The Bronx · Bronx County
Ranaqua Park
NYC Parks
- Location
- East 136th Street between Brown Place and Willis Avenue, Mott Haven
- Size
- 0.97 acres
- Hours
- Dawn to dusk
- Type
- NYC Parks
Ranaqua Park, also known as Ranaqua Playground, is a small neighborhood playground in the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx, on East 136th Street between Brown Place and Willis Avenue. Its name comes from 'Ranaqua,' a Reckgawank (Lenape) word meaning 'End Place,' the name of the peninsula sold to the Dutch settler Jonas Bronck in 1639, whose name the borough carries.
The same name was given to the NYC Parks Bronx headquarters in Bronx Park, a Works Progress Administration building opened in 1937, reflecting the historical resonance of the Lenape name across the borough.
The playground features a synthetic turf field, a spray shower for hot summer days, and accessible play equipment with swings and safety surfacing, serving families in the surrounding Mott Haven community.
Mott Haven, named for the 19th-century industrialist Jordan Mott whose iron works stood along the Harlem River, has become one of the most rapidly changing neighborhoods in the Bronx, with new development alongside its longtime working-class community.
Ranaqua Park provides everyday recreation space for Mott Haven families, a small but valued green space in one of the densest and fastest-changing parts of the South Bronx.