View of Atlantic Dock and Vicinity, ca. 1846

An artist's rendering of a possible future Red Hook that never was. The birds-eye view of the Atlantic Dock was possibly done for the Atlantic Dock Company to promote their vision of what Red Hook could be. The two statements printed on the map support this conjecture:

The Basin contains a water surface of 41 acres and is capable of accommodating the largest class vessels.

The Atlantic Dock Company owned the Basin and the property around it.

Hamilton Avenue leading directly to Greenwood Cemetery - 2 miles from the Ferry.

The Hamilton Avenue Ferry, seen at the very left of the full print, was started in 1846. It was financially backed by the Atlantic Dock Company.  While Atlantic Dock officials had more immediate reasons for promoting the ferry, Greenwood Cemetery at the time was a popular destination for idyllic carriage rides. 

While there was indeed a busy Atlantic Basin by 1846, the  second basin to its right was never built.  Nor was the park at the point or much of the grid with houses and factories. 
Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church was built in 1855 at the corner of Ewer (now Verona) and Van Brunt.  It is possible that church was already planned before the view was drawn or the 1846 guess for the date of the print is off by a decade.  In either case, a formal rotary around the church does not show up on known later maps. Erie Basin, not existing in this view, was started in 1864.

Date:

1846

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