by Geoff Cobb 
Things have changed a lot over the years on Norman Avenue, but Scandinavian influence remains. It is highly ironic that two Scandinavian cutting edge entrepreneurs have just opened their modern, ultra trendy, design center-restaurant Norman (29 Norman Ave) on a street named for the first Greenpointer, fellow Scandinavian, Dirck Volckertszen, the Norwegian immigrant who built the area’s first…
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Greenpointers has covered Greenpoint & Williamsburg since 2007 — community boards, rezoning fights, local businesses, and the people whose lives and work give the neighborhood its character. Local news is collapsing across the country, but we're still here: independently owned, no corporate backing, no paywall. 18+ years, 280k+ monthly readers and followers, funded by the community we serve.
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I lived at 59 Norman Ave the house you mentioned was beautiful set back with a gate .
I grew up at 69 Norman ave. A beautiful. Building with its rounded Windows . lots of good memories!
Neat article! Dirck Volckertszen is my great-great-great-etcetera grandfather =)
Geoff wish you have mentioned the Apartment complex on Norman (Jewell – Moultrie) commonly known as the Inkies.. I’m sure there was some great history in there.
Dirick is my 7th great grandfather and I come through James Fulkerson and William Brown Fulkerson and Mary Whiteside Fulkerson their son Lafayette Armstrong Fulkerson is my great grandfather I am going this fall to Kansas and find William and Mary’s grave I have great story on Mary but would like one on William if anyone has any stories on William my email is [email protected] let me know I have read anything in could on the Fulkerson family live the history
I cannot let the charming history of this part of Greenpoint pass without a retort to the naive question of why the beautiful public library was torn down. This was because the building had so badly deteriorated that there was no choice. The real question is why the building wasn’t continuously repaired as needed. I grew up in GreenPoint at 523 Leonard St and went to PS 34
I was at 68 Norman. across the street was a building sporting dual large italianate chimneys. I seemed much older than the surrounding buildings and more substantial. it was on the odd side of the street at the corner of norman and lorimer.
any info on that? is it still standing.
i was born in 68 norman avenue. we were told that the house was originally designed to be brick but the outbreak of the civil war derailed that and it was finished in wood. This suggests a much earlier date of building than commonly ascribed.