VICTORY BOULEVARD, Staten Island

by Kevin Walsh

Here Victory Boulevard rolls through the Bulls Head neighborhood in northwest Staten Island. Though the road was built in 1816 as Richmond Turnpike, a toll road by a company owned by Vice-President Daniel Tompkins, who lived in Stapleton where the road begins, it’s hardly Staten Island’s oldest road — both Richmond Terrace and Amboy Road, named in the early 1700s, follow Native American trails that precede the coming of the white man. When built, Victory Boulevard was a major route from NYC to Philadelphia, as ferries connected it to Manhattan as well as New Jersey (from what became Travis, on the Arthur Kill).

In 1918 the road was renamed Victory Boulevard, after the armistice ending World War I was signed.

The busy road, a major commercial center in spots, connects Stapleton, Grymes Hill, Sunnyside, Castleton Corners, Westerleigh, Bulls Head and Travis.

4/29/13

5 comments

Edward April 29, 2013 - 7:11 pm

Lived on Victory Blvd a few times (above a deli in Castleton Corners and in a nice 1940s apt house across from the reservoir in Silver Lake) and is the best road to live on if you need to take the bus to the St. George Ferry Terminal. Three local, two limited and a few express coaches to Manhattan run along Victory Blvd during rush hours.

Reply
Chris May 2, 2013 - 11:27 am

Kevin,
I’m writing this to your latest dispatch from Staten Island hoping it reaches you: Did you see what is going on at 509 Seguine Avenue? I know you’ve written about this building. DNAinfo has an article about the sad state of it.

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Kevin Walsh May 2, 2013 - 4:15 pm

The Manee house? What is happening?

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Chris May 2, 2013 - 5:34 pm

Yes, the Manee-Seguine Homestead. It’s in disrepair. Apparently neglected by the owner who is now being sued by Landmarks. There is a whole in the roof, among other things. The owner cIaims Sandy as the culprit, and that it was “red-tagged” by the city, but Landmarks disagrees.
I wasn’t sure how you are about having links sent to your site, but I can provide them.

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Paul Fleisher January 2, 2019 - 3:14 am

I was born at Sunnyside Hospital in 1944. My father taught at Mckee vocational High. I used to hike on top of Clove valley opposite Wagner college and remember a spot where there were grave stones dating back to 1692. This was all before the bridge was built. Runfoller`s Drug store, The Jolly Trolly, Mo Branner and Mr Simons were rival grocery store owners and Mrs Smith still had her farm at the corner of Clove and Victory. Haven’t been back in years. Wonder what I`ll find

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