I was walking back down it was much easier going down than going up) along Central Ave. to catch my train I heard the sound of running water. I looked across the street and noticed a pocket park with a couple of benches, and an information board (see below). In case you can’t make out the rather small text it reads:
McGregory Brook flows from the hills just east of Peekskill to the Hudson River at Riverfront Green Park. Kitchawank people, of the Wappinger confederacy, inhabited the area surrounding McGregory Brook and nearby Annsville Creek prior to Dutch settlement, led by Jan Peeck.
King William III of England granted 1,500 acres to Hugh MacGregorie in 1692, and the brook became the boundary between the original settlement known as Peekskill and surrounding Van Cortlandt lands. Numerous mills and factories diverted McGregory Brook for power, including Dain’s Lumber Company, Naylor Brothers machine shops, Mackellar’s Mills, and Union Stove Works. For many years, Peekskill residents drew water from the Tan Yard Spring, which also surfaced near this site.
Today, McGregory Brook enters a series of culverts at Field Street, flows beneath Downtown Peekskill, and emerges just east of this site. Remnants of industrial infrastructure can still be seen from the footbridge overlooking the waterfall.
Although McGregory Brook is no longer visible on most maps, FEMA’s 100-Year Flood Map clearly shows the pathway of McGregory Brook from Penelope Pond to the Hudson Riverfront. The lack of sunlight inhibits the brook’s natural ecosystem. While few fish, amphibians, or aquatic invertebrates inhabit the brook, filamentous green algae thrives on its surfaces, likely supported by nutrient enrichment from stormwater runoff and other sources.
For more information about Peekskill’s waterways and all of its natural features, explore the Peekskill National Resource Inventory at www.peekskilnri.com. For more information on Peekskill’s rich history, visit the Peekskill Museum at 124 Union Avenue.
Taken with a Sony RX10 IV
