Landscape Information
Located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on the eastern banks of the East River, this seven-acre former industrial site honors the legacy of transgender and gay rights activist Marsha P. Johnson (1945–1992). Situated directly south of Bushwick Inlet Park and north of North 7th Street, the park is bounded by Kent Avenue to the east. Its relatively level terrain is characterized by large, open lawns and gently rolling hills, which slope gradually down toward the river.
Originally Lenape land, by the late-nineteenth century the site featured a barge dock and train yard; subsequently it included the Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal (1915–1983). The State of New York acquired the parcel in 1996, with residents using it informally until 2007, when it was conceived as East River State Park. This park was renamed for Johnson on August 24, 2020—marking what would have been her 75th birthday. From 2021 to 2022, Starr Whitehouse Landscape Architects and Planners, engaged by the city, rehabilitated the site as a memorial to the pioneering Black transgender activist who was also a key figure in the Stonewall uprising in 1969.
The main entrance on Kent Avenue offers an arcuated, iron gateway decorated with supersized wrought-iron-and-stained-glass flowers and leaves, evoking floral crowns worn frequently by Johnson. Just beyond, an allée of Kentucky coffeetrees leads visitors into the park, which contains several irregularly shaped lawns and ornamental garden spaces. Paths with brick and cobblestones wind across a landscape punctuated by deciduous shade tree groupings, remnants of the former industrial site (including decorative elements and benches made from repurposed wood), and interpretive signage about Johnson. Pre-existing elements include a dog run, playground, and three long, concrete slabs that have been repurposed for seating. At the park’s western edge, a wave-patterned mosaic leads to the shore, where borrowed views unfold of the Williamsburg Bridge and Midtown Manhattan.
