Public School 35 annex, March 3, 1931.

P.S. 35 was established in 1873, on Lewis Avenue at Decatur Street. This photo depicts the P.S. 35 annex (then No. 201 Decatur), built in 1890 to accommodate a growing student population. Both the original school and the annex were replaced by a new building in 1946-7.

Today, the school is designated M.S. 35 and named for Stephen Decatur, an early 19th century American Naval Officer. Chauncey, Bainbridge, Decatur, and MacDonough Streets are each named for naval officers who served in conflicts including the War of 1812 and the First Barbary War.

Decatur was killed in an 1820 duel with former officer James Barron, stemming from Decatur’s role in an 1807 court martial in which Barron was stripped of his commission, and subsequent actions obstructing Barron’s reinstatement. Both men sustained gunshot wounds, but only Decatur’s proved fatal.