Парк

You are approaching Monsignor McGolrick Park, a nine-acre green space that holds a unique place in the history of Greenpoint. While it is officially named after a long-serving local pastor, many residents still refer to it by its original name, Winthrop Park, honoring the assemblyman who helped secure the land for the community in the late nineteenth century. The park occupies ground that was once part of a large farmstead owned by Ambrose Kingsland, a man who built a fortune as a whale oil merchant before serving as the mayor of New York City in the mid-eighteen hundreds. Before the city acquired the site in eighteen eighty-nine, the land was swampy and undeveloped, a far cry from the manicured trees and pathways that define the space today. When you arrive, you will see a striking shelter pavilion at the center of the park, a brick and limestone structure designed in nineteen ten to echo the style of eighteenth-century French garden architecture. This pavilion is a protected city landmark and serves as a quiet focal point for the neighborhood, standing as a reminder of the civic pride that transformed a former swamp into a local sanctuary.