Union League Club, ca. 1885. The Union League was an off-shoot of the Union Club, one of New York's oldest and most prestigious social clubs. The Union League was founded by supporters of the Union side during the Civil War. Its original building was in Manhattan on 26th Street, but chapters soon opened in a number of eastern cities. The Brooklyn chapter was founded in 1887 and in 1891 it moved into a brand new Romanesque Revival building on Dean and Bedford Streets. The red brick and brownstone building was imposing with large arched entranceways and a tall tower at the corner (which has since been removed). The large equestrian statue of President Grant that sits across the street from the entrance was commissioned and erected by the League.

ca. 1938 This two-story, wood-frame school was Public School 3, later known as Old Public School 3. The school was founded in 1855. The Board of Education was able to replace the school and move it to the site of Public School 3 on Jefferson and Hancock Avenues. The Old Public School was converted into a library in 1897 through a contribution of $1.6 million from Andrew Carnegie.

Clinton Hill's namesake avenue was once known as the Gold Coast of Brooklyn. Oil tycoons and baking powder magnates built lavish mansions here in the late 1800s. Charles Pratt, who kicked off the architectural gold rush, founded the Pratt Institute just a few blocks from his home. Clinton Hill was also home to Mollie Fancher, AKA “The Brooklyn Enigma,” who was famous for spending 50 years in bed. The Enigma was said to see through walls, read books by touching them, and survive on minuscule amounts of food. During one seven-month period, she reportedly consumed only “four teaspoons of milk, two teaspoons of wine, one small banana, and one cracker.” In 1967, Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe moved into an apartment on the second floor of a townhouse on 160 Hall Street with walls smeared with blood and psychotic scribbling, an oven crammed with discarded syringes, and a refrigerator overrun with mold. They paid $80 a month. Today, that same townhouse rents for $8,000 a month—used syringes not included. Clinton Hill was also where Biggie Smalls, one of the greatest rappers of all time, grew up. He was raised in a “one-room shack” by his mom at 226 St. James Place.

Church of the Nativity, ca. 1941. The Church of the Nativity was built in 1915 by Raymond Almirall who, over the course of his career, designed many hospitals, libraries, and buildings for the Catholic Church in Brooklyn. The building's design references those of the early churches of Italy, with running arches, classical columns, and a very early Christian basilica style interior. In its earliest days, the Church of the Nativity served the area's large Irish Catholic population. While there was little mixing with Germans and Italians, the church was known to turn other ethnic Catholics groups away. In 1921, Rev. Bernard Quinn, who had spent his career petitioning for a church where black and white Catholics could worship together, built St. Peter Claver Church only three blocks away. His service became so popular that it drew people from all over Brooklyn, including the Church of the Nativity. With time, St. Peter Claver continued to grow and the Church of the Nativity began to shrink. Finally, in 1973, the diocese closed the Nativity and merged its congregation with St. Peter Claver. By the turn of the twenty-first century, the parish sold the church to a Pentecostal church, Elim Gospel Tabernacle, which still occupies the space today. The Elim congregation considered the Catholic iconography in the building to be a "heathen," and tore down anything that was overtly Catholic. As such, the Almirall Church that stands today is only Catholic on the exterior!

Bedford Branch, August 24, 1941. The Bedford Library was the first branch of the Brooklyn Public Library system, which opened in 1897. It was originally housed in a series of non-purpose built structures, including the old P.S. 3 on Bedford Avenue. Between 1904 and 1905 a new Carnegie Library building was constructed to the designs of the architectural firm of Lord & Hewlett, who designed seven of the Carnegies in total. Similar to other "suburban" style libraries, Bedford is set back from the street, surrounded by a small lawn, and rendered in a Classical Revival style of red brick with simple limestone ornamentation. The lampposts visible flanking the entrance in this 1941 photograph have been restored.

"The building formerly housing the exclusive Lincoln Club of Brooklyn is a striking Queen Anne style structure designed in 1889 by Brooklyn based architect Rudolph L. Daus. The club is located in the Clinton Hill area, once the home of some of Brooklyn’s wealthiest citizens. It is one of a number of large, sumptuous clubhouses erected in Brooklyn in the last two decades of the 19th century, and it is one of the few to retain its architectural integrity. Founded in 1878 by a small group of men who banded together for social purposes and to further the interests of the Republican Party, the Lincoln Club was dissolved in 1931 as many of Brooklyn’s elite moved away."

New Yorkers have seen many changes in voting patterns, locations and technology through the years that echo some of the same challenges we confront today. As election day approaches, we look at election stories from years past and where they happened in the city.

Nostrand Avenue at Fulton Street, August 11, 1950. The Nostrand Avenue Line trolley tracks are visible at center on Nostrand. Traveling along Fulton Street is a bus manufactured by the General Motors Corporation. This was a GM "old-look" bus (compared to the “new-look” or “fishbowl” buses that were introduced in 1959). These vehicles, produced mostly between 1940 and 1959, were created with a monocoque (or structural skin) design, rather than a body-on-frame design, were diesel-powered, and had smaller windows than many of the buses produced after 1950. Some have compared the shape of this bus to a loaf of sandwich bread.

Former Union League Club, General Grant Statue 19 Grant Square Designed by Peter J. Lauritzen, 1890 William Ordway Partridge, 1896 This handsome Romanesque Revival style building was constructed as a social club for the Union League, established in 1863 by Union supporters and members of Brooklyn’s Republican Party. The Grant Square façade abounds in Union iconography, most significantly in the brownstone busts of Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant above the entrance arches and a grand eagle supporting the second floor bay window. The building’s rich terra cotta trim includes a plethora of Byzantine leaf, popular in the 1880s and 1890s. The structure’s roofline suffered major alterations in the 1970s, including the removal of Spanish tiles, a turreted observation tower, and a gabled roof with a large dormer. In the early 20th century, after the boroughs were consolidated, the club merged with the Manhattan branch. In 1914, the building became home to a Jewish organization called the Unity Club until 1943, and was subsequently converted to a Yeshiva. The building currently houses the Bhraggs Grant Square Senior Citizens’ Center. The Union League Club commissioned the bronze statue of Grant that sits within the adjacent square, and donated it to the city in 1896, when it was unveiled on Grant’s birthday. The Former Union League Club of Brooklyn and General Grant statue are located within the Crown Heights North Historic District and State and National Register of Historic Places Crown Heights North Historic District.

Described in the Crown Heights North Historic District designation report as “among Brooklyn’s most architecturally distinguished areas” and a “showcase for the work of architects who played an important role in Brooklyn’s development”, the neighborhood as a feast for the eyes. Its magnificent and varied residential architecture is peppered with grand religious and institutional buildings, and anchored by the picturesque Brower Park. The neighborhood’s northern and southern boundaries are Atlantic Avenue and Eastern Parkway, but its western and eastern boundaries are up for debate, though many consider them to be Washington Avenue and Ralph Avenue, respectively. The area’s three historic districts were designated between 2007 and 2015, and this story highlights some of the treasures found within and nearby those districts. The neighborhood’s transition from farmland to suburban enclave began in 1854 with the auction of land parcels by the area’s principal landowner, the Lefferts family. At that time, this area was known as the village of Bedford, a name it retained for some time. The area’s epic transformation over the ensuing half century was enabled by a series of major transportation improvements. The first was the introduction of stagecoach and horsecar service between Fulton Ferry and Bedford, which inspired the construction of freestanding villas on the Lefferts parcels. With the announcement of the new Brooklyn Bridge, to be completed in 1883, speculative rowhouse construction began as early as the 1870s, but dramatically increased after the Kings County Elevated Railway was completed along Fulton Street in 1888. It is this latter wave of development that most strongly characterizes the neighborhood’s architectural significance today. When the subway reached the area in 1920, apartment building construction increased to accommodate a growing commuter population. Around 1890, the area north of Sterling Place became known as the “St. Marks District”, but the moniker was short-lived, as many of the wealthy residents of St. Marks Avenue had moved away and their mansions demolished by 1920. Grant Square was also one of the most prestigious sections of Brooklyn at the turn of the century, second only to Grand Army Plaza in importance due to the prominent institutions on its borders, including the Union League Club, St. Bartholomew’s Church, and the 23rd Regiment Armory. The name “Crown Heights” was used starting around 1910 to describe the area south of Eastern Parkway. The area north of the parkway was called “Bedford” well into the 20th century, since the area was considered part of Bedford-Stuyvesant. However, “Crown Heights” gained traction with its white population in the mid-20th century as a way to differentiate itself from Bedford-Stuyvesant, which many began to consider a black ghetto. While historians often refer to Crown Heights “North” and “South” due to their demographic, architectural, topographical, and historical differences, most do not make this distinction even today. During its boom years, the population of Crown Heights North was of mainly European descent. By the mid-20th century, African- and Caribbean-Americans began to make up a significant portion of the population due to the 1936 opening of the Independent (IND) subway line, which provided direct access from Harlem, the center of the city’s black population. By the 1960s, Crown Heights had the largest Caribbean-American population in the city, and by the 1990s, was known as a major Caribbean-American hub in the entire country. Today, the neighborhood is changing yet again, with populations shifting as a result of rising rents throughout the city.

The Bedford-Stuyvesant community in northwest Brooklyn is a residential area, home to ornate rows of brownstones, early middle-class apartment buildings and several institutional structures. Bedford-Stuyvesant is characterized by its wide, tree-covered avenues and low-scale residences; generally only church spires and school towers rise taller than four stories. The majority of the buildings were constructed on speculation to house New York’s growing middle class, generally between 1870 and 1920. As late as 1869, Bedford-Stuyvesant was largely rural, with only some country houses and frame dwellings. In 1872 masonry rowhouses appeared when developer Curtis L. North commissioned 23 Italianate style rowhouses. From this point until the 1890s, development proceeded with many speculative builders and investors employing local architects to build residences; schools, churches and other institutions also appeared to serve the growing community. The Brooklyn Bridge opened in 1883, followed by the elevated line along Bedford-Stuyvesant’s commercial artery, Fulton Street, in 1888. Easier access to downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan greatly increased real estate values in the neighborhood. By the 1890s, speculative apartment houses debuted in Bedford-Stuyvesant, officially marking the change from a suburban to an urban area. The opening of the Williamsburg Bridge in 1903 bolstered this urbanization, and Bedford-Stuyvesant was densely built up by the end of the 1920s. The 1930s marked a population shift for Bedford-Stuyvesant as it became an increasingly African-American neighborhood. When the IND transit lines connecting the area to Harlem opened in 1936, Harlem residents were eager to leave cramped quarters for newer, more spacious options in Bedford-Stuyvesant. By 1950 the area was 90% black, and it remains a thriving African- and Caribbean-American neighborhood today. Bedford-Stuyvesant is an aesthetic gem of elegant residences. Many houses have yards with plantings surrounded by original cast-iron fences. Rowhouses are set back from the street and possess their original stoops and railings. The architectural style of buildings followed the trends popular during the area’s development, including Italianate, Neo-Grec, Romanesque Revival, Queen Anne, and, at the turn of the 20th century, Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Georgian appeared. The materials of the buildings also give an idea of their age; older buildings were constructed of brick and brownstone, while light-colored brick, terra-cotta and limestone became increasingly popular toward the turn of the 20th century. Stuyvesant Heights in Bedford-Stuyvesant was designated a New York City historic district in 1975, and a large extension of its boundaries had a public hearing in 2011. Residents in other areas of Bedford-Stuyvesant, including Bedford Corners, Stuyvesant North and Stuyvesant East, are also advocating for the landmarking of their neighborhoods. The low-scale buildings on tree-lined streets share architects, styles and details, together making Bedford-Stuyvesant a distinctive piece of New York City.

(church and rectory: George P. Chappell, 1886-90 parish house: Montrose Morris Sons, 1921) – church: NYC IL church and rectory: Set back from Pacific Street by a low fence, wrought iron gate a front yard, St. Bartholomew’s Church was designed in the Arts and Crafts style and features a roundarched stained glass window designed by Tiffany Studios in 1930, making it one of the studio’s last commissions, and a large square tower and belfry. The church played a significant role as one of the venerable institutions near Grant Square catering to the area’s Episcopal population. While the church itself is an individual landmark, neither the rectory to the east nor the parish house to the west are designated. The rectory is believed to have been constructed at the same time by the same architect, while the neo-Gothic parish house was added in 1921.

Invincible Club, ca. 1915. Constructed sometime before 1880, this building served as a private home for its first decade or so. In the mid 1890s its was sold to a private club called the the Irving Club, before being sold to the (hopefully) named Invincible Club, a local Republican political group. The political club added an addition to the house and hosted political speeches and rallies over the first three decades of the 20th century. At some point in the mid century the building was divided up and occupied as an SRO. It underwent a large-scale renovation in 2011 and is now a rental unit.

23rd Regiment Armory 1322 Bedford Avenue Designed by Fowler & Hough and Isaac Perry, 1891-95 This grand, fortress-like structure was constructed by the State of New York for Brooklyn’s 23rd Regiment, which formed in the 1860s and served briefly in the Civil War. This was the regiment’s second home, after it outgrew its first armory on Clermont Street, built in 1872-73. The armory was used to train soldiers and store equipment, but also as a military club for soldiers and veterans, so in addition to a vast drill hall, the interior also had a library, company rooms, and dining rooms. The imposing brick, stone, and terra cotta exterior has eight crenellated towers, the tallest of which rises to 136 feet. The main entrance on Bedford Avenue is located within a rusticated round archway with a decorative iron gate. Terra cotta friezes display the regimental motto and coat of arms. To the right of the entrance bay is a bronze plaque sculpted by J. Massey Rhind in 1922 to commemorate the regiment’s sacrifices during World War I. In 1905, the vast drill hall was home to Brooklyn’s first automobile show, and in the mid-1920s, it was leased to William Randolph Hearst as a silent film studio. The armory remained in operation until 1982, when the building was converted to a men’s homeless shelter.

Grant Square from Bergen Street, ca. 1925. The Union League Club and its statue of Ulysses S. Grant can be seen at right and center, respectively.

Sometimes creating affordable housing and preserving historical architecture goes hand-in-hand, like at Alhambra Apartments in Bed-Stuy. The block-long apartment building is located on Nostrand Avenue between Halsey and Macon Streets and dates back to 1889. It was designed by prominent NYC architect Montrose W. Morris, and features a unique blend of the Romanesque Revival and Queen Anne styles. The New York Times has even described this building as Morris’ “masterpiece”! Although designated as an official NYC historic landmark in 1986, Alhambra Apartments remained vacant and severely dilapidated until 1995 when HPD helped preserve its historic façade and convert its interior into low-income affordable housing with homeless set-asides. In 2010, HPD provided additional financing to secure the building’s stability and affordability, allowing it to be a pillar of the Bed-Stuy community into the future. In keeping with this work, HPD has now released a housing plan for Bed Stuy to prevent displacement, reduce housing speculation and create new affordable rental and homeownership opportunities on vacant land. Learn more at nyc.gov/bedstuy

"Bergen Street, north side, west from Franklin Avenue, showing the old H. J. Heinz buildings, 1941." H.J. Heinz Company moved into the large red brick building that can be seen at the far left of this photograph in 1920. They had purchased the building from the Nassau Brewing Company, which has brewed beer from 1860 until 1914 in a series of buildings (including the later Heinz building), under a variety of names. A reminder of the factory's history of producing canned goods can be seen in the faded type on the facade, which still reads Heinz.

Alhambra Apartments ARCHITECT: Montrose W. Morris DATE: 1889-90 STYLE: Romanesque Revival The Alhambra Apartments in the heart of Bedford-Stuyvesant is one of Brooklyn’s major apartment houses. Designed by Montrose W. Morris, it was built in 1889-90 by developer Louis F. Seitz and was one of a number of commissions Morris executed for Seitz, including two other exceptional apartment buildings, the Renaissance and the Imperial. Although the ground floor was converted into storefronts in 1923, the Alhambra is a distinguished design in a romantic combination of the Romanesque Revival and the Queen Anne styles.

Pacific Street, west from Franklin Avenue, passing underneath the BMT "El," 1941. Though the BMT elevated infrastructure (seen in the distance) remains, a number of other details in this photograph are streetscapes one would never see in Brooklyn today. Long gone are the street level trolley tracks and since 1999 cigarette billboards have been banned.