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Public School 84 image

Public School 84
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Public School 84, 1931. Constructed in the last decade of the 19th century, with an additions added early in the 20th century, Public School 84 originally served the large Jewish population of Brownsville. In 1916 it was the location of the first district teachers council in the city, when faculty of more than 15 district school met to discuss their work and to present the Board of Education with issues and concerns. The school has had a number of well-known alumni, including Max Fleischer, a pioneer of animation and Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman elected to Congress (and to run for president).
Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch image

Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch
Post

Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch, ca. 1905. This simplified Beaux-Arts style structure was built in the first decade of the 20th century. Designed by architect, Arthur G. Stone, the building was erected to house the Jenkins Trust Bank. After that firm collapsed in the financial Panic of 1907 the branch was closed. In 1909 the building was sold to the Provident Loan Society, a non-profit loan firm that provided short-term cash loans, in direct competition to the shady loan sharks and pawn brokers of the day. The Loan Society moved out in the 1960s, after which the structure was occupied by various retail stores. At some point between the early 1980s and the 2007 the facade was reclad with marble tiles at the base and had a large concrete band installed over the tops of the large windows (some of which have also been bricked up). The Beaux-Arts ornamentation just under the roofline remain, as does the lovely tiled Mediterranean style roof.
Van Dyke Houses image

Van Dyke Houses
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Van Dyke Houses, ca. 1950s First known as the Brownsville Houses Extension, the Van Dyke Houses were built in 1955 as an expansion of the neighborhood's first NYCHA Public Housing project. The Houses cost 18.5 million dollars to construct and consist of 22 high-rise towers that encompass over 1,600 units. Before the end of World War II, Brownsville was a largely Jewish neighborhood. According to Wendell E. Pritchett, author of "Brownsville, Brooklyn: Blacks, Jews, and the Changing Face of the Ghetto," the New York City Housing Authority was the only city agency to give the neighborhood any attention. Public housing developments went up in predominantly Black or "changing" neighborhoods, like Fort Greene, South Bronx, and Brownsville in the late 1940s. According to Pritchett: "these areas were chosen to relieve the pressure from other neighborhoods fighting black incursion." Brownsville Houses and their extension, the Van Dyke Houses, were a poster-child for what meaningful racial integration might look like in the early 1950s. The Brownsville Houses were the first and only public housing project that was not segregated. As principal, the demographics of the Houses reflected those of the area, and tenants were about 40% Jewish and 60% Black newcomers. Pritchett described this era as a moment of a "comity of interest between Jewish and Black advocacy groups." However, the optimism about what the project meant in terms of race-relations was short-lived. By 1963, "white flight," had reached Brownsville. Working-class whites of the Van Dyke Houses enjoyed upward mobility in the post-war years and left the area after reaching economic prosperity, meanwhile newer Black residents of Brownsville were not afforded the opportunities. Just seven years after the Van Dyke Houses were completed, nearly all of the Jewish population had left and 72% of its residents were Black and15% were Puerto Rican. The Houses experienced an increase in crime and violence in the 1960s. One such event ended in a "riot call," that brought dozens of officers on the scene and led to 23 arrests. Some tenants chalked up increased disorder to roaming youths who lived in Van Dyke and targeted elderly Jewish residents, though security argued the trouble came from residents who lived nearby but not in the projects. To quell problems, NYCHA assembled a team of social workers, tenant associations, and various other community groups to work on long-term solutions and "teach understanding for others." Today, the Van Dyke Houses are part of Brooklyn's Community District 16. Of this district, 20% of its population is housed in NYCHA buildings, and Van Dyke houses over 4,000 residents.
Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library
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Stone Avenue Branch (former Brownsville Children’s Library), ca. 1915. Opened in 1914 as the Brownsville Children's Library, this Carnegie Library was established to relieve the overcrowding of the original Brownsville Carnegie at 61 Glenmore Street. Designed by William B. Tubby, the original plans for the library mirrored many of the other suburban style libraries: single-story, three-bay library with a center doorway. Instead the design was substantially changed, with the branch's first librarian, Clara H. Hunt, working with the planners to create a children's specific facility. It is believed to have been the first library in the world devoted exclusively to serving children.The branch was so popular among the largely Jewish immigrant population that nearby businesses were annoyed at the long lines of children waiting to go into the library who blocked their storefronts. The facade was rendered like a fairy tale castle, in a unique Jacobethan style with a heavy stone base and projecting tower with doorways (seen pictured here). The interior still includes wood paneling and a bench with carved bunny heads on the arm rests. A 2014 centennial renovation added new lighting and furniture, a "word wall" mural, and a life size chess set to the library which now serves all age groups.
Public School 125 image

Public School 125
Post

The first decade of the 20th century the population of Brooklyn exploded, particularly in the neighborhood of Brownsville which saw a significant influx of Jewish immigrants from the overcrowded Lower East Side. The Williamsburg Bridge opened at the end of 1903, and between 1905 and 1912 the city established four new schools in Brownsville to attempt to meet the demand of the new school-aged population. Public School 125 predated the opening of the bridge by two years but was heavily renovated in 1917 to add educational and "activity" spaces. The overcrowding never truly abated even as the demographics of the neighborhood changed by the mid-century. By the 1950s the school was predominantly African American (the nearby Brownsville Houses opened in 1948) and was over capacity by 30%. Strangely, the closing date for the school is unknown. The building long stood but was left to ruins, creating a somewhat creepy scene on Rockaway Boulevard. Scaffolding has been erected since late 2017 and work underway. As of late 2018, the work seems completed, but it is unknown what the building's use will be.

Photos(56)

Public School 60 image

Public School 60

Brooklyn: Osborn Street - Sutter Avenue Osborn Street, east side, just south of Sutter Avenue, Shown is Public School No. 6o, this being the Watkins Street side of the school Board of Ed cation of the -ity of New York Early 1930's
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

State, city, borough chiefs at housing site Three public officials posing with shovels of dirt at groundbreaking ceremony for housing project at Rockaway, Stone, and Dumont Avenues; bystanders, policeman, and other officials in background. Caption on verso: "State, City, Borough Chiefs at Housing Site: Three notables lend a hand at breaking ground for Brownsville houses. Left to right: Governor Dewey, Mayor O'Dwyer and Borough President Cashmore."
528 Stone Avenue image

528 Stone Avenue

Nursery dedicated Caption: "Nursery dedicated--New facilities for Community Day Nursery which cares for more than 50 children daily, were opened recently at Brownsville Houses, 528 Stone Ave. Participating in dedication were, left to right, Rose Raphals, director; Abe Stark, chairman; Arthur Williams, 2; Diane Cooperman, 3, \[holding doll] and Mrs. Mary Cohen, president."
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

Brooklyn after the War, no. 2 View of architectural model for housing project bounded by Rockaway, Stone, and Dumont Avenues. Caption on verso: "Brooklyn After the War, No. 2: Brownsville Housing Project, a unit of 27 buildings to be built to house 1,338 lower-income families. Development will cost $7,866,000 and cover 200,000 square feet, exclusive of parks. Buildings will be three to six stories high and contain a nursery school for the use of tenants."
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

Scene of misplaced foundation Aerial view of construction site for housing project at Rockaway, Stone, and Dumont Avenues; workers in raincoats on second floor of building in foreground; steam shovel lowering equipment to them; prominent neo-classical building amid smaller buildings in background. Caption on verso: "Scene of Misplaced Foundation: This is a general view of the $13,298,000 Brownsville Housing Project."
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

Face-lifting for Brownsville Image represented is one of a related set (HOUS 0030, HOUS 0028), some of which may also be described in this new record; Architectural rendering of housing project bounded by Rockaway, Stone, and Dumont Avenues; images identical except that 0031 has grease pencil cropping marks (others without cropping marks); 0028 and 0031 with label at bottom reading "Brownsville Houses, Brooklyn N.Y., Fred'k G. Frost, John A. Thompson, Associated Architects" (0030 without label). Caption on verso of 0031: "Face-Lifting for Brownsville: Brooklyn's first new State-aided housing project will arise in the heart of one of its most blighted areas. Brownsville houses, to be built at a cost of $8,983,700, will accommodate 1,338 low-income families."
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

Face-lifting for Brownsville Image represented is one of a related set (HOUS 0030, HOUS 0028), some of which may also be described in this new record; Architectural rendering of housing project bounded by Rockaway, Stone, and Dumont Avenues; images identical except that 0031 has grease pencil cropping marks (others without cropping marks); 0028 and 0031 with label at bottom reading "Brownsville Houses, Brooklyn N.Y., Fred'k G. Frost, John A. Thompson, Associated Architects" (0030 without label). Caption on verso of 0031: "Face-Lifting for Brownsville: Brooklyn's first new State-aided housing project will arise in the heart of one of its most blighted areas. Brownsville houses, to be built at a cost of $8,983,700, will accommodate 1,338 low-income families."
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

Face-lifting for Brownsville Image represented is one of a related set (HOUS 0030, HOUS 0028), some of which may also be described in this new record; Architectural rendering of housing project bounded by Rockaway, Stone, and Dumont Avenues; images identical except that 0031 has grease pencil cropping marks (others without cropping marks); 0028 and 0031 with label at bottom reading "Brownsville Houses, Brooklyn N.Y., Fred'k G. Frost, John A. Thompson, Associated Architects" (0030 without label). Caption on verso of 0031: "Face-Lifting for Brownsville: Brooklyn's first new State-aided housing project will arise in the heart of one of its most blighted areas. Brownsville houses, to be built at a cost of $8,983,700, will accommodate 1,338 low-income families."
320 Blake Avenue image

320 Blake Avenue

Brownsville Houses project takes shape Aerial view of construction site, with workers on roofs of three buildings at different elevations; construction sheds in foreground; apartment houses and water tower in background; snow on ground throughout. Caption on verso: "Brownsville Houses Project Takes Shape: Workmen push operations on 1,338-family project going up on site bounded by Sutter, Stone, Dumont and Rockaway Aves. View is toward Dumont Ave. When completed the development will consist of 27 three-story walkup and six-story elevator buildings. First families will probably move in by late Spring or early Summer."
First Congregational Church of New Lots image

First Congregational Church of New Lots

Brooklyn: Rockaway Avenue - Blake Avenue (1) Rockaway Ave., east side, north of Blake Ave., showing the First Congregational Church of New Lots, which was dedicated on May 31, 1869. The first services were held in June 1866, and a Sunday School was organized on July 28, 1868. Two lots 50' xY 120' were donated by G.S. Thatford. The church is 30' Y 45' and was erected at a cost of~3,500. May 1923. Eugene L. Armbruster Collection. (2) Tho same, another view. May 1923. Eugene L. Armbruster Collection.
First Congregational Church of New Lots image

First Congregational Church of New Lots

Brooklyn: Rockaway Avenue - Blake Avenue (1) Rockaway Ave., east side, at, adjoining and north of Blace Ave., showing the Rockaway Congregational Church. May 8, 1936. P. L. Sperr. (2) The saae, showing the church. May 6, 1936. P. L. Sperr. Nww~6e 2A2ANAAe .e( 22YEC 1New N(e ~7C7
Congregation Ohev Sholom image

Congregation Ohev Sholom

\[Synagogue of Congregation Ohav Sholom] Synagogue in Eastern Orthodox or Russian style at 135 Thatford Ave. in Brownsville ; group of approximately 30 people standing on stairs leading to main entrance; three-story wooden residence at right.
Public School 125 image

Public School 125

Public School 125 image

Public School 125

Public School 125 Caption: "There's stained glass in the auditorium of Public School 125 \[a large, three-story, masonry building with iron fence along front and side], Blake and Rockaway Aves., but no refrigeration for milk in the school cafeteria. A building which was constructed in 1900 to accommodate 20 classes, it now houses 30. To meet the overflow, the auditorium ... is used for some classes in the morning since the school is on three sessions;" several pedestrians, three young men riding bicycles, street light with attached street signs, and intersecting streets in foreground.
51 Belmont Avenue image

51 Belmont Avenue

\[Brownsville pushcart markets] Image represented is one of a related set (NEIG 1627), some of which may also be described in this new record; Two views, in different sizes, of a group of people at and around pushcart markets located at the intersection of Belmont Avenue and Osborne Street.
47 Belmont Avenue image

47 Belmont Avenue

\[Brownsville pushcart markets] Image represented is one of a related set (NEIG 1627), some of which may also be described in this new record; Two views, in different sizes, of a group of people at and around pushcart markets located at the intersection of Belmont Avenue and Osborne Street.
73 Belmont Avenue image

73 Belmont Avenue

Brooklyn: Watkins St. - Belmont Ave. P.L. Sperr, photographer 6-25-1942 Neg. A-736
Public School 125 image

Public School 125

Brooklyn 119, P.S. 125 (The Richard H. Dana), 264 Blake Ave; Jerry Spearman, Photographer
1 Belmont Avenue image

1 Belmont Avenue

\[Belmont Avenue and Rockaway Avenue, Brooklyn, NY] Intersection of Belmont and Rockaway Avenues, Brooklyn, NY. looking south. View of Ralph - Rockaway Line trolley tracks, storefronts, and signage. Both sides of the roadway are lined with parked automobiles.
472 Rockaway Avenue image

472 Rockaway Avenue

\[Belmont Avenue and Rockaway Avenue, Brooklyn, NY] Intersection of Belmont and Rockaway Avenues, Brownsville, Brooklyn, NY. looking north. View of Ralph - Rockaway Line trolley tracks, storefronts, and signage. Mirsky's Bros. famous boys clothing store on right at beginning of the Belmont Avenue outdoor market. Both sides of the roadway are lined with parked automobiles. A departing trolley is visible in the distance.
Van Dyke Houses image

Van Dyke Houses

Van Dyke Houses View of portion of Van Dyke Houses apartment complex in the final stages of construction, in Brownsville, with makeshift wood fence and portion of parked automobile in foreground.
210 Chester Street image

210 Chester Street

New school for Brownsville Architectural rendering: caption: "New school for Brownsville--The new Col. David Marcus \[later renamed Esther Clarke Hunter] Junior H. S. will start going up at Sutter ave. and Chestnut \[Chester] St. around the end of the year. The T-shaped school, to be known numerically as Junior H. S. 263 ... will cost an estimated $2,900,000."
230 Blake Avenue image

230 Blake Avenue

\[Pentecostal church.] Pentecostal church (spanish) on Blake Avenue (at #230) on south side of avenue betw. Chester Street and/ Bristol Street.
230 Blake Avenue image

230 Blake Avenue

\[S.E. corner of Blake Avenue.] S.E. corner of Blake Avenue (left) and Bristol Street.
167 Bristol Street image

167 Bristol Street

Brownsville P. O. dedicated Caption: "Brownsville P. O. dedicated--Postmaster Edward J. Quigley dedicates Brownsville's new postal station at 167 Bristol St. while community leaders look on. The station replaces an old building at 321 Thatford Ave. Shown, left to right, are Abe Stark, Brownsville Boys Club president; Borough Secretary Joseph Reich (partially hidden), who represented Borough President Cashmore; Joseph Asquith, president of the Pitkin Ave. Merchants Association; Quigley \[standing at microphone], and Assistant Postmaster Jeremiah M. O'Brien."
Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library

Children's Branch Library, top floor, Brownsville.
Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library

Bunny Bench
Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library

Brooklyn 118, Stone Ave. Library, 581 Stone Ave; Jerry Spearman, Photographer
Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library

Children's Branch Library, mantel in main room, Brownsville.
Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library image

Stone Avenue Branch, Brooklyn Public Library

61 Glenmor Avenue at Watkins Avenue. Brownsville Public Library, Children's Branch.
Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch image

Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch

Provident Loan Society. Brownsville Branch interior.
Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch image

Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch

Possibly 24 Graham Avenue. Provident Loan Company, Brownsville branch, exterior.
Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch image

Provident Loan Company, Brownsville Branch

Possibly 24 Graham Avenue. Provident Loan Company, Brownsville branch, interior.
Samuel J. Tilden Houses image

Samuel J. Tilden Houses

Samuel J. Tilden Houses, Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York City Housing Authority The Samuel J. Tilden Houses was designed by Hyman Isaac Feldman and was a project under the New York City Housing Authority for which Poy Gum Lee was a project advisor/supervising architect. Text: Samuel J. Tilden Houses, Project N.Y. 5-34 \ Brooklyn New York \ Public Housing Administration \ New York City Housing Authority \ H. I. Feldman Architect
Pitkin Avenue Bath image

Pitkin Avenue Bath

Public Bath located on the south side of Pitkin Avenue west of Watkins Street, Brooklyn, architect Louis H. Voss.
147 Christopher Avenue image

147 Christopher Avenue

Want your house painted fast? Caption: "Want your house painted fast?--The temporary quarters of the Brownsville Boys Club at 147 Christopner Ave. needed painting badly. The club issued a call for volunteers. The union painters who responded are shown doing the two room job in 35 minutes."
192 Powell Street image

192 Powell Street

A Brownsville Street Scene - Looking Up Belmont Avenue Toward Powell Street.
1711 Pitkin Avenue image

1711 Pitkin Avenue

\[Kishke King Delicatessen] Image represented is one of a related set (NEIG 0278), some of which may also be described in this new record; Two snapshots of Kishke King Delicatessen located at the intersection of Pitkin Avenue and Thatford Avenue. Both images include pedestrians.
1711 Pitkin Avenue image

1711 Pitkin Avenue

\[Kishke King Delicatessen] Image represented is one of a related set (NEIG 0278), some of which may also be described in this new record; Two snapshots of Kishke King Delicatessen located at the intersection of Pitkin Avenue and Thatford Avenue. Both images include pedestrians.
1795 Pitkin Avenue image

1795 Pitkin Avenue

953 Stone Avenue. State Bank, Brownsville Branch.
FDNY 231 image

FDNY 231

Brooklyn: Watkins St. - Pitkin Ave. P.L. Sperr, photographer 6-25-1942 Neg. A-756
FDNY 231 image

FDNY 231

1795 Pitkin Avenue image

1795 Pitkin Avenue

State Bank View of the Brownsville Branch of State Bank. The exact location is unknown. The image includes several pedestrians.
FDNY 231 image

FDNY 231

Brooklyn 115, Engine Co. \_231, 107 Watkins St; Jerry Spearman, Photographer
Teachers Preparatory School image

Teachers Preparatory School

Brooklyn: Blake Avenue - Bristol Street
583 Thomas S Boyland Street image

583 Thomas S Boyland Street

\[East side of Hopkinson Avenue.] East side of Hopkinson Avenue, looking north toward S.E. corner of Sutter Avenue and Hopkinson Avenue (betw. Blake Avenue + Sutter Avenue).
355 CHESTER STREET image

355 CHESTER STREET

Wang, Vivian. 2023.
355 CHESTER STREET image

355 CHESTER STREET

Google Maps, 2022.
Sutter Avenue and Thomas S Boyland Street (Hopkinson Avenue) image

Sutter Avenue and Thomas S Boyland Street (Hopkinson Avenue)

\[S.E. corner of Sutter Avenue.] S.E. corner of Sutter Avenue (left) and Hopkinson Avenue.
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