For most of the last two centuries, Governors Island was a self-sufficient military village. Having being vacated by the U.S. military, the island became a ghost town and walking through it is now a surreal experience. At its peak, Governors Island supported over 7,000 soldiers, and the park is still dotted with all of the amenities needed to accommodate them. As you walk across the island, you walk past more than 200 abandoned buildings: Georgian-style mansions that were built in the early 19th century, schools, churches, over a hundred dormitories for the soldiers, and even a movie theatre. Last summer, many of the abandoned buildings were part of an art exhibit, allowing the island’s visitors to explore the insides of the church, theater, and empty homes. Outside, there are large grass fields, mostly without people, and certainly without the sounds of traffic, that allow visitors to relax or picnic in quiet peace. Although just a short ferry ride outside of New York City’s financial district, Governors Island feels a world away from Manhattan proper, allowing its visitors to simply unwind. That said, without the efforts of dedicated preservation groups, it would never have been opened to the public.

Governors Island is the birthplace of New York State, having been settled by the Dutch in 1624. Given its location at the mouth of the Hudson River, and the ease with which the island could be defended, it quickly became recognized as an important military site and had been primarily used as a military base since 1776. Historically, it was the site of one of the largest battles during the American Revolution, served as a prison for captured Confederate soldiers during the Civil War, and was used as a supply base and hospital during both of the World Wars. The military ceased operating from the island in 1995 when, as an effort to cut costs, the island was vacated. Within a year it went from being a fully-functional military base to being a ghost town with a skeleton crew of 60 people.

In 1995, President Clinton, during a conversation with Senator Patrick Moynihan, offered to sell Governors Island back to NY for the symbolic sum of $1, under the condition that it be declared a park and be used for the public good. Despite this offer, under Mayor Guiliani’s watch, NYC officials took reclamation of the park with general indifference, not submitting a valid public use plan to the federal government and allowing the $1 deal offered by President Clinton to legally expire. An anonymous source within the city government leaked that Mayor Guilliani was harboring hopes of turning Governors Island into a gambling destination, envisioning it as a Monaco on the Hudson that would generate “tons of money.” In response to Mayor Guilliani’s casino plans, and under the auspices of wanting to reduce the federal deficit, Congress passed a law that required Governors Island to be sold at fair market value, which was then estimated at between three and five hundred million dollars. If NY did not offer a reasonable price for purchase of the island, it was to be parceled out and auctioned off to private and commercial interests. The $1 deal, and the plans for a new historical park, were seemingly squashed.

Land preservation advocacy groups, particularly the Governors Island Alliance, were outraged. While most of their political maneuvering still remains unknown to the public, the advocacy groups worked behind the scenes to restore the $1 purchase price and encourage the acquisition of the island for public use. In 1998, over the strong objections of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, members of Congress from NY and NJ introduced legislation that reduced City Hall’s role in planning the future of Governors Island. In 2001, in one of his final acts in office, with a clear intent to aid in the preservation of Governors Island and deliver it back to the public, Clinton designated two historic forts on Governors Island as National Monuments. Finally, in 2002, the federal government dedicated the island to the theme of education, allowing George Bush to legally sell the island to NY State for a symbolic $1. In 2003, for the first time in over 200 years, the island became open to the public.

Governors Island remains on the cusp of change. The plans are to have the island renovated by 2012, which will likely include the demolishing of many of the abandoned buildings that currently give it its eerie charm. New York University, in a move intended to expand its campus and increase the amount of square footage per student, is attempting to turn much of the island into part of its campus, a move that is within the public use agreements mandated during the purchase of the island. If you want to see the island while it’s still relatively undeveloped, go now.

There is no admission fee to gain access to the island and the ferry is free. On June 5, Governors Island will open for the 2010 season with Family Festival Day, featuring clowns, music, and musicians. The island has one of the better vantage points for viewing the Statue of Liberty (they even have swings set up at the viewing point); they provide bike rentals, and have a number of interesting pay events on the horizon (NY BrewFest will be there on Saturday, June 19; the park will feature an M.I.A. concert on July 24).

Since this article went to press, there have been changes in the ownership and future of Governors Island. On April 11, a deal was reached for the City of New York to regain ownership of the island. The city’s current plan is to turn 87 acres of the island into a landscaped public park, to restore historic buildings, but demolish non-historic ones, and to introduce development zones on the island’s east and west sides. For more information on the new “master plan”, see http://www.govislandpark.com/