page_title: Tottenville, Staten Island
section_title: 20th century
hierarchical_section_title: Tottenville, Staten Island / History / 20th century
caption_attribution_description: English: Looking north in en:Tottenville, Staten Island at en:Arthur Kill marina with en:Outerbridge Crossing in background on a sunny early afternoon
context_page_description: Tottenville is a neighborhood on the South Shore of Staten Island, New York City. It is the southernmost settlement in both New York City and New York State. Tottenville is bounded on three sides by water: the south side abuts New York Bight while the west and north sides are bordered by Arthur Kill and the New Jersey state border. The eastern boundary is formed by Richmond Valley Road and Richard Avenue.
  Originally named Bentley Manor by one of its first settlers, Captain Christopher Billop, after a small ship he owned named the Bentley, the district was renamed Tottenville in 1869, apparently in honor of John Totten and the locally prominent Totten family, whose name can be seen on tombstones in one of the earliest churches, Bethel Methodist Church, on Amboy Road. Several Totten family members were Loyalists during the American Revolution and served under Captain Christopher Billopp.
  Tottenville is part of Staten Island Community District 3 and its ZIP Codes are 10307 and 10309. Tottenville is patrolled by the 123rd Precinct of the New York City Police Department. Tottenville has been represented in the New York State Senate by Andrew Lanza since 2007.
context_section_description: Many small factories once dotted the neighborhood's western shoreline, but most are no longer in operation. Boat construction also once flourished along the shoreline, but the industry was rendered obsolete in 1900 when boats began being constructed of steel rather than wood. World War I spawned a revival of shipbuilding activity, but it proved only temporary, and Tottenville's last shipyard closed in 1930. Another activity formerly prominent in Tottenville was the harvesting of oysters from the surrounding waters. This practice ceased in 1916 when the New York City Health Department determined that pollution made it unsafe. As of 2005, oyster harvesting has since been reopened.
  Until the late 1950s, Tottenville 8 was one of the two telephone exchanges on the island with operators.  The other was Honeywood 6.  When dial service arrived, they were combined to become YUkon 4.
  During the 1990s, the section of Tottenville southeast of Hylan Boulevard, until then nearly uninhabited, saw massive new home construction. The district's population density and crime rate still rank among the lowest in New York City. Until the 2000s, commercial development had largely been restricted to the Main Street corridor in the heart of the neighborhood. A second commercial core began to emerge at the north end of the community along Page Avenue and west of Amboy Road at this time.  Further expansion on the neighborhood's north end was seen in 2005 with the redevelopment of the old Nassau Smelting plant. Site clean up began in October 2006, and was scheduled to be finished within a year. The site had suffered chemical contamination, as it was principally used to recycle copper and other metals from old wires. Mill Creek, which runs through the site, was also scheduled to be cleaned as part of the project.
  Tottenville Beach was largely undeveloped until the 1990s. It is exclusively residential, and is bordered on the south and west by Conference House Park. While the beach that the area is named for is not popular with swimmers or sunbathers, it is a popular place for fishing. Several hotels dotted the shoreline in the area during the first half of the 20th century, including the Shore House Hotel. The Coral Bay Cafe restaurant operated there but was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy.
caption: A view of Arthur Kill, the waterway between Staten Island and the New Jersey mainland,, the Outerbridge Crossing is in the background
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