Map of the Month - May 2014

Proposed Beecher Park on the Heights from Clark Street to Joralemon Street, February 1903. Brooklyn Historical Society Map Collection.

May’s map of the month, “Proposed Beecher Park on the Heights from Clark Street to Joralemon Street,” is an illustration that stretches across the inside of a four page circular advocating the advantages of this proposal to the citizens of Brooklyn and urging their support.  At first glance, I took it to be an early proposal for the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, but the date of the cover letter--March 16^th, 1903—made it clear I was looking at another proposal entirely.

The circular was signed by Axel S. Hedman,  a prolific architect who left his mark on many neighborhoods in Brooklyn, and Edward H. Dockam, a prominent progressive leader who was for many years Secretary of the Citizen’s Union, which supported the proposal for an esplanade. The circular extolled the benefits of an esplanade to the community and the beauty of the proposed harbor view and it detailed the simplicity of the proposal in terms of construction and economic cost. They gave two possible plans for its construction, one of which included constructing a string of city-owned warehouses along Furman Street, which would have generated rental income in addition to providing a platform for the park on the connecting roofs. Citizens are urged to contact the Board of Local Improvements, the Board of Estimate and Apportionment, the Board of Aldermen, and the Mayor of New York City to convey their support.

Page 1 letter, Proposed Beecher Park on the Heights from Clark Street to Joralemon Street, February 1903. Brooklyn Historical Society Map Collection.

The proposal merited an article in the New York Times on April 26, 1903. The article mentions the circular letter, and even borrows language from it as it details the proposal. The Times also revealed that the original proposal was put forward as part of a memorial to Henry Ward Beecher, pastor of nearby Plymouth Church and a leading abolitionist, which was already being advocated by a separate group. However, the two projects were no longer linked by the time the Times published the article, as the gardens had been deemed too elaborate and too expensive for the more modest goal of erecting a memorial to Beecher.

Detail, Proposed Beecher Park on the Heights from Clark Street to Joralemon Street, February 1903. Brooklyn Historical Society Map Collection.

What was the Board of Estimate’s response in 1903 to the proposed Beecher Park (or Harbor View or Terrace Park as it is variously named in the circular)?  The park was not built in 1903. This proposal for a Promenade is mentioned in a single sentence by Henrik Krogius in his book The Brooklyn Heights Promenade (Charleston, SC : History Press, 2011), but no details are given.  The Promenade we enjoy today first opened in 1950, above the portion of the BQE that opened to traffic in 1954. But that is another story altogether.

Interested in seeing more maps? You can view the BHS map collection anytime during the library’s open hours, Wed.-Sat., from 1-5 p.m. No appointment is necessary to view most maps.

This map was cataloged with funding provided by a Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) “Hidden Collections” grant.