Fort Totten: Abandoned

Recently I had a personal day that I had to either use or lose, so I took a weekday off for a little solo adventure. I started my day at a great new (to me) diner in Queens—a spot wonderful enough for its own post—and then headed out to Fort Totten. Fort Totten was built by the US Army in 1862 to defend the East River approach to the New York Harbor. Most of the fort is now a public park, owned by the city of New York and other parts are used by the NYPD and FDNY for training purposes.

I had heard that Fort Totten was lousy with abandoned buildings so I was eager to go check it out, and it seemed perfect for a solo adventure since it's far enough away that I knew I'd have a hard time convincing anyone to come with me. It took about an hour to get to there on a bus from the end of the 7 train line in Flushing, Queens. I was immediately surprised by how busy and not abandoned everything seemed—I was disappointed only because I had been expecting the park to be much more desolate and overgrown. I think I actually made a mistake going on a weekday (when the park was teeming with NYPD, FDNY and Army reservists). I imagine it's much quieter on weekends, but with most places in the city, the opposite is true. 

Once I adjusted my expectations and began to explore, I did end up finding a bit of the abandoned element I had been seeking. A lot of the buildings are crumbling and barely visible through the ivy and other thick vegetation, but others are in various states of restoration. The Willet Farmhouse was built in 1829 and has a sign out front that proclaims "Please Pardon My Appearance, I am a Candidate for Historical Preservation,' but the entire house looks as if it's been swallowed by vines. 

The YMCA building was built in 1929, and now stands abandoned. It appears to be a dumping ground for filing cabinets, office supplies, industrial sewing machines, boxes of papers and boots. I didn't go further than the first room I came to, but I'm fascinated by abandoned spaces especially concerning what gets left behind. I would love to go back and explore the building further, and the more I think about it, the more I feel like Fort Totten is definitely worth a return trip.