In 1842 the
Croton River, a tributary of the
Hudson River, was impounded by the
Old Croton Dam to create Croton Lake. This was
New York City's first source of water beyond its city limits. Its waters traveled by aqueduct to the
Croton Distributing Reservoir in midtown
Manhattan. Construction on a
New Croton Dam began in 1892. In 1900, the workers (primarily
Italian immigrants,
Irish immigrants and
African-Americans) constructing the dam went on strike to protest unfair wages. The New York State National Guard was called in to protect replacement workers and violence ensued. In 1906, the New Croton Dam was completed, expanding the existing impoundment into the New Croton Reservoir, then the largest in the Croton Watershed, and thus one of the largest in the
New York City water supply system to that point. It has a 57 square mile (148 km2)
drainage basin, is approximately long, and can hold of water at full capacity. Its waters flow into the
New Croton Aqueduct, then into the
Jerome Park Reservoir in
the Bronx. Water from the Jerome Park Reservoir is normally distributed to parts of
Manhattan, the Bronx, and western
Queens. ==Gallery==