Tompkinsville-Stapleton-Clifton-Fox Hills

Understanding Tompkinsville-Stapleton-Clifton-Fox Hills

Stapleton developed in the nineteenth century as a commercial center, with brewing supported by local spring water. Tappen Park began as its public village square, and the old Edgewater Village Hall remains in the park.

Lyons Pool was built during the Works Progress Administration era. Its Art Moderne design, campanile and sun deck connect the shore neighborhood with the city’s large 1930s public-pool program.

Clifton began in 1835 as a planned shorefront suburb laid out by the Staten Island Association. Ferry access encouraged new settlements along the northeast shore, and their development soon blurred earlier dividing lines. That suburban history differs from Stapleton’s village square and brewing center.

Parks traces Fox Hills through an estate and golf course, a military hospital, and later housing. Older accounts overlap with Clifton and Park Hill, reflecting changing land uses rather than identical present boundaries.

Reverend Hattie Smith-Davis and the Fox Hills Tenants Association helped secure restoration funding for Eibs Pond in 1999. The named viewing area records community work to improve the ponds and woods after decades of neglect.

Places to explore

• Tappen Park

  Stapleton village center

  Look at the former Edgewater Village Hall and surviving brick mixed-use streets around the public square. Their exterior setting shows the former village’s civic and commercial center; no interior access to the old hall is established.

• Lyons Pool exterior

  Tompkinsville, separate pool destination

  Choose the building’s modernist exterior for the public-works story. Swimming and recreation-center programs require current seasonal or membership information.

• De Matti Park

  Tompkins Avenue between Chestnut Street and Shaughnessy Lane

  This neighborhood play space opened through the city's 1934 war memorial fund. Choose the outdoor courts or play areas; the recreation center's hours and programs are a separate check.

• Eibs Pond Park and Hattie’s Grove

  Nearby, Hanover Avenue south of Palma Drive, in the separate Rosebank–Shore Acres–Park Hill map area

  The official trail guide starts at Hanover Avenue and reaches a pond viewing deck named for Hattie Smith-Davis. Parts of the trail can be wet and use wooden planks. Choose the marked paths with suitable footwear; this is not a step-free trail recommendation.