastern Asia, but one native to southeastern Europe. The common name is also Forsythia; the genus is named after William Forsyth.-Growth:They are deciduous shrubs typically growing to a...
. Also present are self-sown sumac
Sumac
Sumac is any one of approximately 250 species of flowering plants in the genus Rhus and related genera, in the family Anacardiaceae. Sumacs grow in subtropical and temperate regions throughout the world, especially in Africa and North America....
, poplar
Poplar
Populus is a genus of 25–35 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar , aspen, and cottonwood....
, poison ivy
Poison ivy
Toxicodendron radicans, better known as poison ivy , is a poisonous North American plant that is well known for its production of urushiol, a clear liquid compound found within the sap of the plant that causes an itching rash in most people who touch it...
, and bayberry
Myrica
Myrica is a genus of about 35–50 species of small trees and shrubs in the family Myricaceae, order Fagales. The genus has a wide distribution, including Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America, and missing only from Australasia...
. The vegetation has been badly damaged in recent years by the island's population of rabbits.
Gallops Island was closed in 2000 due to the presence of asbestos-containing building debris from former military uses. The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation has determined that the island will be closed to the public until visitors can be welcomed back safely. As of August 2010, it was predicting a re-opening no earlier than 2015, presuming remediation funding could be obtained.