Changing New York; Downtown Skyport
The Downtown Skyport between Piers 11 and 12 at the foot of Wall Street on the East River. 120 Wall Street and the top of the Woolworth Building are visible in the distance.
Museum of the City of New YorkDowntown Skyport, August 12, 1936.
The Downtown Skyport was a water landing airport on the East River between Piers 11 and 12. The municipal facility was largely used by wealthy businessmen who lived on Long Island and commuted to their jobs on Wall Street via private seaplanes. The facility also was used for docking private speedboats for the same Long Island to Manhattan commute. In 1937 there were 1,068 plane landings at this skyport.
Other skyports, used for similar functions, were opened at 31st Street and the East River and at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn during the 1930s.
Urban Archive