March is Women’s History Month when we celebrate the achievements of North Brooklyn’s greatest women. Sarah Tompkins Garnet was not only the first black woman to serve as a […]
Tag: brooklyn history
Posted in(Not)Forgotten Greenpoint
Williamsburg’s Forgotten Great Abolitionist Editor: Willis Hodges
Last week I spoke about Brooklyn’s great poet Walt Whitman who served as the editor of Williamsburg’s Brooklyn Daily News in the late 1850s, but I also mentioned the name […]
Posted inUncategorized
Greenpoint’s Adam ‘Babyface’ Kownacki Follows Local Boxing Tradition
Recently, heavyweight boxer Adam ‘Babyface’ Kownacki has generated a lot of local excitement. The Polish-born, but Greenpoint bred, Konwacki is 19- 0 in his professional career. A huge contingent of […]
Posted in(Not)Forgotten Greenpoint
The Unlikley Story Behind Williamsburg’s Washington Statue
These last bone-chilling, frigid days have been hard to bear, but these freezing days have reminded me of the horrible cold the Continental Army endured during the darkest moments of […]
Posted in(Not)Forgotten Greenpoint
Walt Whitman’s Writing About North Brooklyn
For most of us when we think about Brooklyn’s greatest poet Walt Whitman we think about his poetry and not about his prose. However, Whitman like many creative people today […]
Posted inCulture
Historic Documents Highlight Local History of Slavery
It’s February and Black History Month has started, a time when we recall the huge African-American contribution to our country. Ask many educated New Yorkers and you may find that […]
Posted inCommunity
157th Anniversary of USS Monitors’ Greenpoint Launch
Today marks the 157 year anniversary of Jan 30th, 1862, the day Greenpoint staked its claim in history as the site where the ironclad USS Monitor was built and […]
Posted in(Not)Forgotten Greenpoint
New Artists Revive Greenpoint’s First Industry
Long before Greenpoint had the shipbuilding, oil refining or sugar refining industries, ceramicists had established Greenpoint as America’s first ceramic capital and it is more than a little ironic […]
Posted in(Not)Forgotten Greenpoint
Dangerous Immigrants and Deportations? Not Trump’s America, but Greenpoint 100 Years Ago!
Sign for Long Gone Russian People’s Home on Clay Street The more things change the more they seem to stay the same. Today’s headlines feature stories about dangerous immigrants on […]
Posted in(Not)Forgotten Greenpoint
Where Do The Names of Williamsburg Streets Come From?
The longest street in Brooklyn and the road that runs through the heart of Williamsburg is Bedford Avenue. The 10.19 mile-long street got its name from the village of Bedford, […]