Did you know NYC is home to a nationally recognized collection of uninhabited islands right here in our own city? Called the Harbor Herons Region , these uninhabited islands cover great marshes best for gulls, herons, cormorants, and egrets. And one of those protected areas is known as North Brother Island in the Bronx.
North Brother Island wasn’t always without humans. The island used to house Riverside Hospital back in 1881 through 1943 (ruins you can still see on the island today), before the land was utilized for WWII veterans’ housing from 1946-1951, and eventually a youth drug rehabilitation center from 1952-1964.
Riverside Hospital on North Brother Island
The new Riverside Hospital on North Brother Island was city-owned and operated. It spanned countless buildings with pavilions, laboratories, and accommodation facilities for doctors, nurses, and other staff. The hospital handled patients with various illnesses over the years, from small pox to polio and tuberculosis to typhoid.
One of the more notorious residents of North Brother Island was Mary Mallon. Mary, otherwise known as “ Typhoid Mary ” was an Irish immigrant and the island’s longest term resident…