For years the local Memorial Day Parade was a big event. Hundreds of people came out to honor the veterans who fought and sometimes died defending the country. However, last […]
Tag: nyc history
Brooklyn Public Library Celebrates Walt Whitmans’ 200th Birthday
Celebrations at the Brooklyn Public Library are underway marking the legendary writer, journalist, and poet Walt Whitman’s 200th birthday. Whitman was born on 5/21/1819 and worked as a journalist for […]
New York City’s First Black Principal Sarah Tompkins Garnet Began Her Career in Williamsburg
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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, […]