Plumb Beach, Brooklyn

Early settlements

Sailors stopped by the island as early as the 1800s, perhaps snacking on the beach plums that gave the island its name. By 1900, there was sufficient demand for Reid's Ferry, which made stops at Sheepshead Bay, Plumb Beach, Barren Island, and Breezy Point, among others.

George Ayen opened a hotel in 1907, but by World War I, most of the inhabitants of Plumb Island were squatters. This would continue until the 1938 New England hurricane, nicknamed the "Long Island Express", which destroyed most of the shanties, with the remaining squatters forced to leave when construction began on the Belt Parkway. Hog Creek was filled in for this purpose, connecting Plumb Island to the mainland.

U.S. Army

In the 1890s, the federal government intended to build a mortar battery on the eastern end of the island, purchasing one third of Plumb Island's 150 acres. But "Reservation Beach" was unsuitable to the task due to the quicksand-like soil, so squatters moved in, selling liquor and cigars free of any excise tax. To recoup the government's investment, in May 1907 Secretary of War William Howard Taft entered into an agreement with former Judge Winfield S. Overton to lease the property for five years. Overton, soon known as "the czar of Plumb Island", set up his own private police force to protect his domain. To deal with the squatters who refused to pay him rent, he convinced two Army companies from Fort Hamilton to perform the evictions, as it was federal land.

Overton reasoned that state laws did not apply. He announced a "carnival" complete with boxing matches, an illegal activity in New York State. On August 15, 1908, around 200 members of the recently formed "United States Military Athletic and Sporting Club" took in the three-card afternoon as the Sheepshead Bay precinct of the NYPD looked on helplessly. When Overton repeated the feat one week later, the crowd more than doubled in size.

In January 1909, the Department of War responded by revoking Overton's lease, and kicked him off the island; in his place was installed a new "mayor", Frank Dotzler, who would also treat the land as his own private fiefdom. When word came in May that Overton was returning, the 12th Infantry was sent to keep him out – the second "invasion" of Plumb Island in as many years.

Later years

New York City acquired the federal property for park purposes in 1924, but leased it to a contracting company, which parceled and rented the land. The National Park Service acquired Plumb Beach in 1972, and added it to the Gateway National Recreation Area.

It has had a reputation as a lover's lane and as a cruising location.

References

References

1. "Feature Detail Report For: Plumb Beach". US Geographic Names Service.
2. [http://www.nyc.gov/html/cau/html/cb/cb_brooklyn.shtml Brooklyn Community Boards] {{Webarchive. link. (December 21, 2007 , [[New York City]]. Accessed December 31, 2007.)
3. (June 14, 2005). "CityNoise.org".
4. [https://www.nycgovparks.org/facilities/kayak/48 Plumb Beach], [[New York City Department of Parks and Recreation]]. Accessed October 20, 2025. "Calm waters and strong winds make the sand beach a favorite take off for windsurfers and kite boarders. Launching is recommended at higher tide as mud flats make the walk to water several hundred yards at low tide."
5. Merlis, Brian, Lee A. Rosenzweig and I. Stephen Miller. (1997). "Brooklyn's Gold Coast: The Sheepshead Bay Communities". Sheepshead Bay Historical Society.
6. Lines, Ruth L.. (1949). "The Story of Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan Beach and the Sheepshead Bay Library". Brooklyn Public Library.
7. Merlis, Brian, Lee A. Rosenzweig and I. Stephen Miller. (1997). "Brooklyn's Gold Coast: The Sheepshead Bay Communities". Sheepshead Bay Historical Society.
8. Williams, Keith. (September 5, 2012). "Plumb Island: Brooklyn's Grenada". The Weekly Nabe.
9. (July 23, 1908). "Plum Island to Become a Rival to Goldfield". Brooklyn Daily Eagle.
10. (August 16, 1908). "Pulls off Ring Fights on U.S. Leased Land". Brooklyn Daily Eagle.
11. (May 19, 1909). "Armed Troopers Take Plum Island". New York Times.
12. Congress of the United States. Public Law 92-592. October 27, 1972.
13. Ramirez, Anthony. (October 14, 2007). "A Man's Death Shines a Light on a Shady Parking Lot". The New York Times.