Inspiration Point Shelter, on Henry Hudson Parkway at 190th Street, opened in 1925 as a resting place for pedestrians and leisure drivers. Designed by architect Gustave Steinacher in 1924, the neoclassical sitting area opened a year later and quickly became a favorite of Hudson River tourists. It was a stopping point for drivers and walkers along the Riverside Drive, and at one point, wrote Christopher Gray in his 1989 book Changing New York: The Architectural Scene, the structure originally had bathrooms and a roof. But after Robert Moses built the Henry Hudson Parkway in the 1930s, Inspiration Point was cut off from the rest of Manhattan — and it began decades of decline. The city renovated the structure soon after Gray’s book was published — although the bathrooms and the roof were permanently done away with. It remains under the control of the Parks Department. A short ride further north and one can see the remains of the Cornelius Billings Estate, the grand stone gallery that once marked the beginning of the 1600 ft long drive to the main house (see p. 5, The New York Times, Jan 11, 2009) is now accessible from Ft. Tryon Park.
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