Spuyten Duyvil, Bronx

Spuyten Duyvil (pron-en|spaɪ:tən daɪ:vəɫ) is the name of a subsection of the Riverdale section of the Bronx in New York City. The area is named after Spuyten Duyvil Creek, a Dutch name with various historical spellings and meanings. Some of the names are Speight den Duyvil, Spike & Devil, Spitting Devil, Spilling Devil, Spiten Debill and Spouting Devil, among others. Meanings come down to the physically based "Spinning Devil" or "Devil's Whirlpool" or the Anthony Van Corlaer legend based, "Spite the Devil." Spuyten Duyvil Creek was filled in in the late 19th century. The name Spuyten Duyvil currently refers to the southernmost section of Riverdale, below West 232nd Street (or below 239th Street by some definitions - though this definition is considerably less accurate.)

This neighborhood is home to The Henry Hudson Memorial Park and the Henry Hudson Bridge, which connects it to the island of Manhattan. It is also the location of the Spuyten Duyvil train station, which is served by the Hudson Line of the Metro-North Railroad.

Spuyten Duyvil is sometimes considered to be separate from Riverdale. While this may have some basis from a purely historical point of view, few would consider Spuyten Duyvil to be a wholly separate neighborhood from Riverdale.

Folklore

The tale of how Spuyten Duyvil got its name is that of folklore. Legend has it that Peter Stuyvesant, then Governor of New Amsterdam, got wind that the British Navy was going to invade the city. He dispatched Anthony Von Corlaer to ride up to the northern most point of Manhattan Island and blow his trumpet, a common means to summon the people. As he neared the shores, where the Hudson meets the Harlem River, Anthony couldn't cross. When he called out to the ferry on the other side, no one answered. He decided then, to swim across the treacherous span of water. Halfway across, legend has it that the devil pulled Anthony under and while he was able to escape his grasp, he was too tired to continue swimming and drowned there... in spite of the devil. From then on, the little area in the Bronx, where Anthony would have come to shore is called Spuyten Duyvil.

External links

* [http://www.spuytenduyvilpreschool.org/ The district's preschool]
*http://www.washington-heights.us/history/archives/spuyten_duyvil_creek_23.html
*http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/?ad=072&sh=map
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE7DD1539F937A25752C1A965958260 Another Translation]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMbfGCVPkXo Spuyten Duyvil The Movie]