| Welcome to The New York Fishing Club (NYFC), one of several sports and leisure clubs on Staten Island, NY at the start of the twentieth century. Located on a piece of waterfront property at the foot of Joline Avenue in Tottenville, the NYFC’s house (“one of the prettiest” on Staten Island according to an article in The New York Times written in 1898) sat on a fresh water lagoon, separated from the salt water by a sand bar. This setup gave the members of the NYFC the choice of fishing in either type of water - blackfish, bluefish, flounder, porgies and weakfish were the usual catches-of-the-day. Keep in mind, the water between the coast of New Jersey and Staten Island (the Kills) and Raritan Bay was once cleaner than now and was enjoyed by swimmers, boaters and anglers; many residents of other parts of New York City and state who viewed Staten Island as a beautiful playground, an easy escape by ferry. Come back soon for stories, history, recipes and more. This site is a work in progress. | ![Maurice Fitzgerald's Fleet of Boats Great Kills, Staten Island, N.Y. [fishing boats off shore.]](http://images.nypl.org/?id=104450&t=r "View Enlarged Image")
Fleet of Fishing Boats![Beach at Tottenville, Staten Island, N.Y. [shoreline with person and short dock]](http://images.nypl.org/?id=104462&t=r "View Enlarged Image")
Beach at Tottenville
All images courtesy of the NYPL - Staten Island in Vintage Postcards collection |