Van Buskirk Island

Van Buskirk Island is a man-made island in the Hackensack River in Oradell, New Jersey, United States. The island was formed in 1802, and was created by the dams for the mills, The Southern End was known as the old Dock, Upper Landing or Old Landing and was the official head of navigation on the Hackensack River (the highest point of navigable water on the river). Schooners plied the river regularly between Old Dock and New York. The land was also an industrial center from Pre-Revolutionary War times with several types of mills: saw mills, bark mills and finally a grist mill. After this it was used as the site for the Hackensack Water company from 1882 (Site built and expanded, remains historically intact from 1911, including important steam equipment from the Industrial Revolution.

In 1990, United Water (formerly Hackensack Water Co.) ceased using the site and offered it to Oradell, then Bergen County. The island is currently in a state of transition and the focus of a battle between the county and conservation groups regarding its future status and use as a park and/or recreational area.

References

* [http://hwwc.org/history.html A Brief History of the Former Hackensack Water Company Site]

External links

* [http://www.hackensackriverkeeper.org/ Hackensack Riverkeeper]
* [http://www.hwwc.org The Water Works Conservancy]
* [http://www.amazon.com/Hackensack-Water-Works-Clifford-Zink/dp/0974643300/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1218593440&sr=1-1]