Lemon Creek, Staten Island
Encyclopedia
South Shore, Staten Island
The South Shore is a geographical term applied to the area in the New York City borough of Staten Island, south and east of the island's ridge of hills along the waterfront and adjacent areas from the Narrows to the mouth of the Arthur Kill, although many observers prefer to restrict its scope to...
of Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, one of the five boroughs of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. It is one of the few remaining ground-level creeks in New York City.
Name
Known in 1830 as Seguine's Creek, for a prominent local family, this body of water was referred to as the Little North River in 1895. Shortly thereafter, it began to be called Lemon Creek, although the origin of the name is not known.Course
Lemon Creek emerges from a conduit under Rossville Avenue and flows into Porzio's Pond, located north of the intersection of Woodrow Road and Maguire Avenue. Water from the pond reaches Lemon Creek both above ground and underground. Flowing generally southward, near the intersection of Drumgoole Road West and Maguire Avenue, Sandy Brook empties into the creek. This small stream now originates just south of Sharrotts Road and east of the West Shore Expressway. Lemon Creek continues southward under the Korean War Veterans ParkwayKorean War Veterans Parkway
The Richmond Parkway is a Parkway that traverses the South Shore of Staten Island, New York, USA from southwest to northeast...
and Drumgoole Roads, and begins to widen among marshes south of the Staten Island Railway
Staten Island Railway
The Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority, publicly known as MTA Staten Island Railway or SIR, is the operator of the lone rapid transit line in the borough of Staten Island, New York City, USA...
. The creek turns eastward and passes under Bayview Avenue, then southward again. Just above its mouth, it receives a tributary from the east draining Wolfe's Pond, which is located within a city park of the same name
Wolfe's Pond Park
Wolfe's Pond Park is a large public park located on the South Shore of Staten Island. It is bounded on the north by the Staten Island Railway, on the west by Holten Avenue, on the south by Raritan Bay, and on the east by Chisolm Street, Luten Avenue, and Cornelia Avenue, which is also the main...
. A marina and boat moorings are located here. Immediately below, it empties into Prince's Bay
Prince's Bay, Staten Island
Prince's Bay is the name of a neighborhood located on the South Shore of New York City's borough of Staten Island and of an arm of Raritan Bay , on which the eastern shoreline of the community is situated...
, part of Raritan Bay
Raritan Bay
Raritan Bay is a bay located at the southern portion of Lower New York Bay between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey and is part of the New York Bight. The bay is bounded on the northwest by New York's Staten Island, on the west by Perth Amboy, New Jersey, on the south by the Raritan...
, just off the corner of Bayview Avenue and Johnston Terrace.
Throughout its above-ground length, Lemon Creek is generally regarded as the boundary between the South Shore neighborhoods of Prince's Bay
Prince's Bay, Staten Island
Prince's Bay is the name of a neighborhood located on the South Shore of New York City's borough of Staten Island and of an arm of Raritan Bay , on which the eastern shoreline of the community is situated...
and Pleasant Plains
Pleasant Plains, Staten Island
Pleasant Plains is a neighborhood located on Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City, New York, the most populous city in the United States....
. Its watershed covers about 2 mi² (5.2 km²).
Geology
The Lemon Creek watershed lies within the terminal moraineTerminal moraine
A terminal moraine, also called end moraine, is a moraine that forms at the end of the glacier called the snout.Terminal moraines mark the maximum advance of the glacier. An end moraine is at the present boundary of the glacier....
crossing Staten Island. The lower reaches of the creek, below the Staten Island Railway
Staten Island Railway
The Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority, publicly known as MTA Staten Island Railway or SIR, is the operator of the lone rapid transit line in the borough of Staten Island, New York City, USA...
, are bordered by extensive marshes, the largest and most pristine on the south shore of Staten Island. This area includes both salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
and the only tidal freshwater marsh on Staten Island.
History
The creek first appears in recorded history in 1670, as one of the boundaries of a 140 acre (56.7 ha) grant of land to Paulus Regrenier. The Abraham Manee Homestead may encompass Regrenier's original dwelling.Clam
Clam
The word "clam" can be applied to freshwater mussels, and other freshwater bivalves, as well as marine bivalves.In the United States, "clam" can be used in several different ways: one, as a general term covering all bivalve molluscs...
s were once abundant at the mouth of the creek, in Prince's Bay. The oysters harvested there were once a delicacy exported to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and the export of oysters helped make the fortune of the local Seguine family. However, shellfishing ceased in the area in the 1920s due to an outbreak of typhoid fever
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...
traced to Raritan Bay oysters. However, while non-commercial clamming is still forbidden due to pollution, commercial clamming is permitted if the clams are transplanted into clean water before harvest, and the Lemon Creek marina is again a base for clamming vessels.
Parks
Animals
The marshes along the lower creek provide a home for waterfowl such as SwanSwan
Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...
s, Mallard
Mallard
The Mallard , or Wild Duck , is a dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia....
s, and Black Ducks
American Black Duck
The American Black Duck is a large dabbling duck. American Black Ducks are similar to Mallards in size, and resemble the female Mallard in coloration, although the Black Duck's plumage is darker...
, and a refuge for migrating birds, as well as monarch butterflies
Monarch butterfly
The Monarch butterfly is a milkweed butterfly , in the family Nymphalidae. It is perhaps the best known of all North American butterflies. Since the 19th century, it has been found in New Zealand, and in Australia since 1871 where it is called the Wanderer...
. Lemon Creek Park is also home to the only purple martin
Purple Martin
The Purple Martin is the largest North American swallow. These aerial acrobats have speed and agility in flight, and when approaching their housing, will dive from the sky at great speeds with their wings tucked.-Description and taxonomy:...
colony in New York City, popular among local birdwatchers.
In the center of the marshes on the lower creek is Ziel's Island, also known as Crab Island for the fiddler crab
Fiddler crab
A fiddler crab, sometimes known as a calling crab, may be any of approximately 100 species of semi-terrestrial marine crabs which make up the genus Uca. As members of the family Ocypodidae, fiddler crabs are most closely related to the ghost crabs of the genus Ocypode. This entire group is composed...
s and blue crabs that live there. Clams are commercially harvested off the mouth of the creek, and various marine fish can be caught from a fishing pier
Pier
A pier is a raised structure, including bridge and building supports and walkways, over water, typically supported by widely spread piles or pillars...
at the mouth of the creek.