A History of Tolls on the Hutchinson River Parkway and Their Impact on Pelham

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Construction of the Hutchinson River Parkway begin in 1924.  Its first two-mile stretch was finished at the end of 1927.  By October of the next year, eleven miles of the Parkway were completed stretching from Boston Post Road in Pelham Manor to Westchester Avenue in White Plains.  

The original parkway was more like a park than the virtual super highway that Pelhamites know today.  There was limited access to the parkway.  Bridges above the roadway were lovely stone arches and rustic wooden light posts helped light both the roadway and adjacent bridle paths.  

That all began to change in 1936 when Robert Moses decided to build additional parkways in the region.  According to one account:

"A northward extension of the Hutchinson River Parkway from White Plains to King Street (modern NY 120A) in Rye Brook on the Connecticut state line was completed in 1937 and a southward extension from Pelham Manor to Pelham Bay Park opened in December 1937.  The new southerly extension became part of a rerouted NY 1A.  The final segment of the parkway—a southward extension to the Bronx–Whitestone Bridge—was completed in 1941 and initially designated NY 1X.  The NY 1X designation was removed in 1946 and replaced with a realigned NY 1A, which had previously followed Bruckner Boulevard and Shore Road between what is now the Bruckner Interchange and exit 5 on the Hutch. The NY 1A designation was completely removed c. 1962." 

Source:  "Hutchinson River Parkway" in Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia (visited May 8, 2016).  

It was the southward extension of the Hutchinson River Parkway to the Whitestone Bridge in the Bronx in 1941 that subsequently created decades of traffic headaches for the Town of Pelham.  At that time toll booths were placed across all lanes between Exits 7 and 8 on the Hutchinson River Parkway.

Image from Undated Glass Lantern Slide Showing the

Hutchinson River Parkway Toll Booths.  Source:  "Hutchinson

River Parkway Toll Booth" in Westchester County Parks

Commission Lantern Slide Collection of the Parks Commission

Photograph Collection.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge. 

Initially the toll collected at the Pelham Manor Toll Booths was one thin dime.  Almost immediately, drivers began dodging the new toll by driving through the Town of Pelham to get around the toll booths.  Though toll dodging began almost immediately, it did not become a significant problem until 1958.  That year, the toll rose to twenty-five cents.  Almost immediately Pelham's traffic nightmare began -- a nightmare that lasted for nearly four decades as tens of thousands of vehicles dodged the tolls.

Once the toll rose to twenty-five cents, cars began leaving the Parkway before reaching the tolls at both ends of Pelham and made their way onto the streets of the town to avoid the toll.  As one account put it in 1978:  "During the height of the morning and evening rush hours, these toll dodgers form a continuous stream of cars which cause many serious problems.  Foremost among these is the safety hazard they represent to children walking to and from school."  (See below.)

Soon Pelham was forced to deal with the traffic problem in odd ways.  For example, traffic was so heavy on Wolfs Lane that it began to take a toll on the roadway itself.  The roadway had to be repaved with a "heavy duty bituminous concrete at considerable expense to our local taxpayers" to withstand the traffic onslaught.  Additionally, the Village of Pelham Manor was forced to make many of its streets one-way, and prohibited certain turns at many intersections in an attempt to control the traffic.  A Village of Pelham Manor Trustee complained to one local newspaper:  "These traffic restrictions cause great inconvenience to many people, including our local residents who are forced to take circuitous routes when driving to and from their own homes."  

In 1979, an agreement was reached to shift upkeep of the Parkway from the East Hudson Parkway Authority to the New York State Transportation Authority.  As part of that agreement, the toll booths were slated for removal. 

Traffic authorities, however, had become addicted to the revenue generated by the toll booths.  (By the early 1990s, according to The New York Times, the two toll plazas raised $11 million annually; the money was used for road maintenance, and to pay toll takers and the police who patrolled the Parkway.)  State officials balked at the cost of paying for maintenance and police without the revenue stream from the tolls.  The battle over whether to close the toll booths waged for years and years.  

Finally, in 1994, State legislative leaders reached an agreement to end the tolls on both the Hutchinson River and Saw Mill River Parkways.  At the time, those were "the last remaining state roads outside the Thruway system that [were] not free to motorists."  Steinberg, Jacques, Albany Leaders Strike Deal to End 25 Cent Tolls on Hutchinson and Saw Mill River Parkways, N.Y. Times, Jun. 8, 1994.  

On October 31, 1994, the last toll taken on the Hutchinson River Parkway was collected just before midnight.  The following month, the toll booths were demolished.  Pelham's nearly four-decade traffic nightmare caused by the Hutchinson River Parkway tolls was finally over.

Detail from First Page of the Program Issued on the Occasion

of the Dedication of "Parkway Field" (Today's Glover Field)

on October 15, 1955.  The Location of the Toll Plaza on the

Hutchinson River Parkway May Be Seen Near the Upper

Left Corner of the Image.

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To learn more about the toll booths and to read a few of the articles referenced in today's posting, see:

Higgs, John H., Public Opinion -- Problem Toll-Dodging, The Herald Statesman [Yonkers, NY], Feb. 10, 1978, p. 6, cols. 2-4.  

"Hutchinson River Parkway" in Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia (visited May 8, 2016).

Steinberg, Jacques, Albany Leaders Strike Deal to End 25 Cent Tolls on Hutchinson and Saw Mill River Parkways, N.Y. Times, Jun. 8, 1994.

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Lean Roast Beef Is NOT a "Fatt Calfe" Though Pell Family Members Accepted it in 1956

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On September 20, 1689, John Pell, and his wife, Rachel, sold to Jacob Leisler of New York City 6,000 acres of Manor of Pelham land.  At the same time they gifted to Leisler another 100 acres for use as church grounds.  Leisler reportedly had been commissioned to acquire the land on behalf of French Huguenots seeking to relocate to North America, many of whom fled from La Rochelle in France.  The land became today’s New Rochelle, named in honor of La Rochelle from which many of the Huguenots fled religious persecution by the French Catholics. 

A condition of the sale in 1689 was that Jacob Leisler, his heirs and assigns should deliver to “John Pell his heirs and assigns Lords of the said Manor of Pelham . . as an Acknowledgment to the said Manor one fatt calfe on every fouer and twentieth day of June Yearly and Every Year forever (if demanded).” The June 24th date was not chosen randomly.  June 24 is the annual date of The Feast of St. John the Baptist when a "fatt calfe" would be particularly welcome for a feast and celebration.

1938 New Rochelle U.S. Commemorative Silver Half Dollar

(Obverse) Depicting John Pell Receiving the "Fatt

Calfe" in 1689.  Photograph by the Author.

Every few generations, it seems, there is a "rediscovery" of that ancient provision in the deed by which John Pell transferred the lands to Jacob Leisler. With each such "rediscovery," members of the Pell family approach the City of New Rochelle and "demand" delivery of a "fatt calfe" -- typically as part of an anniversary or family reunion celebration.

During the 1950s, future United States Senator Claiborne Pell (who served as a Senator representing Rhode Island from 1961 to 1997) served as chairman of the Pell Family Association.  Claiborne Pell was particularly active in pushing the City of New Rochelle to honor its purported obligation annually during much of that time.   

Beginning anew in 1950, the Pell Family Association began requesting annually that the City of New Rochelle deliver the famed fatt calfe on June 24.  Although the City obliged, soon its elected officials and taxpayers tired of the annual ritual as a calf had to be located, transported, symbolically "delivered" and returned.

New Rochelle mayoral candidate George Vergara even made a campaign promise in the mid-1950s to rid the city and its taxpayers of payment of an annual tribute to Pell family members.  After his election, Mayor Vergara broached the topic in a letter to then-chairman of the Pell Family Association, future United States Senator Claiborne Pell.  Vergara suggested in the letter that the entire tribute be "called off." 

Claiborne Pell was direct in his response.  Without regard to whether the City of New Rochelle could be considered an heir and assign for owners of land in New Rochelle, Claiborne Pell responded by warning that if New Rochelle abrogated the agreement "it would seem to me that the whole assignment to Jacob Leisler of the land on which New Rochelle now stands is null and void."

Mayor Vergara relented on the condition that the "fatt calfe" be delivered in the form of a steak dinner rather than a live calf.  Moreover, proceeds from the dinner were to be for the benefit of the New Rochelle Hospital.  Nearly three hundred people including 26 Pell family members attended the dinner that year.

Within a few short years, however, the annual tribute lapsed.  The demand was honored in 1963 on the occasion of New Rochelle's 275th anniversary, but not again until 1966.  At that time, for whatever reason, the tribute had reverted to the symbolic "delivery" of a live calf.  Two Pell family members, dressed in period garb that would have been worn by John Pell and Rachel Pinckney Pell at the time of the sale to Jacob Leisler, accepted a live calf in payment of the tribute.  

The tradition has continued and has been honored as recently as 2004 at the time of Pelham's 350th anniversary celebration -- a tradition that, hopefully, will continue for at least another 350 years . . . . 

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I have written about the requirement that the "heirs and assigns" of Jacob Leisler, as purchaser and recipient of the 6,100 acres that became today's City of New Rochelle.  For examples, see:

Bell, Blake A., Tradition of Demanding a New Rochelle "Fatt Calfe", The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 16, Apr. 16, 2004, p. 8, col. 2.

Thu., Sep. 10, 2009:  1909 Dispute Among Pell Family Members Over Who Would be the Rightful Recipient of the Fatt Calfe from New Rochelle.

Fri., Mar. 04, 2005:  In 1909 Fear of "Sharp Lawyers" Prompted Cancellation of the Pell Family's "Fatt Calfe" Ceremony.

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Below are transcriptions of the text of several articles addressing the delivery of the "fatt calfe" to Pell family members during the 1950s and 1960s.  Each is followed by a citation and link to its source.  

"Mayor Conditionally Breaks Campaign Promise

NEW ROCHELLE, May 15 UPI -- The mayor today broke a campaign promise and gave in to the Pell family's historic annual tribute of one 'fatt calfe' -- but on condition that it is served at the dinner table.

The tradition of the well-fed calf goes back to 1689, when John Pell sold the land on which New Rochelle now stands to Jacob Leisler.  Pell stipulated that his heirs should be paid a 'fat calfe' on the 24th of June each year in perpetuity.

For a long time the Pells forgot but one Pell revived the custom about the calf that was due them six years ago.  New Rochelle has been paying the tribute since then.  

The present mayor, George Vergara , promised during his campaign to rid the city of the tribute, and early this month wrote to a representative of the Pell family suggesting they call the whole thing off.

But Mayor Vergara got a letter a few days later from Claiborne Pell of Washington, D.C., chairman of the Pell Family Assn., warning that if New Rochelle abrogated the agreement 'it would seem to me that the whole assignment to Jacob Leisler of the land on which New Rochelle now stands is null and void. . . '"

Source:  Mayor Conditionally Breaks Campaign Promise, Plattsburgh Press-Republican [Plattsburgh, NY], May 16, 1956, p. 15, cols. 2-3.  

"Pell Family Gets Its 'Fatt Calfe"

NEW ROCHELLE, June 24 UPI -- The Pell family - 26 members strong - got its 'fatt calfe' from the City of New Rochelle tonight, only it was lean roast beef.

And it wasn't on the hoof, but on plates at a banquet.  Thus did the city pay off its 269 year-old obligation to the Pell family to pay over one fatt calfe each year forever and ever.

And thus did the Pells and the city fathers inaugurate a new method of payment -- a dinner to which all the Pells and the citizens of New Rochelle are invited.  The proceeds go to the support of the New Rochelle Hospital.

Ancient Contract

The annual fatt calfe was in return for a deed to much of the land on which the city of 60,000 now stands.  

The Pells demanded -- and got -- a fat calf on the hoof in 1953, and each year since.  The 1953 calfe recently gave birth to twins.  

This year Mayor George Vergara decided to pay the old debt by 'doing something useful,' and broached the matter to Claiborne Pell of Washington, D.C., chairman of the Pell Family Assn.

Pell Replies

Pell replied 'if the self-respect of your city fathers would be better served by this year having the Pells partake of the calf at such a meal on Sunday, June 24th, rather than leading it away, such an arrangement would be agreeable to me.'

Altogether, 300 persons attended the dinner, including representatives of four foreign governments.  

The British representative was invited because the Pell family has a little obligation of its own -- payment of 20 shillings to the crown for some bygone privilege.

The others were asked as a neighborly gesture."

Source:  Pell Family Gets Its "Fatt Calfe", Plattsburgh Press-Republican, Jun. 25, 1956, p. 5, cols. 4-5.  

"OUT OF THE PAST

NEW ROCHELLE -- Demand for payment of a 269-year old debt of 'one fatt calfe' incurred by the Huguenot founders of New Rochelle in 1689, is again presenting a problem for Mayor George Vergara and members of the municipal government.  Claiborne Pell III of Washington, D.C., has requested satisfaction of the ancient agreement 'on behalf of the heirs and assigns' of John Pell, second lord of Pelham Manor, and in accordance with the covenant of Sept. 20, 1689 between him and Jacob Leisler.  Thomas A. Hoctor, city historian, has been named general chairman of a committee to plan a 'fatt calfe' dinner for June 20 here."

Source:  OUT OF THE PAST, New Castle Tribune, May 15, 1958, p. 8, col. 3.  

"WANTS FATT CALFE

NEW ROCHELLE -- Today is the 4th and 20th day of June and the city barn is empty.  According to an agreement made in 1688, the city is to give the Pell family, who once owned the and, a 'fatt calfe.'  But last March, Claiborne Pell of Maryland told the city their [sic] would be no demand this year.  Today, Duncan Pell of Walnut Creek, Calif., filed a demand for the calfe.  But Mayor George Vergara said he would recognize only Claiborne as head of the family."

Source: WANTS FATT CALFE, New Castle Tribune [Chappaqua, NY], Jun. 25, 1959, p. 17, col. 4.  

"Rodman Pell Receiving New Rochelle's 'Fatt Calfe'"

Source:  Rodman Pell Receiving New Rochelle's 'Fatt Calfe',

The Long Island Traveler, Mattituck Watchman [Southold,

NY], Jul. 7, 1966, p. 1, cols. 2-4 & p. 3, cols. 4-5.  

"Rodman Pell Receiving New Rochelle's 'Fatt Calfe'

New Rochelle Mayor Ruskin, (left) William Rodman Pell II and Miss Florence Secor are shown above as on June 24 the city of New Rochelle once again paid the unique debt incurred by its Huguenot founder 177 years ago.  The Huguenots, who had fled from La Rochelle, France, contracted in 1689 with Sir John Pell, Lord of the Manor of Pelham, for the land which was to become the city of New Rochelle.  The price for the 6000 acres was 1,625 pounds sterling and the payment, whenever demanded, of 'one fatt calfe' on June 24th yearly and forever to the heirs of John Pell.  The last demand was honored in 1963 and was tendered to a member of the Pell family on the oc- (Cont. on Page 3)

'Fatt Calfe' 
(Continued From Page 1)

casion of the 275th anniversary of New Rochelle.

This year the demand was received by Mayor Alvin R. Ruskin from William Rodman Pell II, President General of the Pell Family Association, and a direct heir of Sir John Pell and fourteenth claimant to the Lordship and Manor of Pelham.  Mr. Pell resides at 214 Atlantic Avenue, Greenport.  

City officials presented the calf at City Hall at 4:30 P.M. on June 24th to several members of the Pell Family Association.  Speakers were Mayor Ruskin, Senator Claiborn Pell (Democrat, Rhode Island), and William Rodman Pell II.  The latter, and Miss Fllorence Secor, a granddaughter of Samuel Treadwell [sic] Pell were dressed as the Lord and Landy of the Manor of Pelham.  Following the ceremony a dinner was held at the Bartow-Pell mansion in the Bronx.

Upon accepting the 'Fatt Calfe,' Mr. Pell spoke as follows:

'As the fourteenth successor of Sir John Pell who made the sale and grant of the rolling hils and dales of Pelham to Jacob Leisler to harbor a persecuted people, the Huguenots of France, I accept the 'fatt Calfe,' from your Honor, representing what has grown from a humble settlement in the wilderness into a proud city, New Rochelle, I have by my side my cousin, Miss Florence Romola Secor.  She is taking the place of Lady Rachel Pinckney Pell, and together we speak, in commemorating this historic occasion, for a Pell family united in an Association, and whose President, Mr. Clarence Pell, is also by my side.

'The Pell family has a long history and it has many proud moments in it, but perhaps the prodest when, a century before the founding of our American Republic, Sir John Pell offered his acres to men and women and children fleeing tyranny and helped them by every means at his command to found a new home, where they could worship as they chose and live untrammeled as free men.  Sir John looked far into the future.  But he would have been astonished -- pleasantly -- if his vision could have projected to this scene today, marking nearly three centuries of close association between the Pell family and New Rochelle in a setting where men of many faiths and origins live and work and learn side by side and dream of an ever more radiant future for the generations to come.

'The Pell family through me, as President General, accepts the calf from New Rochelle as a symbol of our long association and friendship.  Moreover, following the precedent which has now been established, it will mark the occasion by joining with New Rochelle in the support of the Wildcrest Museum for Children.  We consider it a privilege through this participation to play our part in the progressive community of New Rochelle, and we are confident that this privilege will be ours for years to come.  

'Thank you, Mr. Mayor.  Thank you, citizens of New Rochelle for reconsecration with us in 1966 this noble bond, in the spirit in which it was entered into by Sir John Pell in 1689.'"

Source:  Rodman Pell Receiving New Rochelle's 'Fatt Calfe', The Long Island Traveler, Mattituck Watchman [Southold, NY], Jul. 7, 1966, p. 1, cols. 2-4 & p. 3, cols. 4-5.  

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Local Historians Saved Pelham's Beloved Split Rock When the Thruway Was Built

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On October 18, 1958, the New England section of the New York State Thruway that carved its way through the Town of Pelham opened to traffic.  The original plans for that section carried the roadway directly into the path of Pelham's beloved "Split Rock," a giant glacial boulder that has been a Pelham landmark and part of Pelham lore for hundreds of years.  Due to the work of a small group of local historians and history buffs led by Pelham Town Historian Ed Browne and Bronx Historian Theodore L. Kazimiroff, Split Rock was saved from being blasted to smithereens by Thruway engineers.  Instead, after the historians approached engineers involved with construction of the Thruway about the issue, the path of the new Thruway was relocated a few feet north of the originally-planned route.  Split Rock was saved.

Split Rock from an Unusual Perspective:  The "Back"

(i.e., Side Away From Split Rock Road) on January

5, 1919 with Two Unidentified Individuals Atop the Boulder.

Photograph Courtesy of the Office of the Historian of

the Town of Pelham.  NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

Ms. Johanna Sophia Berger (1906-1999)

Stands Within the Split of Split Rock in 1942.

Photograph Taken by Her Son, Rich Berger,

With His Father's Kodak Folding Camera

Using Eastman Kodak 116 Roll Film for the

Creation of 2-1/2 x 4-1/4 Inch Negatives.

Note How Close Split Rock Road Came to

the Boulder and the Wooden Guardrails

Along the Roadway In the Background.

Photograph Courtesy of Rich Berger.

NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

Detail from Undated Post Card Showing Split Rock in

About 1915.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

Split Rock in 1898.  Photograph by "Henshaw."

Photo Courtesy of The Office of The Historian of The Town

of Pelham.  NOTE:  Click Image to Enlarge.

I have written about Split Rock on numerous occasions.  See, e.g.:

Fri., Jan. 09, 2015:  The Closing of Split Rock Road in December, 1937.

Wed., May 21, 2014:  The Story of Split Rock Road, Named After Split Rock, a Massive Glacial Boulder.

Mon., Mar. 28, 2005:  Split Rock:  A Pelham Landmark for Centuries.

Wed., Oct. 26, 2005:  Remnants of the Battlefield on Which the Battle of Pelham Was Fought on October 18, 1776.

In addition to providing the rare images of Split Rock above, today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog transcribes the text of a number of articles that mention the successful efforts of Messrs. Browne and Kazimiroff to save Split Rock.  Another mentions the opening of the new Thruway in 1958 and provides information about the history of Boston Post Road which the New England Section of the New York State Thruway that opened on October 18, 1958 paralleled.  

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"The Bronx In History
By JOHN McNAMARA
Historic 'Split Rock' Was Saved From Blasting for Superhighway

Historian Edgar Browne of Pelham points out that an original Indian trail still exists in part in Pelham Bay Park, known as Split Rock road.  The entire area from City Island to the Pelhams was then inhabited by a tribe of Mohegan Indians known as the Siwanoys or 'Water People' because they lived close to Long Island Sound, and were excellent fishermen.

It was along this trail from the Shore Road North to Boston Road that a famous battle of the Revolutionary War was fought.  Then,

The Bronx in History
(Continued from Page 14)

as now, it was called Split Rock Road and derived its name from a large glacial boulder which lies just a few feet from the New England Thruway.  The boulder is generally believed to have been split in two by glacial action millions of years ago.  In modern times the cause of the split has been the subject of many legends.  One of these is that the rock was split by a seed growing into a tree.

The rock was for many years marked with a bronze tablet, erected in 1911 by the Colonial Dames of the State of New York, commemorating the memory of Anne Hutchinson, who lived in the vicinity.  For safekeeping, the tablet was later affixed to an outside wall of St. Paul's Church in Mount Vernon, within sight of the split rock itself.

When the Thruway was under construction, it was at first planned to blast away the boulder to make room for the superhighway.  Mr. Browne and Dr. Kazimiroff, Bronx County Historian, and other persons interested in local landmarks asked the engineers if the rock could not be saved.  The line for the new road was moved a few feet north, and the ancient rock remained untouched, an enduring reminder of a colorful past."

Source:  McNamara, John, The Bronx In History:  Historic 'Split Rock' Was Saved From Blasting for Superhighway, Bronx Press Review, Feb. 14, 1963, p. 14, cols. 1-3 (copy reviewed courtesy of Mr. Jorge Santiago of the Northeast Bronx History Forum).  

"Westchester Today!
Split Rock:  Saved from Thruway Path

Split Rock Road, hundreds of years ago, was an Indian trail that extended from City Island to Pelham.  Today it has been largely swallowed by other roads, or has been permanently dissected.  One of these segments, now fully developed with homes, runs from Boston Post Road in Pelham Manor to the New England Thruway. 

The old trail, after following what is now City Islande Avenue, turned east for a distance.  This portion is now part of Shore Road.  The trail turned north near the present entrance to the Split Rock Golf Course, went past Boston Post Road in Pelham Manor, turned slightly east and connected with Wolf's Lane.  It continued on to Colonial Avenue and there branched off in several directions.  

The entire area from City Island to the Pelhams was then inhabited by a tribe of Mohegan Indians by a tribe of Mohegan Indians known as the Siwanoys, or 'Water People,' because they lived close to Long Island Sound and were excellent fishermen.  It was they who blazed the original Split Rock trail.  The wooded area around the trail was the scene of inter- and intra-tribe meetings and religious ceremonies.  

Many modern roads and highways have similarly followed routes established long ago by Indian tribes.  

'Like today's road engineers,' says Edgar Browne, Pelham town historian, 'the Indians followed the routes of least resistance, and although modern highways actually do not cross the land whereon they trod, they still follow in the general direction that the Indian broke his trail.'

Scene of Famous Battle

It was along this trail from the Shore Road north to Colonial Avenue that a famous battle of the Revolutionary War was fought.  Washington had been forced to retreat from New York City toward White Plains in October 1776.  The British, hoping to cut him off, sent their warships under General Howe up Long Island Sound and landed their army at Pell's Point, near City Island.

A small American brigade headed by General John Glover, using the stone walls of the countryside for cover, kept firing at the enemy and then retreating to the next wall in a delaying action.  Under this harrassment, Howe and his troops took a whole day to advance from Pell's Point to approximately where the Pelham Memorial High School now stands on Colonial Avenue.

The British believed these local sharpshooters were the advance guard of Washington's army.  That night they encamped on Wolf's Lane near the site of the high school, and Washington slipped past them under cover of darkness.  Several days later Washington sent a letter to Glover and his men, praising them for their brave action.

Rock a Glacial Boulder

Split Rock Road derived its name from a large glacial boulder which lies between Shore Road and Boston Post Road, just a few feet from the New England Thruway.  It is near the place where Anne Hutchinson, in 1642, founded the first white settlement in the valley of the river which bears her name.  The following year, incensed by the murder of 100 of their tribesmen by the Dutch, a usually peaceful tribe of Algonquins destroyed several settlements, killing all inhabitants.  Mrs. Hutchinson's settlement was among them.

The boulder is generally believed to have been split in two by glacial action millions of years ago.  In modern times the cause of the split has been the subject of many legends.  One of these is that the rock was split by a seed growing into a tree.  Possibly, though, this story rose because of the weeds and shrubs growing in the crevice.  

The rock was for many years marked with a bronze tablet erected in 1911 by the Colonial Dames of the State of New York.  Later the tablet was removed and installed on an outside wall of St. Paul's Church in Mount Vernon.  The inscription reads:  'Anne Hutchinson, Banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty this courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherland near this spot.'

Road Cut by Thruway

Split Rock Road became a dead end street in Pelham Manor many years ago when the Split Rock Golf Course was extended.  The recently built Thruway then cut it in two, leaving a short stretch in Pelham Manor.

A longer section over the New York City line winds through the golf course on the other side of the Thruway and is no longer a through road.  Other segments of the old trail from city Island to the Shore Road are now parts of modern roads, as are sections north of the Post Road.

The rock itself is situated in a small triangular sector formed by the Thruway, the Hutchinson River Parkway and the ramp exit from the parkway to the Thruway, just a few yards away from one of the golf course's greens.

When the Thruway was under construction, it was at first planned to blast away part of the boulder to make room for the superhighway.  Mr. Browne and several other persons interested in local history asked the engineers if the old landmark could not be saved.  Mr. Browne doesn't know whether their plea was directly responsible, but the line for the new road was moved a few feet north, and the ancient rock remained untouched, an enduring reminder of a colorful past."

Source:  Westchester Today!  Split Rock:  Saved from Thruway Path, The Herald Statesman [Yonkers, NY], Dec. 12, 1962, p. 5B, cols. 1-4.  

"Thruway Follows Route of Historic Old Boston Post Road
17th Century Trail Linked N.Y., Boston
By THOMAS A. HOCTOR
New Rochelle City Historian

The New England Section of the New York State Thruway which will be opened tomorrow is the first major thoroughfare to traverse Sound shore communities in Westchester since the ancient Boston Post Road was carved out of virgin wilderness late in the 17th Century.

The ribbon of concrete and steel which starts at Bruckner Blvd. in The Bronx and extends uninterrupted by hills, streams or fallen logs to a linkup with the Connecticut Turnpike at Byram, is in sharp contrast to the original Kings Highway which followed in part an old Indian trail known as the Westchester Path.

In August 1668, the Hon. Francis Lovelace arrived in New York to succeed British Governor Nicolls.  Under instructions to do all possible to further friendly relations between the colonies, he and Nicolls visited Governor Winthrop of Connecticut and the establishment of a 'ost or rail route was discussed."

On December 10, 1672, Governor Lovelace issued 'A Proclamation for a Post to goe monthly from this city to Boston and back againe.'

In January 1673, the first rider 'active, stout and indefatigable' left the fort at the lower end of Broadway, New York, on his long journey to Boston.  His first change of horses was to be at Hartford and he was to complete the round trip within a month's time.

In the words of Lovelace in a letter to Winthrop, 'It would be much advantageous to our design, if in the intervall you discourse with some of the most able woodmen, to make out the best and most facile way for a Post, which in process of tyme would be the King's best highway. . .'

274 Mile Trip

The early road was rough and twisting.  It was 274 miles from New York to Boston over the Forest Path.  From New York to New Rochelle, 28 miles.  Later in 1697, the istance had been cut to 23 miles and a milestone bearing the inscription, '23 miles to N. York 1771.' may be seen today in the foundation of a building on the southwest corner of Huguenot and Lawton Sts.

The stone originally stood on the north side of the Boston Post Rd. now Huguenot St., east of the home of Elias Guion, near the present entrance to No. 261.

Only portions of the Old Post Road remain today in New Rochelle.  On April 7, 1800, a charter was granted to a group of prominent Westchester County citizens to construct and operate a turnpike from Eastchester to Byram.

Work on the road began in the summer of 1800.  Three important sections of Main St. in New Rochelle owe their origin to this project:  namely, West Main St. from the Pelham line eastward to the King's Highway; Main St. from its junction with Huguenot St. opposite the Public Library eastward to the junction with Huguenot St. opposite the Naval Armory; and East Main St. from its junction with Old Boston Post Rd. near Lispenard Ave. eastward to a point where they unite again opposite Cherry Ave.

A toll house stood astride the western end of Main St. near Everett St., one end of which was left open for the passage of vehicles.

Tolls Listed

Here are some of the tolls.  Every score of sheep or hogs, 6 cents.  Every horse and rider or led horse, 4 cents.  Every sulkey, chair or chaise with one horse, 10 cents.  Every phaeton, chariot, coach or choachee, 20 cents.  Every cart drawn by two oxen, 9 cents.  Every sleigh or sled, 6 cents.

The late Mrs. George Forbes in an interview with a Standard-Star reporter, recalled her childhood as the daughter of the toll house-keeper.

Thus Main St. became the principal thoroughfare in New Rochelle after 1800.  By the time it was opened the Post Rider had given way to the stage coach as mail carrier.  The running time between New York and Boston had been cut to two days.

As it curves up from its beginning in The Bronx, the Thruway sweeps over historic ground.  On iron stilts it crosses the Split Rock Road in Pelham where Col. Glover and his men on the morning of October 18, 1776, held back the British eager to outflank Washington's ragged army retreating to White Plains.

It crosses Kings Highway and the present Post Road and in the vicinity of Union Ave. and Division St. slices through ground which recently held the remains of New Rochelle's first settlers.  It dives under North Ave. once known as 'The Road to the White Plains,' and reaches street level and the first toll booth at the New Rochelle-Larchmont line.

Thruway and Post Road run parallel sometimes within a few blocks of each other all the way to Byram.  The old Post road has witnessed a parade of traffic during its 290 odd years from Post riders to diesel trucks.

When Jack McMahon, properly costumed, rides up Main St., New Rochelle tomorrow to lead the Thruway Celebration parade, he'll portray the ancient Post rider, the men who beat the trail for Post Road and Thruway which followed."

Source:  Hoctor, Thomas A., Thruway Follows Route of Historic Old Boston Post Road, Herald Statesman [Yonkers, NY], Oct. 17, 1958, p. 14, cols. 1-8.  

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Split Rock: A Pelham Landmark for Centuries

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Split Rock has been a Pelham landmark, some say, for as long as there has been a Pelham. Today, this giant glacial boulder is located near the New England Thruway where it meets the Hutchinson River Parkway. As its name implies, the gigantic boulder seems to have been split in half. It has a colorful history and has been associated with a variety of local legends and traditions. A recent photograph of the boulder appears immediately below.

Background

During colonial times, what we now know as Split Rock Road in Pelham Manor extended across much of today’s Split Rock Golf Course in Pelham Bay Park. A former Pelham Town Historian described the road as follows:

“‘The Split Rock Road,’ as it is familiarly called by the residents of Pelham, originally the private driveway from the Post Road to the Manor house of John Pell [near today’s Bartow-Pell Mansion], can boast an age equal with that of the Boston Road. It was once the sole highway of communication between this neighborhood and City Island, where numerous fishermen and pilots obtained a livelihood.”

In early times, Split Rock Road was a Native American path. On October 18, 1938, The Park Department of the City of New York erected a Historic Marker dedicated to the “Old Indian Path” that came to be known as Split Rock Road.

Much of the Battle of Pelham occurred along Split Rock Road. Split Rock was a popular destination for generations of Pelham families. With the creation of the Split Rock Golf Course, much of Split Rock Road disappeared, though parts of it still exist along various of the fairways of the course.

Legends and Anecdotes

Several of the stories and legends associated with early settler Anne Hutchinson (who was massacred along with many of her family by Native Americans in 1643) are tied to Split Rock. For many years it was believed that she settled near Split Rock. Scholars such as Otto Hufeland and Lemuel Welles disproved that tradition, concluding that the location of the Hutchinson settlement and massacre was within the Town of Eastchester. In 1911, a bronze tablet was placed on Split Rock by the Colonial Dames of the State of New York in honor of Anne Hutchinson. It read:

"ANNE HUTCHINSON

Banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1638

Because of her Devotion to Religious Liberty This Courageous Woman

Sought Freedom from Persecution in New Netherland

Near this Rock in 1643 She and her Household

were Massacred by Indians

This Tablet is placed here by theColonial Dames of the State of New York

ANNO DOMINI MCMXL Virtutes Majorurn Filiae Conservant"

Reports say vandals later destroyed this tablet although the Colonial Dames of the State of New York reportedly replaced it with another. There appears to be no such plaque on the boulder today.

In 1958, while engineers were overseeing the construction of The New England Thruway, plans were made to dynamite the Split Rock boulder. Bronx County Historian Theodore Kazimiroff reportedly led a group who convinced the engineers “to move the Thruway a few feet north and the rock was spared.”

Split Rock Today

Split Rock is difficult, but not impossible, to visit today. There are several ways to get to it. One way is fairly easy and quite a fascinating and pleasant hike.  However, because of the danger of crossing roadways to get to the boulder itself, it is recommended that it be viewed from afar -- not actually visited. 

Go to the very end of Beech Tree Lane, located near the back of Manor Circle off of Pelhamdale Avenue just east of the I-95 overpass on Pelhamdale Avenue. At the end of the street you actually will be within the Bronx.

At the end of the street is a pathway that enters onto the Bridle Path in Pelham Bay Park. You will see the Pelham Bay Golf Course. Facing the Golf Course, take a right on the Bridle Path. Wear sturdy waterproof shoes since the path can be quite wet and muddy at times.

After a short distance, you will perceive that the "path" seems sunken and looks like an ancient road. That is, in fact, what it is. This portion of the pathway once was a part of a long country road -- some say a "driveway" -- from John Hunter's estate on Hunter's Island in the mid-19th century to the roadway that we know today as Boston Post Road (U.S. 1).
You shortly will see that the roadway seems to incline up a little hill to a large iron bridge over the tracks of the Branch Line that opened in the early 1870s. In his book on the history of Pelham published in 1946, Lockwood Barr wrote about this roadway and bridge as follows:

"John Hunter had a private lane from the Island over to the Prospect Hill section of Pelham Manor. This private lane paralleled the present southern boundary line of Pelham Manor, up to the point where the line crosses the tracks of the New Haven Branch Line Railroad. At that point, now stands a steel bridge over the tracks, and on either side of the railroad still remain the earthen approaches to the span. When the Branch Line was built in 1873, this bridge was erected because of the legal difficulties involved in closing an old road. A map of Pelham of 1850 clearly shows this lane, used by John Hunter to get from his Mansion over to his Provost Farm, then bounded by the Hutchinson River, the Boston Post Road, and old Split Rock Road. In his will, John Hunter made disposition of his farm lands on the mainland in the Town of Pelham, and recognized the necessity of providing ". . . right of way with Cattle and teams over the lane now used by me across my farm, commonly called and known as the Sackett Farm, situate in the said Town of Pelham opposite Hunter's Island and between the farms of Geo. Thacker and Elbert Roosevelt; and also the right of way from said lane thorugh the woods of said Sackett Farm, to and from the Provost Farm." This right of way was conveyed in the deeds subsequently transferring the Island. This old lane was closed when the golf course of Pelham Bay Park was made, but the lane and the bridge form part of the Bridle Path in the Park."

Source: Barr, Lockwood, A Brief, But Most Complete & True Account of the Settlement of the Ancient Town of Pelham Westchester County, State of New York Known One Time Well & Favourably as The Lordshipp & Mannour of Pelham Also the Story of the Three Modern Villages Called the Pelhams, p. 101 (Richmond, VA: The Dietz Press, Inc. 1946).

Proceed over the bridge and continue walking. You will reach I-95 and, indeed, will wonder if the Bridle Path has ended. It has not. For a short distance of a couple of hundred yards, the Bridle Path is difficult to perceive and, in fact, is located only a few yards away from the roadside of I-95. Occasionally you will see hoof prints and even wood used to mark the boundaries of the path. Keep walking parallel to I-95 on your right with the fence that encloses Split Rock Golf course on your left.

After a short distance the Bridle Path will angle to the left and become a wide, graveled horse path again. Watch carefully to your right. You will see an entrance roadway from the Hutchinson River Parkway onto I-95. Between I-95 and the Hutchinson River Parkway entrance roadway onto I-95 you will see Split Rock -- a giant boulder that appears to be split in half. You will even be able to scramble down the small incline from the Bridle Path to a grassy area next to the roadway where you can see Split Rock even more clearly. It may be hard to imagine, but this is the very spot where -- for many generations -- Pelham residents brought picnic lunches and sat in the quiet countryside admiring the lovely view of the countryside around Pelham.

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