By: Hal C Clarke

A unique new cruise is offering an up-close look at a nearly forgotten part of New York City — the abandoned islands along the East River. These islands, steeped in history, have seen everything from baseball stars to violent maritime disasters, wildlife sanctuaries to deadly diseases. Every Sunday through July, Classic Harbor Line’s Urban Naturalist Tour will navigate a 1920s-style yacht around these fascinating landmarks.

The NY Post reported on this exciting cruise,

The three-hour cruise starts at the tiny Belmont Island, then motors past Roosevelt and Randall’s Islands — both of which are still inhabited — before proceeding to Mill Rock at the mouth of the Harlem River.

Next, passengers are taken through Hell Gate to North and South Brother Islands, which have been shorebird sanctuaries since the city acquired them nearly 20 years ago. These islands are steeped in eclectic NYC history. Naturalist Gabriel Willow narrates the cruise, sharing stories of the islands and their past inhabitants, including notable figures like Typhoid Mary and former Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert.

Jacob Ruppert, who bought the Yankees in 1915, built Yankee Stadium, and brought Babe Ruth to the team in 1920, owned a summer home on South Brother Island. According to the New York Times, Ruth would often drop by to practice his batting, and pick-up games were held in a yard next door. The mansion burned down in 1909, leaving the island mostly deserted for nearly 70 years before a gravel company purchased it in 1975 for just $10. NYC finally acquired South Brother Island in 2007 for about $2 million, transforming it into the bird sanctuary it is today. Before Ruppert bought the island, it is believed to have served as a base for Union soldiers during the Civil War.

In 1904, the ferry PS General Slocum ran aground on the island after catching fire while taking nearly 1,400 passengers along the river. Within minutes, 1,021 people perished, making it the deadliest disaster on U.S. soil until the 9/11 attacks. The passengers, mostly women and children, burned to death on the collapsing decks or drowned in their heavy clothes after leaping into the river, according to the New York Public Library.

Just across the water on North Brother Island, the remains of a hospital used to treat quarantined patients with diseases like typhus, smallpox, and tuberculosis wither in decay. This hospital is where Typhoid Mary — real name Mary Mallon, a cook who inadvertently sparked an outbreak of typhus due to her immunity to the symptoms — was quarantined twice and finally died after spending 26 years isolated there, according to the National Library of Medicine. Both islands have since been designated sanctuaries for seabirds, which thrive in the absence of humans.

“There’s no beautiful lagoon,” Ruppert’s great-great-nephew K. Jacob Rupert told the Times about a visit he took shortly before the island was sold to the city. “It’s a mound of bird poop. But there are beautiful birds. I never thought I could walk up to a swan on her nest. The ground is nothing but bird droppings and broken eggshells.”

Mill Rock served as a fortified defensive position during the War of 1812 and today is used as a nature educational center for special events. Belmont Island was built during the construction of the tunnel beneath the river. The cruise is planned to coincide with sunset, providing attendees with a view of the city lit up by night, contrasting with the natural stillness of the river islands.