the opportunity to redevelop the island, but the plans were cancelled while still preliminary. The ruins of Fort Slocum continued to occupy Davids Island into the beginning of the 21st century and were among the factors complicating redevelopment of the island. Beginning in 2004, however, Congress appropriated funds to remove the ruins through a Defense Department program that assists communities in reusing former defense facilities. During the summer of 2008, the city of New Rochelle demolished all remaining structures on the island, including the iconic water tower on the northern end of the island, with plans to turn the island into a park. Gallery See also Hart Island, Bronx List of Civil War POW Prisons and Camps References External links Citizens Campaign for the Environment page about Davids Island Saving Davids Island: An Activist History Michael Cavanaugh's Fort Slocum page Historic Pelham blog entry, including entire text of a September 11, 1862, The New York Times article about the soldiers hospital on Davids Island "A Blast from the Past", by Tito Rosario, Ft. Slocum Brat 1962 to 1965 Islands of Westchester County, New York Long Island Sound Geography of New Rochelle, New York American Civil War hospitals Uninhabited islands of New York (state) Islands of New York (state)