Sheepshead Bay Piers

What was here before?

The Canarsee, Sheepshead Bay's original inhabitants, lived here largely undisturbed until almost 150 years after European settlers arrived in nearby Gravesend in 1643. In the eighteenth century, the Wyckoff and Lott families established homesteads and built farms in the area.  The Henry and Abraham Wyckoff House, built in 1766, still stands today on the corner of Kings Highway and East 22^nd Street. 

Fishing became popular in the bay in the early 1800s, and cottages soon dotted the rim of the inlet. Cool coastal breezes and fresh seafood began to lure tourists in the middle of the nineteenth century, when Sam Leonard’s Hotel and Tappen’s Hotel were built.  The opening of Ocean Avenue provided the first direct route to the area. In the 1870s, a large farm was subdivided for development, a trend that led to the construction of over 400 houses by the end of the century, along with shops, churches, and a post office. Political boss John McKane guided the development of Sheepshead Bay by encouraging the construction of New York rail lines to connect it to the rest of Brooklyn. 

The Coney Island Jockey Club, founded in 1880, opened the Sheepshead Bay Racetrack in 1915. The track was demolished in 1919 and replaced with housing.  The city revitalized the neighborhood in the 1930s, with improvements such as the widening of Emmons Avenue and the modernization of buildings by the bay.  In the 1950s, brick apartment buildings replaced wooden houses, and by 1960, Sheepshead Bay was the fastest growing community in Brooklyn. 

How did this site become a park?

The City of New York built these concrete piers in 1936.  The former Department of Ports and Trade then had jurisdiction over the ten piers. The first nine provide berths for charter fishing boats and a fuel tender, while Pier 10 is a landing site for excursion vessels.  In the early 1990s, the Economic Development Corporation completed a renovation that included the installation of water and electricity at every berth as well as improvements in pavement, railings, lighting, and seating.  In 1994, Parks assumed jurisdiction over Piers 1-10 and updated the structure in 2024.

Many daily fishing trips leave from the Sheepshead Bay Piers offering morning, midday, and evening trips to fish for porgy, fluke, sea bass, and bluefish.  Many fishermen who prefer keeping their feet on dry land drop their lines right off the piers.

Who is this park named for?

These piers are located in a neighborhood named for a fish native to the Atlantic coast—from Nova Scotia to the Gulf of Mexico.  The silvery, black-banded Sheepshead fish, a member of the porgy family, is so called for its teeth, which resemble those of sheep.  Sheepshead Bay’s name likely dates to 1844, when Benjamin Freeman (1808-1894) built the first hotel in the area, The Sheepshead.