Discover the lost New York beach at the Twin Towers

Recently, an astonishing image appeared on my phone screen – a captivating photograph of the Twin Towers in Manhattan, with a picturesque beach prominently featured in the foreground.

Individuals were relaxing on the sand, as if they were in a tropical paradise. But could this truly be the case?

New York City’s overlooked beach sanctuary

Today, if one takes a walk along the waters near Battery Park, in the vicinity of the former Twin Towers, it is nearly inconceivable to envision that a beach once graced the shoreline.

Currently, the area is adorned with modern buildings and lively streets, filled with the sounds of the city. The water gently laps against a contemporary promenade, providing views of the Statue of Liberty in the distance.

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However, the reality is that people once sunbathed in this location, enjoying the warmth of the sun and the shadows cast by the World Trade Center. This forgotten beach sanctuary, with its own sandy shore, offered a rare escape from the city’s hustle and bustle, where the waters of Manhattan’s harbor welcomed those in search of tranquility.

This sandy retreat, however, was not part of any grand design – it emerged as an accidental oasis due to construction delays of the World Trade Center in the mid-1970s.
Not intended for public access
As the substantial foundation for the Twin Towers was being developed, workers excavated earth from the nearby basin, inadvertently creating a temporary beach along the waterfront.

Although it was not intended for public use, residents of Manhattan quickly adopted it as their own, transforming it into an unexpected getaway. Sunbathers enjoyed the sun’s warmth, volleyball games flourished in the sand, and readers found their serene spot by the water, all beneath the towering presence of the World Trade Center.

What began as a construction site evolved into a hidden treasure, and the stretch of sand became known as Battery Park Beach.

Remarkably, there are still individuals who recall the experience of bathing at that beach, one of whom is Suellen Epstein. Having grown up in the nearby Tribeca neighborhood, she is depicted in the photograph below, basking in the summer sun in 1977.

In a conversation with Tribeca Citizen, Suellen recounted her memories of the beach, mentioning that the sand was not the soft, fine variety typically found on tropical shores. Instead, it was somewhat coarse and, naturally, it was never caressed by the ocean waves.

Nevertheless, it served its purpose.

“We didn’t have the means to travel to the Hamptons,” Suellen explained to Tribeca Citizen, adding, “We spent our sunny Sundays at the beach—provided it wasn’t raining. It was an excellent way to enjoy the entire Sunday Times.”

In the image above, Suellen and her boyfriend relished a rare moment of tranquility. On the day the photograph was taken, the beach was entirely theirs.

“You felt as though you were not in the city—like it was the countryside of Manhattan,” Suellen reminisced.

Hosting the largest anti-nuclear demonstration in history
The extensive landfill that ultimately transformed into the beach served not only as a serene getaway but also as a significant platform for social activism. An iconic black-and-white photograph, captured on September 23, 1979, depicts a sandy expanse that evolved into the epicenter of a monumental anti-nuclear demonstration.

Numerous individuals gathered on the sand, enjoying the sunny weather, live music, and a wave of controversy that attracted 200,000 participants to the southern tip of Manhattan for what would be recognized as the largest anti-nuclear, pro-solar demonstration in history.

The day was made memorable not only by the sheer number of attendees but also by the presence of celebrities who supported the cause. Notable figures such as Pete Seeger and Jackson Browne performed, while Jane Fonda delivered an impassioned address.

This rally signified a resurgence of the national protest movement, which had diminished following the conclusion of the Vietnam War in 1975.

The focus had shifted to nuclear energy, with the impetus for this revitalized movement stemming from the nuclear incident in Harrisburg earlier that same year.

Dynamic installations
Battery Park Beach, also known as Tribeca Beach, functioned as a vibrant creative venue, filled with performances and artistic expression. Numerous small dance companies flourished, and artists found it feasible to live and work in the city. During this period, the public arts organization Creative Time received funding to introduce art to the beach, including a striking installation by local environmental artist Mary Miss.

In 1980, the beach hosted Art on the Beach, providing a distinctive opportunity for emerging sculptor Nancy Rubins to leave her mark on this unique site. At the age of 27, she was captivated by the vastness of the location and the engineering that supported it. She created a piece constructed from discarded materials such as lampshades, hoses, and small appliances, which she collected in bulk from various Goodwill stores.

Her artwork ultimately took the form of a 45-foot-tall whirlwind of refuse.

“It was incredibly humbling to work at that scale.”

Today, we know what they couldn’t have: the tragic fate of the World Trade Center, a fate that would forever change the landscape of New York City.

There’s a certain elegiac and unsettling quality to these photos now. One person, reflecting on the images, noted, “My God! This picture contains it all: life, death, youth, age, stillness, anticipation.”

It’s hard not to feel the weight of that sentiment. These sunbathers, so carefree in their moment, couldn’t have imagined the horror that would unfold years later.

“So much could be said,” another continued. “But I’ll just look, and cry.”

And as we look at these now-iconic images, we’re reminded of the eerie truth: time marches on, and with it, everything changes — often in ways we never see coming.