“Boating on Bronx Lake”

Yes, really—this bucolic postcard from just after the turn of the last century depicts several New Yorkers rowing down a placid body of water in the Bronx near the newly opened zoological park.

“In this park there are two lakes, which owe their existence wholly to the Bronx River,” explains a 1912 New York Times write-up. “One is Lake Agassiz, of about six acres in area, and the other Bronx Lake, embracing 25 acres and nearly a mile long. 

“Bronx Lake is available for boating, and in 1911 the boats there were used by more than 46,000 persons.”

And the Bronx River is still used for boating, and parts of it look very much like this old postcard. Check out this parks department virtual tour.

Tags: boating on the Bronx River, Bronx Lake, Bronx Park, Bronx River, Bronx Zoological Park, Lake Agassiz, old Bronx postcards, vintage postcards of the Bronx