Hell GateHell Gate
narrow channel of the East River, N.Y., between Manhattan & Queens
Origin of Hell Gatefrom Dutch Helle Gat, hell strait: from the whirlpools formerly there
A narrow channel of the East River in New York City between Manhattan and Long Island. It was named by the Dutch navigator Adriaen Block (fl. 1610-1624), who passed through it into Long Island Sound in 1614.