Anable Basin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Anable Basin |
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A view of Manhattan from Anable Basin
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 Anable Basin
Location in New York City
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| Coordinates | 40°44′56″N 73°57′22″W / 40.74880°N 73.95622°W |
| Type | Artificial inlet |
| Part of | East River |
| Built | 1868 |
| Max. length | 500 feet (150 m) |
Anable Basin (also called Eleventh Street Basin) is a man-made waterway in Long Island City, Queens, New York City. It's about 500-foot-long (150 m) and connects to the East River. This basin was created in 1868 to help factories and businesses in the area.
Today, you can find a public walkway along one side of the basin. This path was built in 2012. The basin is home to several private boats and a floating dock. This dock is used by the Long Island City Community Boathouse for its kayaking programs. In 2018, there were plans for a large Amazon office campus around the basin. However, these plans were later canceled.
What's in a Name?
The Anable Basin is named after Henry Sheldon Anable. He helped pay for the basin's creation. Henry Anable was an important person in local business and politics in the 1860s. His uncle-in-law, Eliphalet Nott, owned a lot of land around Hunter's Point. Nott was also the president of Union College.
Henry Anable's family came from early Puritan settlers in Massachusetts. They arrived in 1623. He is a descendant of Anthony Annable. Anthony was a passenger on the Anne, which was the third ship to reach the Plymouth Colony.
A Look Back at Anable Basin
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The Anable Basin was dug out in 1868. At that time, Long Island City had many oil refineries and factories. Interestingly, a mastodon bone was found when they were digging the basin!
For most of the 1900s, a big Pepsi-Cola bottling plant was located right where the Anable Basin meets the East River. In 1937, a famous sign company, Artkraft-Strauss Sign Corporation, put up the huge, glowing Pepsi-Cola sign on top of the plant. This sign quickly became a landmark for people in Manhattan and for ships passing by.
When the bottling plant was torn down in 1999, the famous 120-foot-long sign was carefully taken apart. It was then put back together at a new spot nearby. This sign is now an official city landmark. It's part of Gantry Plaza State Park. This park runs along the East River between Anable Basin and Hunters Point.
In 1980, a restaurant called Water's Edge opened on the north side of the basin. It was known for hosting weddings. The restaurant operated for over 30 years before it closed. Now, a new place called Anable Basin Sailing Bar & Grill has opened across the street. This eatery offers a place for boats to dock. It also has picnic tables by the water and serves American and other dishes, like ćevapi (a Bosnian sausage).
Art and Fun at the Basin
The Anable Basin has also become a place for art and creative projects.
- In October 2007, artist Chico MacMurtrie created a sculpture called A Tree for Anable Basin. This 24-foot-tall aluminum tree sat on a floating island. The island was planted with native grasses. MacMurtrie is the founder of a workshop called Amorphic Robot Works in Brooklyn.
- In August 2012, a student named Karim Ahmed from Cooper Union designed a special garden. It was a hydroponic garden (meaning plants grow in water, not soil) on a 20-foot raft. This project, called Waterpod, floated in the Anable Basin. It grew sunflowers, kale, corn, and even a small nectarine tree! The idea came from the chinampa floating farms used by the Aztec people long ago. Ahmed's raft was docked near where the Anable Basin Sailing Bar & Grill is today.
- In October 2016, The Plaxall Gallery opened. This large art space was once a warehouse. It was given by Plaxall Inc. and is run by LIC Artists Inc. The gallery has three art spaces, a theater, and an outdoor area. It's located right on the Anable Basin. It has become a very important place for artists in the area. In April 2020, a new group called Culture Lab LIC took over the space.
- In June 2017, art curator Brandon Stosuy worked with artist Matthew Barney and others. They put up a Trump countdown clock at the entrance of Anable Basin. You could see it from Manhattan. This art piece showed the days and hours left in U.S. president Donald Trump's time in office.
