Coney Island New York Aquarium
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New York Aquarium – Coney Island
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New York Aquarium
The New York Aquarium first opened on December 10, 1896, at Castle Garden in battery Park, making it the oldest continually operating aquarium in the United States. Its first director was the respected fish expert, Dr. Tarleton Hoffman Bean (1895-1898). On October 31, 1902, the Aquarium was adopted into the care of what was then the New York Zoological Society. At the time, the Aquarium housed only 150 specimens of wildlife. Over time, its most famous director, the distinguished zoologist Dr. Charles Haskins Townsend (1859-1944), enlarged the collections considerably, and the Aquarium attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
Early in October 1941, the Aquarium at battery Park was closed due to the proposed construction of a tunnel from Lower Manhattan to Brooklyn. Many of the Aquarium’s sea creatures were temporarily housed at the Bronx Zoo until the new aquarium was built after World War II. On June 6, 1957, the Aquarium opened its doors at its new location in Coney Island, Brooklyn.
The New York Aquarium currently occupies 14 acres by the sea in Coney Island, [Info on Coney Island Mermaid Parade] and boasts over 350 species of aquatic wildlife. Its mission is to raise public awareness about issues facing the ocean and its inhabitants with special exhibits, public events and research. At the Aquarium’s Osborn Laboratories of Marine Sciences (OLMS), several studies are currently underway investigating such topics as dolphin cognition, satellite tagging of sharks, and coral reefs.
The aquarium is also home to famous (male) couple Roy and Silo two blackfooted penguins who inspired the children’s book And Tango Makes Three, after zookeepers switched a rock they were trying to hatch with an extra egg from another couple.
On August 19, 2005 authorities revealed they received a letter written half a century before by Stella Ferrucci-Good. In it, the woman identified a location near West Eighth Street in Coney Island, Brooklyn, at the current site of the New York Aquarium, where she claimed judge Joseph F. Crater was buried under the boardwalk. Police confirmed that skeletal remains had been discovered at that site in the 1950s while building the New York Aquarium. Due to the reburying of those skeletal remains in a Potter’s field it is still unknown if it were in fact the skeletal remains of judge Joseph F. Crater.
Location
New York Aquarium is located on Surf Avenue & West 8th Street in Brooklyn, NY 11224.
New York Aquarium Posters
Aquarium, Battery Park, New York City Art Print
Buy at AllPosters.com
Aquarium, Battery Park, New York City Art Print
Buy at AllPosters.com
Aquarium, Battery Park, New York City Art Print
Buy at AllPosters.com
Aquarium, Battery Park, New York City Art Print
Buy at AllPosters.com
Direction
Coney Island is located in the southernmost part of Brooklyn. If you are mapquesting, you can use the address 1000 Surf Avenue.
By Train:
Take the D, Q N or F train to Stillwell Avenue (last stop). This takes about 45 minutes from midtown Manhattan
By Car:
Take the Belt Parkway to exit 6. Head south on Cropsey Avenue to West 17th Street. Keyspan Park and the Parachute Jump will be in front of you on Surf Avenue. Parking is available along most streets. There are commercial parking lots on West 17th Street and West 12th Street between Mermaid and Surf, West 15th Street between the Boardwalk and Surf and on Neptune Avenue between West 12th and Stillwell Avenue.
Hours
Monday – Friday : 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday : 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Holidays : 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Admission
Adults : $12.00
Child (2-12)*: $8.00
Seniors (65 +): $8.00
*Children under 2 years are free.