Vernon Mall

Vernon Blvd. bet. 50 Ave. and 51 Ave.

Queens

Directions via Google Maps

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.

Admiral Edward Vernon (1684-1757) was a storied naval commander whose name graces many streets and locations in this country. Vernon joined the English Navy in 1700, and rose steadily in rank. He was appointed a member of Parliament in 1722, and staunchly opposed the government of Sir Robert Walpole (1676-1745), the head of the Whig party who is regarded as Great Britain's first prime minister. Meanwhile, tensions were building between England and Spain, whose commercial rivalry was becoming more than either power could bear. Vernon encouraged a confrontation with Spain, and in 1739, Walpole gave way under pressure from the House of Commons and finally declared war on Spain. Vernon's 1739 capture of Portobello, a town in central Panama on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, won him great popularity. In 1741, he led a joint expedition with the incompetent General Wentworth against the Cartegena and Santiago de Cuba. The expedition failed, a…

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