Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from Blasting Operations at Hell Gate, New York
The passage between New York Harbour and Long Island Sound was obstructed by numerous reefs, scattered across the East River between Astoria on Long Island and the opposite Shores at New York and Ward's Island (plate 6, Fig. These reefs not merely constituted in themselves a danger to vessels, but also imperilled navigation by causing rapid tidal currents in the narrowed chan nels between them, attaining in places a velocity of knots an hour. Wrecks were consequently of frequent occurrence and the name of Hell Gate was appropriately given to the locality. Three channels existed past the reefs, namely, the main ship channel to the north-west of the Heel Tap and Mill Rocks; the middle channel between the Mill Rocks and the Middle Reef; and the east channel between the Middle Reef and Astoria, from which Hallett's Reef projected; and vessels, after having traversed one of these channels, had to avoid Hog's Back and several smaller reefs to the north-east of Hallett's Point on their way to sea. Vessels approaching New York by the main channel had to make such a detour to avoid Heel Tap Rock, that they were liable to be drifted by the current towards Bylander's Reef: the eddy produced by Hallett's Point rendered the most direct east channel very difficult to navigate, for vessels in avoiding Hallett's Reef were in danger of being driven on to the Gridiron Rock of the Middle Reef; and the middle channel was narrow.
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