04/14/2026
Hunts Point is a South Bronx neighborhood located on a peninsula that juts out into the East River. Its strategic location has shaped its history. Initially, Native Americans belonging to the Wapinger peoples inhabited the area before European colonization. They likely were attracted by the saltwater marsh of the peninsula that was especially attractive for fishing.
The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries brought European colonization. English settlers founded estates. Thomas Hunt Jr, for whom the peninsula is named, inherited his land from his father-in-law who was one of the very first colonizers. Hunt built a stone house on the property and called it "The Grange". During colonial times, settlers mostly farmed the area, some with the labor of African slaves. Hunts Point then became the home or second home of the wealthy in the later part of the nineteenth century. Among the families that lived here were the Spoffords, the Failles, the Willetts, the Whitlocks, the Foxes, the Tiffanys and the Leggetts. Hunts Point residents will recognize the legacy of these families in existing street names.
Like much of the Bronx, Hunts Point became a haven for European immigrants during the first part of the 20th century. Spanish speaking Caribbean arrivals came in the later part of the century.
When the Hunts Point Cooperative Market and Food Distribution Center opened in the 1960's, Hunts Point would be changed forever. Today, it is the world's largest food distribution center. If you have eaten any meat, fish, or produce in the NYC metropolitan area, you have no doubt eaten food that has passed though Hunts Point.
Today, Hunts Point appears to have two distinct areas. The northwest section appears residential with apartment buildings and houses. The southeast seems mostly industrial with the market and several auto related businesses.
The Bronx County Historical Society
