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Bear Mountain State Parkway

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The Bear Mountain State Parkway (also known as the Bear Mountain Parkway ) is a state parkway located in northern Westchester County, New York , in the United States. It is an incomplete highway, with a 3.85-mile (6.20 km) western section and a 0.73-mile (1.17 km) eastern section; both sections comprise New York State Route 987H ( NY 987H ), the unsigned reference route assigned to the road by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT). Crompond Road ( U.S. Route 202 (US 202) and NY 35 ) provides a connection between the two sections. Collectively, the parkway extends from an intersection with US 6 , US 9 , and US 202 southeast of the Bear Mountain Bridge to an interchange with the Taconic State Parkway in Yorktown .

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96-778: The parkway was built in 1932 but, unlike most other parkways in Westchester County, it has barely been constructed upon since. The initial reason for the Bear Mountain Parkway was to connect the Taconic State Parkway (or then, the Bronx River Parkway Extension) to the Bear Mountain Bridge. The Tappan Zee Bridge became a more popular Hudson River crossing following its construction, and consequently,

192-733: A bridge to connect the New York State Thruway across Westchester to the New England Thruway . The Port Authority promised its bondholders that it would not allow any other entity to construct a river crossing within its jurisdiction, which reached to a point one mile (1.6 km) south of Nyack on the western shore of the Hudson River and across to Tarrytown on the eastern shore. A May 10, 1950, editorial in The New York Times suggested that

288-404: A large depositional plain near its mouth. This lack of significant deposits near the river mouth differs from most other American estuaries. Around New York Harbor, sediment also flows into the estuary from the ocean when the current is flowing north. The area around Hudson River was inhabited by indigenous peoples ages before Europeans arrived. The Lenape , Wappinger , and Mahican branches of

384-735: A rail line across the new bridge or building the new bridge so a new rail line can be installed at a future date. Commuter rail service west of the bridge in Rockland County is limited, and the MTA studied expansion possibilities in Rockland County that would use the new bridge to connect with Metro-North's Hudson Line on the east side of the bridge along the Hudson River for direct service into Manhattan. On September 26, 2008, New York state officials announced their plan to replace

480-454: A replacement bridge at a cost of at least $ 4 billion. All traffic was shifted to the new bridge on October 6, 2017, and demolition of the old bridge began soon afterward. The eastern half of the bridge was demolished in a controlled demolition on January 15, 2019, while the western half was lowered onto a barge and hauled away in May 2019. The Tappan Zee is named for an American Indian tribe from

576-510: A site in southern Dobbs Ferry or northern Hastings-on-Hudson , where the Hudson narrowed considerably from its three-mile (5 km) width at Tappan Zee, would be a more appropriate site, and suggested that Governor Dewey work with his counterpart, Governor of New Jersey Alfred E. Driscoll , to craft a compromise that would offer Thruway customers a discounted bridge fare at a more southerly crossing. Two days later, Governor Dewey announced that

672-442: A street at-grade prior to entering Cortlandt . In Cortlandt, the parkway meets US 6 at an interchange and becomes a two-lane surface road again and meets several roads ahead of an intersection with US 202 and NY 35 . Here, the Bear Mountain Parkway merges with the two-lane US 202 and NY 35, creating a physical but not official concurrency extending eastward into neighboring Yorktown . Roughly one mile from

768-539: Is 315 miles (507 km) long, with depths of 30 feet (9.1 m) for the stretch south of the Federal Dam, dredged to maintain the river as a shipping route. Some sections there are around 160 feet deep, and the deepest part of the Hudson, known as "World's End" (between the US Military Academy and Constitution Island ) has a depth of 202 feet (62 m). The Hudson and its tributaries, notably

864-470: Is believed that the first use of the name Hudson River in a map was in a map created by the cartographer John Carwitham in 1740. In 1939, the magazine Life described the river as "America's Rhine", comparing it to the 760-mile (1,220 km) Rhine in Central and Western Europe. The tidal Hudson is unusually straight for a river, and the earliest colonial Dutch charts of the Hudson River designated

960-673: Is credited for the Old World 's discovery of continental North America, with his journey in 1497 along the continent's coast. In 1524, Florentine explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano sailed north along the Atlantic seaboard and into New York Harbor, however he left the harbor shortly thereafter, without navigating into the Hudson River. In 1598, Dutch men employed by the Greenland Company wintered in New York Bay . In 1609

1056-577: Is estimated to have formed between 26,000 and 13,300 years ago. Along the river, the Palisades are of metamorphic basalt , or diabases , the Highlands are primarily granite and gneiss with intrusions , and from Beacon to Albany, shales and limestones , or mainly sedimentary rock . The Narrows were most likely formed about 6,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age. Previously, Staten Island and Long Island were connected, preventing

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1152-548: The Algonquians lived along the river, mostly in peace with the other groups. The Algonquians in the region mainly lived in small clans and villages throughout the area. One major settlement was called Navish, which was located at Croton Point , overlooking the Hudson River. Other settlements were located in various locations throughout the Hudson Highlands . Many villagers lived in various types of houses, which

1248-632: The Atlantic Ocean at Upper New York Bay . The river serves as a physical boundary between the states of New Jersey and New York at its southern end. Farther north, it marks local boundaries between several New York counties . The lower half of the river is a tidal estuary , deeper than the body of water into which it flows, occupying the Hudson Fjord , an inlet that formed during the most recent period of North American glaciation , estimated at 26,000 to 13,300 years ago. Even as far north as

1344-536: The Battle of Harlem Heights the following month. Later that year, the British and Continental Armies were involved in skirmishes and battles in rivertowns of the Hudson in Westchester County, culminating in the Battle of White Plains . Also in late 1776, New England militias fortified the river's choke point known as the Hudson Highlands , which included building Fort Clinton and Fort Montgomery on either side of

1440-766: The Bear Mountain Bridge , which connects Westchester and Rockland Counties. Afterward, leaving the Hudson Highlands, the river enters Haverstraw Bay , the widest point of the river at 3.5 miles (5.6 km) wide. Shortly thereafter, the river forms the Tappan Zee and flows under the Tappan Zee Bridge , which carries the New York State Thruway between Tarrytown and Nyack in Westchester and Rockland Counties respectively. At

1536-673: The Bronx River Parkway 's extension into northern Westchester County . It was intended to provide a quick, scenic trip from the Bronx to the Bear Mountain Bridge and Harriman State Park . In 1941, the Taconic State Park Commission assumed control of the Bronx River extension. The commission subsequently combined the north–south portion of the extension with the then-Eastern State Parkway to create

1632-716: The Delaware River at Honesdale, Pennsylvania , and the Hudson River at Kingston, New York. This canal enabled the transportation of coal, and later other goods as well, between the Delaware and Hudson River watersheds. The combination of these canals made the Hudson River one of the most vital waterways for trade in the nation. During the Industrial Revolution , the Hudson River became a major location for production, especially around Albany and Troy. The river allowed for fast and easy transport of goods from

1728-579: The Dutch East India Company financed English navigator Henry Hudson in his search for the Northeast Passage , but thwarted by sea ice in that direction, he sailed westward across the Atlantic in pursuit of a Northwest Passage . During the search, Hudson sailed up the river that would later be named after him. He then sailed upriver to a point near Stuyvesant (Old Kinderhook), and the ship’s boat with five members ventured to

1824-602: The Dutch East India Company who explored it in 1609, and after whom Hudson Bay in Canada is also named. It had previously been observed by Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano sailing for King Francis I of France in 1524, as he became the first European known to have entered the Upper New York Bay , but he considered the river to be an estuary. The Dutch called the river the North River , and they called

1920-521: The Federal Dam in Troy . There are about two high tides and two low tides per day. As the tide rises, the tidal current moves northward, taking enough time that part of the river can be at high tide while another part can be at the bottom of its low tide. Strong tides make parts of New York Harbor difficult and dangerous to navigate. During the winter, ice floes may drift south or north, depending upon

2016-758: The Harlem River Ship Canal connecting to the Harlem River ), the east bank of the river becomes Manhattan . The river is sometimes still called the North River from this point south. The George Washington Bridge crosses the river between Fort Lee and the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. The Lincoln Tunnel and the Holland Tunnel also cross under the river between Manhattan and New Jersey. South of

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2112-533: The Hudson Valley , flowing along the west bank of Albany and the east bank of Rensselaer . Interstate 90 crosses the Hudson into Albany at this point in the river. The Hudson then leaves the Capital District, forming the boundary between Greene and Columbia Counties. It then meets its confluence with Schodack Creek, widening considerably at this point. After flowing by Hudson , the river forms

2208-651: The Lower Hudson Valley . Opened on December 15, 1955, the Tappan Zee Bridge was one of the primary crossings of the Hudson River north of New York City ; it carried much of the traffic between southern New England and points west of the Hudson. The bridge was the longest bridge in New York State, a title retained by its replacement . The total length of the bridge approached 16,013 feet (3.0328 mi; 4,881 m). The cantilever span

2304-553: The Mohawk River , the largest tributary of the Hudson River, in Waterford . The river then reaches the Federal Dam in Troy , marking an impoundment of the river. At an elevation of 2 feet (0.61 m), the bottom of the dam marks the beginning of the tidal influence in the Hudson as well as the beginning of the lower Hudson River. South of the Federal Dam, the Hudson River begins to widen considerably. The river enters

2400-669: The Saint Lawrence Seaway . Further south the Hudson takes in water from the Batten Kill River and Fish Creek near Schuylerville . The river then forms the boundary between Saratoga and Rensselaer counties. The river then enters the heart of the Capital District . It takes in water from the Hoosic River , which extends into Massachusetts . Shortly thereafter the river has its confluence with

2496-636: The St. Lawrence Seaway , and then British cities such as Montreal to the Hudson River and New York City. Another major canal was the Oswego Canal , which connected the Erie Canal to Oswego and Lake Ontario , and could be used to bypass Niagara Falls. The Cayuga-Seneca Canal connected the Erie Canal to Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake . Farther south, the Delaware and Hudson Canal was built between

2592-641: The Taconic State Parkway . The east–west section of the extension between the Taconic Parkway and Annsville was renamed the Bear Mountain State Parkway. At the time of the parkway's construction, the Bear Mountain Bridge was an extremely important crossing of the Hudson River for Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, and Orange County residents. The construction of the Tappan Zee Bridge and the traffic issues caused by

2688-571: The Tappan Zee Bridge , was a cantilever bridge in the U.S. state of New York . It was built from 1952 to 1955 to cross the Hudson River at one of its widest points, 25 miles (40 km) north of Midtown Manhattan , from South Nyack to Tarrytown . As an integral conduit within the New York Metropolitan Area , the bridge connected South Nyack in Rockland County with Tarrytown in Westchester County in

2784-633: The United States Geological Survey (USGS). USGS maps show the longest source of the Hudson as the Opalescent on the western slopes of Little Marcy Mountain, originating two miles north of Lake Tear of the Clouds. Using river names as seen on maps, Indian Pass Brook flows into Henderson Lake . The outlet of Henderson Lake is most commonly referred to as the official start of the Hudson River, as it flows east and meets

2880-730: The 1800s. One of the most significant canals of this era was the Erie Canal . The canal was built to link the Midwest to the Port of New York , a significant seaport during that time, by way of the Great Lakes , the canal, the Mohawk River , and the Hudson River. The completion of the canal enhanced the development of the American West, allowing settlers to travel west, send goods to markets in frontier cities, and export goods via

2976-659: The 21st century. The river was called Ka’nón:no or Ca-ho-ha-ta-te-a ("the river") by the Haudenosaunee , and it was known as Muh-he-kun-ne-tuk ("river that flows two ways" or "waters that are never still" ) or Mahicannittuk by the Mohican nation who formerly inhabited both banks of the lower portion of the river. The meaning of the Mohican name comes from the river's long tidal range. The Delaware Tribe of Indians (Bartlesville, Oklahoma) considers

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3072-609: The Algonquians called wigwams , though large families often lived in longhouses that could be a hundred feet long. At the associated villages, they grew corn, beans, and squash. They also gathered other types of plant foods, such as hickory nuts and many other wild fruits and tubers. In addition to agriculture, the Algonquians also fished in the Hudson River, focusing on various species of freshwater fish, as well as various variations of striped bass , American eels , sturgeon , herring , and shad . Oyster beds were also common on

3168-699: The Battery , the river proper ends, meeting the East River to form Upper New York Bay, also known as New York Harbor . Its outflow continues through the Narrows between Brooklyn and Staten Island , under the Verrazzano Bridge , and into Lower New York Bay and the Atlantic Ocean through the Hudson Canyon . The lower Hudson is a tidal estuary, with tidal influence extending as far as

3264-542: The Bear Mountain Parkway was never finished. The parkway begins at an intersection with US 6 , US 9 and US 202 south of Annsville Creek in Peekskill and proceeds eastward through the north side of Peekskill as a two-lane surface road. During its first mile, the parkway connects to Highland Avenue by way of an interchange before widening to three divided lanes (two eastbound, one westbound) at an interchange with North Division Street. The parkway intersects

3360-606: The British, who had invaded the largely-defenseless New Amsterdam. New Amsterdam and the colony of New Netherland were renamed New York, after the Duke of York . Under British colonial rule, the Hudson Valley became an agricultural hub. Manors were developed on the east side of the river, and the west side contained many smaller and independent farms. In 1754, the Albany Plan of Union was created at Albany City Hall on

3456-671: The Dutch was Rio de Montaigne . Later, they generally termed it the Noortrivier , or " North River ", the Delaware River being known as the Zuidrivier , or "South River". Other occasional names for the Hudson included Manhattes rieviere "Manhattan River", Groote Rivier "Great River", and de grootte Mouritse reviere , or "the Great Maurits River" (after Maurice, Prince of Orange ). The translated name North River

3552-564: The Hudson River and New York City. The completion of the canal made New York City one of the most vital ports in the nation, surpassing the Port of Philadelphia and ports in Massachusetts . After the completion of the Erie Canal, smaller canals were built to connect it with the new system. The Champlain Canal was built to connect the Hudson River near Troy to the southern end of Lake Champlain. This canal allowed boaters to travel from

3648-451: The Hudson River from terminating via the Narrows. At that time, the Hudson River emptied into the Atlantic Ocean through a more westerly course through parts of present-day northern New Jersey, along the eastern side of the Watchung Mountains to Bound Brook, New Jersey and then on into the Atlantic Ocean via Raritan Bay . A buildup of water in the Upper New York Bay eventually allowed the Hudson River to break through previous land mass that

3744-427: The Hudson River, and would later become Kingston. Fort Orange was founded on the river north of Wiltwyck, and later became known as Albany. The Dutch West India Company operated a monopoly on the region for roughly twenty years before other businessmen were allowed to set up their own ventures in the colony. In 1647, Director-General Peter Stuyvesant took over management of the colony, and surrendered it in 1664 to

3840-405: The Hudson and a metal chain between the two. In 1777, Washington expected the British would attempt to control the Hudson River, however they instead conquered Philadelphia, and left a smaller force in New York City, with permission to strike the Hudson Valley at any time. The British attacked on October 5, 1777, in the Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery by sailing up the Hudson River, looting

3936-416: The Hudson. The plan allowed the colonies to treaty with the Iroquois and provided a framework for the Continental Congress . During the American Revolutionary War , the British realized that the river's proximity to Lake George and Lake Champlain would allow their navy to control the water route from Montreal to New York City. British general John Burgoyne planned the Saratoga campaign , to control

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4032-427: The Langerack by the Dutch. An embellished (and partly erroneous) list of "The Old Reaches" was published in a tourist guidebook for steamboat passengers in the nineteenth century. The source of the Hudson River is Henderson Lake , located in the Adirondack Mountains at an elevation of 4,322 ft (1,317 m). However, the photogenic Lake Tear of the Clouds is more conventionally cited in popular culture as

4128-454: The Mohawk River, drain an area of 13,000 square miles (34,000 km ), the Hudson River Watershed. It covers much of New York, as well as parts of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont. Parts of the Hudson River form coves , such as Weehawken Cove in the towns of Hoboken and Weehawken in New Jersey. The City of Poughkeepsie and several adjacent communities in the mid-Hudson valley, totalling about 100,000 people, rely on

4224-401: The New York State Thruway Authority. On August 31, 2007, NYSTA officials added four phones – two each on the Rockland and Westchester sides – that connect callers via the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline crisis hotline to counselors at LifeNet or Covenant House . Signs reading "Life is Worth Living" and "When it seems like there is no hope, there is help" were placed on

4320-402: The Port Authority had dropped its plans to construct a bridge of its own, and that the bridge's location would be close to the Tarrytown-Nyack line, just outside the Port Authority's jurisdiction. Dewey stated that World War II military technology would be used in the bridge's construction. The site of the bridge, at the Hudson River's second-widest point, added to construction costs. The site

4416-464: The Tappan Zee Bridge with a new bridge that included high-speed bus lanes and space for future commuter-train tracks. The bridge was estimated to cost $ 6.4 billion, while adding bus lanes from Suffern to Port Chester was estimated to cost an additional $ 2.9 billion. Adding a rail line from the Suffern Metro-North station and across the bridge, connecting with Metro-North’s Hudson Line south of Tarrytown , would have added another $ 6.7 billion. The plan

4512-508: The Tappan Zee was designed to last only 50 years due to material shortages during the Korean War at the time of its construction. In total, the bridge was open for 61 years, 9 months, and 21 days. The new bridge is intended to last at least 100 years without any major repairs. The collapse of Minnesota's I-35W Mississippi River bridge in 2007 raised worries about the Tappan Zee's structural integrity. These concerns, together with traffic overcapacity and increased maintenance costs, escalated

4608-399: The area called " Tappan "; and zee being the Dutch word for "sea". With the increasing demands for commuter travel taxing the existing bridges and tunnels, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey had plans in 1950 to construct a bridge across the Hudson near Dobbs Ferry, New York . The proposal was overridden by New York State Governor Thomas E. Dewey , who wanted to construct

4704-601: The boundary between Orange and Dutchess Counties. It flows between Newburgh and Beacon and under the Newburgh Beacon Bridge , taking in the Fishkill Creek . In this area, between Gee's Point at the US Military Academy and Constitution Island , an area known as "World's End" marks the deepest part of the Hudson, at 202 feet (62 m). Shortly thereafter, the river enters the Hudson Highlands between Putnam and Orange Counties, flowing between mountains such as Storm King Mountain , Breakneck Ridge , and Bear Mountain . The river narrows considerably here before flowing under

4800-485: The boundary between Ulster and Columbia Counties and Ulster and Dutchess Counties, passing Germantown and Kingston . The Delaware and Hudson Canal meets the river at this point. The river then flows by Hyde Park , former residence of Franklin D. Roosevelt , and alongside the city of Poughkeepsie , flowing under the Walkway over the Hudson and the Mid-Hudson Bridge . Afterwards, the Hudson passes Wappingers Falls and takes in Wappinger Creek . The river then forms

4896-422: The bridge opened to traffic on December 15, 1955, along with a 27-mile (43 km) long section of the New York State Thruway from Suffern to Yonkers . The bridge was built on a very tight budget of $ 81 million (1950 dollars), or $ 1.08 billion in 2024 dollars. New York State Governor W. Averell Harriman signed a bill on February 28, 1956, to officially name the structure the Tappan Zee Bridge. In 1960,

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4992-452: The bridge to her death in 2010. Hudson River The Hudson River is a 315-mile (507 km) river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York , United States. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York at Henderson Lake in the town of Newcomb , and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between New York City and Jersey City , eventually draining into

5088-402: The bridge was not built with a plan that was "conducive to long-term durability” and that the Tappan Zee’s engineers designed it to be “nonredundant,” meaning that one "critical fracture could make the bridge fail completely because its supports couldn’t transfer the structure’s load to other supports." The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) studied the feasibility of either including

5184-413: The bridge was redecked, additionally, it was given a new metallic safety barrier. Originally, tolls were collected in both directions. In August 1970, the toll was abolished for westbound drivers, and at the same time, eastbound drivers saw their tolls doubled. The tolls of eleven other New York–New Jersey and Hudson River crossings along a 130-mile (210 km) stretch, from the Outerbridge Crossing in

5280-448: The bridge, which has been called "one of the most decrepit and potentially dangerous bridges" in the U.S. Engineering assessments have determined that "everything from steel corrosion to earthquakes to maritime accidents could cause major, perhaps catastrophic, damage to the span," prompting one of the top aides in the New York state governor's office to refer to the Tappan Zee as the “hold-your-breath bridge.” A 2009 state report noted that

5376-651: The bridge. Suicide fencing and traffic cameras were also installed along the bridge, and bridge staff were trained in suicide prevention. On October 14, 2012, Newsday reported that the Tappan Zee Bridge was called the Golden Gate Bridge of the East and that the " new Tappan Zee , which is in the works, will include fencing designed to thwart jumpers." Suicides on the Tappan Zee Bridge included those of Scott Douglas on January 6th, 1994 – after murdering his wife, newspaper heiress Anne Scripps – and of Douglas's stepdaughter Anne Morrell Petrillo, who jumped to her death on September 24, 2009. A US military employee jumped from

5472-418: The city of Troy , the flow of the river changes direction with the tides. The Hudson River runs through the Munsee , Lenape , Mohican , Mohawk , and Haudenosaunee homelands. Prior to European exploration, the river was known as the Mahicannittuk by the Mohicans, Ka'nón:no by the Mohawks, and Muhheakantuck by the Lenape. The river was subsequently named after Henry Hudson , an Englishman sailing for

5568-413: The closely related Mohicans to be a part of the Lenape people, and so the Lenape also claim the Hudson as part of their ancestral territory, also calling it Muhheakantuck . The first known European name for the river was the Rio San Antonio as named by the Portuguese explorer in Spain's employ, Estêvão Gomes , who explored the Mid-Atlantic coast in 1525. Another early name for the Hudson used by

5664-428: The early 19th century United States. Pollution in the Hudson River increased in the 20th century, more acutely by mid-century, particularly with industrial contamination from polychlorinated biphenyls , also known by their acronym PCBs. Pollution control regulations, enforcement actions and restoration projects initiated in the latter 20th century have begun to improve water quality, and restoration work has continued in

5760-497: The governor's office in December 1974. However, it was almost never used when the bridge was spoken about colloquially. The bridge was refurbished in 2008. It was redecked in 2010. Since the end of the 20th century, calls to replace the aging Tappan Zee Bridge had gone unanswered. The deteriorating structure bore an average of 138,000 vehicles per day by the end of its life, substantially more traffic than its designed capacity. Unlike other major bridges in metropolitan New York ,

5856-423: The hamlet of North River , and takes in the Schroon River at Warrensburg . Further south, the river forms the boundary between Warren and Saratoga Counties. The river then takes in the Sacandaga River from the Great Sacandaga Lake . Shortly thereafter, the river leaves the Adirondack Park, flows under Interstate 87 , and through Glens Falls , just south of Lake George although receiving no streamflow from

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5952-421: The interior of the Northeast to the coast. Hundreds of factories were built around the Hudson, in towns including Poughkeepise, Newburgh, Kingston, and Hudson. The North Tarrytown Assembly (later owned by General Motors ), on the river in Sleepy Hollow, was a large and notable example. The River links to the Erie Canal and Great Lakes, allowing manufacturing in the Midwest, including automobiles in Detroit, to use

6048-429: The lake. It next goes through Hudson Falls . At this point the river forms the boundary between Washington and Saratoga Counties. Here the river has an elevation of 200 feet (61 m). Just south in Fort Edward , the river reaches its confluence with the Champlain Canal , which historically provided boat traffic between New York City and Montreal and the rest of Eastern Canada via the Hudson, Lake Champlain and

6144-427: The loads and helped reduce costs. The bridge was designed by Emil Praeger of the Madigan-Hyland engineering firm. Captain Praeger helped develop floating caissons during World War II when the Allied forces needed to create and protect portable harbors for the 1944 invasion of Normandy . Black architect and engineer Donald F. White had also worked on the bridge design. Construction started in March 1952 and

6240-418: The most successful painters of the school. At the beginning of the 19th century, transportation from the US east coast into the mainland was difficult. Ships were the fastest vehicles at the time, as trains were still being developed and automobiles were roughly a century away. In order to facilitate shipping throughout the country's interior, numerous canals were constructed between internal bodies of water in

6336-414: The mouth of the river. The deeply eroded old riverbed beyond the current shoreline, Hudson Canyon , is a rich fishing area. The former riverbed is clearly delineated beneath the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, extending to the edge of the continental shelf . As a result of the glaciation and the rising sea levels , the lower half of the river is now a tidal estuary that occupies the Hudson Fjord. The fjord

6432-415: The narrow, meandering stretches as racks , or reaches. These names included the four "lower reaches" through the Hudson Highlands (Seylmakers rack, Cocks rack, Hoogh rack, and Vosserack) plus the four "upper reaches" from Inbocht Bay to Kinderhook (Backers rack, Jan Pleysiers rack, Klevers rack, and Harts rack). A ninth reach was described as "the long reach" by the Englishman Robert Juet and designated as

6528-411: The old bridge recently as part of emergency repairs would be sold to local governments for a dollar each so that local governments can build new bridges. Other parts of the old bridge would be sunk off the Atlantic Ocean coast as part of New York State's artificial reef program. In May 2018, the state government began sinking parts of the old bridge to make 12 artificial reefs. On January 2, 2019, it

6624-447: The opening of the new eastbound span was delayed when a piece of the old bridge came loose on September 7 while being demolished. The eastbound span, which was 160 feet (49 m) away from the old bridge, remained closed until the old bridge could be stabilized. The old bridge was then demolished in piecemeal fashion in order to minimize impacts on the Hudson River's wildlife and marine traffic. 135 deck panels that were assembled onto

6720-418: The physical overlap with US 202 and NY 35 and applies only to the segments of the road separate from US 202 and NY 35. The parkway was designated but not signed as NY 821 prior to the creation of the current reference route system. Originally proposed by Robert Moses , the Bear Mountain State Parkway was built between 1929 and 1932 by the Westchester County Parks Commission as part of

6816-408: The present-day Delaware River the South River , which formed the spine of the Dutch colony of New Netherland . Settlements of the colony clustered around the Hudson, and its strategic importance as the gateway to the American interior led to years of competition between the English and the Dutch over control of the river and colony. During the 18th century, the river valley and its inhabitants were

6912-462: The remaining wilderness, which was fast disappearing from the Hudson Valley just as it was coming to be appreciated for its qualities of ruggedness and sublimity . The school characterizes the artistic body, its New York location, its landscape subject matter, and often its subject, the Hudson River. In general, Hudson River School artists believed that nature in the form of the American landscape

7008-507: The river and therefore cut off the patriot hub of New England (to the river's east) from the South and Mid-Atlantic regions to the river's west. The action would allow the British to focus on rallying the support of loyalists in the southerly states. As a result, numerous battles were fought along the river and in nearby waterways. These include the Battle of Long Island , in August 1776 and

7104-687: The river floor, which provided an extra source of nutrition. Land hunting consisted of turkey, deer, bear, and other animals. The lower Hudson River was inhabited by the Lenape, while further north, the Wappingers lived from Manhattan Island up to Poughkeepsie . They traded with both the Lenape to the south and the Mahicans to the north. The Mahicans lived in the northern part of the valley from present-day Kingston to Lake Champlain , with their capital located near present-day Albany . John Cabot

7200-501: The river for their drinking water. New York Harbor, between the Narrows and the George Washington Bridge, has a mix of fresh and ocean water, mixed by wind and tides to create an increasing gradient of salinity from the river's top to its bottom. This varies with season, weather, variation of water circulation, and other factors; snowmelt at winter's end increases the freshwater flow downstream. The salt line of

7296-591: The river varies from the north in Poughkeepsie to the south at Battery Park in New York City, though it usually lies near Newburgh. The Hudson is sometimes called, in geological terms, a drowned river . The rising sea levels after the retreat of the Wisconsin glaciation , the most recent ice age , have resulted in a marine incursion that drowned the coastal plain and brought salt water well above

7392-532: The serious discussions already ongoing about replacing the Tappan Zee with a tunnel or a new bridge. Six options were identified and submitted for project study and environmental review. In 2009, the Tappan Zee Bridge was featured on The History Channel "The Crumbling of America" showing the infrastructure crisis in the United States . Many factors contribute to the precarious infrastructure of

7488-474: The source of the Hudson. The river is named Feldspar Brook from where it emerges from Lake Tear of the Clouds until its confluence with the Opalescent River , after which it becomes the Opalescent until it reaches Calamity Brook flowing southward into the eastern outlet of Henderson Lake. After this point, the stream is known as the Hudson River according to the cartographical definition used by

7584-481: The south to the Rip Van Winkle Bridge in the north, were also changed to eastbound-only at that time. In an effort to reduce congestion, the median was replaced by a seventh travel lane in 1987, this meant making the other six lanes narrower. A zipper barrier was installed in 1992. In 1994, the name of Malcolm Wilson was added to the bridge's name upon the 20th anniversary of his leaving

7680-676: The southwest flowing Calamity Brook. The confluence of the two rivers however is where most maps begin to use the Hudson River name on a cartographical basis. South of the outlet of Sanford Lake, the Opalescent River flows into the Hudson. The Hudson then flows south, taking in Beaver Brook and the outlet of Lake Harris. After its confluence with the Indian River, the Hudson forms the boundary between Essex and Hamilton counties. The Hudson flows entirely into Warren County in

7776-554: The state line with New Jersey the west bank of the Hudson enters Bergen County . The Palisades are large, rocky cliffs along the west bank of the river; also known as Bergen Hill at their lower end in Hudson County . Further south the east bank of the river becomes Yonkers and then the Riverdale neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City. South of the confluence of the Hudson and Spuyten Duyvil Creek (subsumed by

7872-506: The subject and inspiration of Washington Irving , the first internationally acclaimed American author. In the nineteenth century, the area inspired the Hudson River School of landscape painting , an American pastoral style, as well as the concepts of environmentalism and wilderness . The Hudson River was also the eastern outlet for the Erie Canal , which, when completed in 1825, became an important transportation artery for

7968-500: The tides. The Mahican name of the river represents its partially estuarine nature: muh-he-kun-ne-tuk means "the river that flows both ways." Due to tidal influence from the ocean extending to Troy, NY, freshwater discharge is only about 17,400 cubic feet (490 m ) per second on average. The mean fresh water discharge at the river's mouth in New York is approximately 21,900 cubic feet (620 m ) per second. The Hudson River

8064-428: The town line, the parkway separates from US 202 and NY 35 and progresses to the northeast as a two-lane freeway . After a short distance, the parkway becomes separated by a median prior to merging with the southbound Taconic State Parkway . The northbound Taconic Parkway is accessed by way of US 202 and NY 35. NY 987H, the internal NYSDOT designation for the parkway, terminates at both ends of

8160-536: The two-lane roads descending to the Bear Mountain Bridge have diminished the bridge's popularity since then, and consequently, the Bear Mountain Parkway was never finished. In 2000, there was an initiative to complete the final missing piece of the Bear Mountain Parkway, since all of the right of way has already been acquired. However, this never came to fruition. The entire route is in Westchester County . Tappan Zee Bridge (1955%E2%80%932017) The Governor Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge , commonly known as

8256-413: The vicinity of present-day Albany, reaching an end to navigation. The Dutch subsequently began to colonize the region, establishing the colony of New Netherland , including three major fur-trading outposts: New Amsterdam , Wiltwyck , and Fort Orange . New Amsterdam was founded at the mouth of the Hudson River, and would later become known as New York City . Wiltwyck was founded roughly halfway up

8352-646: The village of Peekskill and capturing the two forts. In 1778, the Continentals constructed the Great West Point Chain in order to prevent another British fleet from sailing up the Hudson. Hudson River School paintings reflect the themes of discovery, exploration, and settlement in America in the mid-19th century. The detailed and idealized paintings also typically depict a pastoral setting. The works often juxtapose peaceful agriculture and

8448-447: Was 1,212 feet (369 m), which provided a maximum clearance of 138 feet (42 m) over the water. The bridge was officially named after former governor Malcolm Wilson in 1994, though the original name continued to be used. The Tappan Zee Bridge was part of the New York State Thruway mainline and carried the highway concurrency of Interstate 87 and Interstate 287 . The span carried seven lanes of motor traffic. The center lane

8544-443: Was able to be switched between eastbound and westbound traffic depending on the prevalent commuter direction; on weekdays the center lane was eastbound in the morning and westbound in the evening. The switch was accomplished via a movable center barrier which was moved by a pair of barrier transfer machines . Even with the switchable lane, traffic was frequently very slow. In 2013, federal and state authorities started constructing

8640-516: Was an ineffable manifestation of God, though the artists varied in the depth of their religious conviction. Their reverence for America's natural beauty was shared with contemporary American writers such as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson . The artist Thomas Cole is generally acknowledged as the founder of the Hudson River School , his work first being reviewed in 1825, while painters Frederic Edwin Church and Albert Bierstadt were

8736-411: Was announced that the eastern approach to the old bridge would be demolished with explosives on January 12. However, it was postponed due to high winds. It was demolished on January 15, 2019. The western approach was lowered onto a barge and hauled away beginning on May 12, 2019 and lasting several days. From 1998 to 2008, more than 25 people committed suicide on the Tappan Zee Bridge, according to

8832-503: Was chosen to be as close as possible to New York City, while staying out of the 25-mile (40 km) range of the Port Authority's influence, thus ensuring that revenue from collected tolls would go to the newly created New York State Thruway Authority , and not the Port Authority. A unique aspect of the design of the bridge was that the main span was supported by eight hollow concrete caissons . Their buoyancy supported some of

8928-499: Was connecting Staten Island and Brooklyn to form the Narrows as it exists today. This allowed the Hudson River to find a shorter route to the Atlantic Ocean via its present course between New Jersey and New York City. Suspended sediments, mainly consisting of clays eroded from glacial deposits and organic particles, can be found in abundance in the river. The Hudson has a relatively short history of erosion, so it does not have

9024-518: Was reviewed for its environmental impacts. In 2013, the New York State Thruway Authority began building the new Tappan Zee Bridge , a double-span bridge (four lanes per span in opposite directions) with designated bus lanes, to the north of the old bridge. Construction began as scheduled during 2013, with completion projected for 2017. The new northbound/westbound span opened on August 25, 2017. The zipper barrier

9120-458: Was then removed, and nouthbound/eastbound traffic remained on the old span until October 7, 2017, when it was temporarily shifted to the newer northbound/westbound span. The old bridge was subsequently decommissioned. The replacement bridge project was expected to be completed by June 15, 2018 at a cost of $ 3.98 billion. After some delays, it was announced that the new southbound/eastbound span would open to traffic on September 8, 2018. However,

9216-583: Was used in the New York metropolitan area up until the early 1900s, with limited use continuing into the present day. The term persists in radio communication among commercial shipping traffic, especially below the Tappan Zee . The term also continues to be used in names of facilities in the river's southern portion, such as the North River piers , North River Tunnels , and the North River Wastewater Treatment Plant . It

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