• 16th Infantry Regiment, Fort Jay, New York City, 1938.

    Governors Island

    National Monument New York

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  • Phone number change

    Due to Hurricane Sandy, our phone service was disrupted. The temporary information number for the park is now via cell phone at 646-241-2670. Other contact information can be found at www.nps.gov/gois/contacts.htm More »

People

History really comes alive to us when we read or hear about another person's experience. Understanding what people heard, saw and felt, even if they lived a long time ago, helps make the past more than just a series of dates and place names. On this section of our Web site, you can delve deeper into the stories of some of the individuals who lived and worked on Governors Island, and shaped its history. Click on the links on the left to read more.
 
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Augustus Meyer, one of the students in Governors Island's Army Field Music School

Did You Know?

General George Grunert led the Army's investigation into the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

George Grunert (1881-1971) joined the U.S. Army during the Spanish-American War in 1898 as a private and retired 47 years later a lieutenant general. When he retired at Fort Jay 1945, he had commanded the U.S. First Army before it left for Normandy, and the Eastern Defense Command which protected the East Coast from enemy attack. In retirement, he led a full investigation into the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.