New York State History

Roosevelt Island, which lies in the East River parallel to Manhattan from 47th Street to 86th Street, is the site of the most unusual new community in the United States. A city-in-a-city whose four apartment groups will house more than 2,000 families, the Island has its own schools, stores, parks, playgrounds and day-care facilities, and 40 acres set aside for parks and recreational areas. Two historic buildings—the 200-year-old Blackwell House. New York City's oldest farmhouse, and The Good Shepherd Community and Ecumenical Center, a 100-year-old Vic­torian Gothic Chapel—have been restored and serve as centers for the social and religious life of the residents.

Roosevelt Island is the first urban community in the United States to have an aerial transportation system. An aerial tramway carries residents across the East River to 60th Street and Second Avenue in Manhattan in less than five minutes.

The Island could be a prototype for new communities all over the country. Its unique public school consists of five "minischoor buildings dispersed among the apartment groups; each is designed to accommodate about 250 students. Automo­bile traffic is minimal.

Built in 1909, the  is of the cantilever design. Its span is 1,182 feet long and it has two levels. The tramway links Roosevelt Island to Manhattan.