From 1851, the New York and Hudson Railroad, running along the east shore of the Hudson River,
offered a connection between Manhattan and a stop at Riverdale-on-Hudson, today's 254th Street.
The ridge above the Riverdale station was filled with the estates of wealthy commuters. Greyston (1864),
Alderbrook (1880), Stonehurst (1861) and Oaklawn (1863) are mansions which survive today.
The Riverdale Historic District calls attention to the outbuildings and carriage houses of the old grand estates.
Smaller, but no less opulent houses have been built in Riverdale.
Since the Riverdale neighborhood was not a planned community, but mostly evolved from the large estates,
it has a countrified, rural feeling. Many of these wonderful Riverdale Estate homes boast spectacular views of the
Hudson River and well-manicured, private, sizable lots.
