SATURDAY, April 13, 2024 wasn’t a banner day for Forgotten NY, as I had planned an expedition to Howard Beach. The Q53 crawled along despite a dedicated bus lane on Woodhaven/Cross Bay Boulevard. I lunched at New Park Pizza and while I still like the coal fired crust and tart tomato sauce the pieces seemed definitely smaller. I could have polished off a slice in 4-5 bites had I chosen to do so. I began making my way up Cohancy, which is bridged over the Belt Pakway and headed up Hawtree Street for some adventuring, but the light rain and incessant wind forced a command decision to call it a day. I had about a mile and a half walking, out of a planned four or five, before turning around and taking the crawling Q53 back to Woodside.
But before I did I found something mysterious on Hawtree Street, as Cohancy becomes Hawtree just north of North Conduit. On the right side of the photo, note a pair of telephone poles with standard -issue finned lamp masts and new LED lights. However, there’s no road here, just an open field. Checking Street View, I saw that this clearing is relatively new, as it was cleared from woods a few years ago. (I haven’t been on this stretch in over a decade). I’m completely flummoxed why the Department of Transportation would clear the woods and trees out, and add two lampposts. If you have any idea, Comments are open.
“Hawtree” is a place name in southern Queens, in Howard Beach and South Jamaica. I have circled Hawtree Creek on this 1909 map. In addition, Hawtree Street runs on the west side of the tracks of the Rocakway LIRR, since 1956 the IND A train. Additionally a road that predates the overall grid, Hawtree Creek Road, runs through South Jamaica.
In 2024, Hawtree Creek exists as Hawtree Basin, separating Howard Beach from Hamilton Beach and Ramblersville. Though its meandering course has been altered, it still is more irregular than its neighbors, Shellbank and Bergen Basins.
I used to think the creek and the roads named for it were, in turn, named for a tree or plant (cf. the hawthorn tree) but “Hawtree” is a proper name, and the Hawtree family likely owned property in the marshy ground adjoining Jamaica Bay. It seems to be a British name; in the Beatles’ “Two of Us,” John Lennon invokes the name of British comic actor Charles Hawtrey (who was born as George Frederick Joffre Hartree).
Anyway, who can solve the Mystery of Hawtree Street?
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4/15/2024