[Elephants at Prospect Park Zoo], circa 1940, gelatin silver print, PARK_0363; Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
It is National Zoo Keeper Week and this week's Photo of the Week brings us to the Prospect Park Zoo, circa 1940, where a zoo keeper sprays an elephant with a hose. In 1938, the zoo held four elephants, Bill, Astra (a newcomer that year), Topsy, and Judy, but it is unclear who exactly is pictured here. The Prospect Park Zoo no longer has elephants, which is probably for…
Lake, Sunset Park, color postcard, circa 1910s, POST_0011; Brooklyn postcard collection, BCMS.0060, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
According to this circa 1910s color postcard from our Brooklyn postcards collection, there was once a lake in Sunset Park, which was certainly news to me. A 1902 Brooklyn Daily Eagle article on "Park Improvements in Brooklyn and Queens" noted that "one of the features of this park is the beautiful, clear spring lake on the summit of the hill." Also of note in this…
[Buttons from the Steven W. Brown collection on Brooklyn history and the brownstone revival movement], 1974 ca.-1985 ca., Laminated printed paper and metal, M1995.5.8 and M1995.5.22 ; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Brooklyn brownstones and townhouses can be spotted throughout CBH's paintings, prints, and works on paper. From introspective to romantic depictions, Brooklyn's iconic residential architecture has been used by both amateur and professional artists to communicate more than just a sense of place. This…
[Dr. Richard Green in his office at SUNY Downstate], circa 1975, ALPH_0187: Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Gamma Iota Lambda Chapter records, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Today’s POTW shows Dr. Richard Green, Dean of medical students at SUNY Downstate circa 1975. Dr. Green was, by one member’s recollection, president of the local Alpha Phi Alpha chapter at this time. SUNY Downstate was recently saved from closure through the work of local activists and state legislators.Interested in seeing more images from CBH…
Brother, it's hot! NEIG_2302 1949. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Mailman Anthony D'Angelo of Brooklyn soldiers on to deliver his letters in sweltering temps. We urge everyone to stay safe and comfortable during the summer heat. Some Brooklyn Public libraries serve as cooling centers, as well as many other local sites and businesses. To find them look at the NYC Cool Options page.Interested in seeing more images from CBH’s collections? Visit our online image…
Van Pelt house, 1906, AUST_0279 ; Daniel Berry Austin photograph collection, Brooklyn Museum/Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Today’s Photo of the Week is a two-story wooden-frame house with a portico known as the Jacob L. Van Pelt house located at 86th Street near Bay 23rd Street in Bensonhurst. Van Pelt Manor, as it is also known, was part of New Utrecht, which was one of the original Dutch towns in Brooklyn. The original owner was a descendent of Teunis Laenen Van Pelt, one of the earliest…
[Slocum boat on fire], 1904, v1974.022.10.151; Eugene L. Armbruster photographs and scrapbooks, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
On June 15, 1904, the St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church chartered the General Slocum to carry church members to an annual outing on Long Island. Shortly after setting sail, a fire broke out below deck. Crew members found the ship's fire hose rotten, lifeboats chained to the deck, and life vests that reportedly fell apart in the hands of panicked passengers. The…
This blog is a guest post. It is based off of work done for the 2024-2025 Packer Institute Advanced Topics course, History: Archival Research. Packer and the Center for Brooklyn History collaborate on this course, in which high school students conduct research in the The Packer Collegiate Institute records and other archives across New York City.
Box 176, Folder #8, 1899, Center for Brooklyn History, The Packer Collegiate Institute Collection, Communication about biographical sketch on Lucy Burns, and article by Sidney R. Bland; (image) Lucy…
Ty Kirton, Implosion of Maspeth Holders, July 15, 2001, GEHP_0239; Greenpoint Environmental History Project, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
This Photo of the Week captures the dramatic (albeit planned) destruction of the Maspeth Gas Holders. Located on Maspeth Avenue in Greenpoint, the Holders were built by Brooklyn Union Gas in 1927 and 1948. Together, the tanks held 32 million cubic feet of natural gas and provided consistent pressure for the surrounding residential lines during high demand. The older…
Charles Rudoy family. Two young men and a young woman sitting on a pier at the beach, [1915?], photograph, BJHP_0503; Our Streets, Our Stories collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
In the spirit of enjoying the warmer weather, this Photo of the Week celebrates a summer trip to the beach. A trio poses after a dip at an unidentified beach, presumably in Brooklyn, around 1915. Left to right are William Winston, Molly Ellerstein, and an unnamed friend. Sitting on a sandy pier in wet tights and a…
[Protester at USDA organic standards hearing], 1998-03-26, crop from BCMS_0027_0875; Linewaiters' Gazette Collection; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
The March 26, 1998 issue of the Park Slope Food Coop's Linewaiters' Gazette included photographs taken by Judy Janda of a protest at the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) hearing on proposed organic standards at the Livingston, New Jersey campus of Rutgers University. Greg Todd, a member of the Coop's Environmental Committee, spoke at…
Erica Satzinger, PCI Spring 1953, color ink on paper; front cover, Packer Current Items, 1953; Packer Collegiate Institute records, 2014.019, Box 124, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
I know, I know - flowers, for spring? Groundbreaking. But when I came across this charming hand printed cover of the student publication Packer Current Items in our collection of Packer Collegiate Institute records, I couldn't resist. It features not only a cheery surround of yellow blossoms and deep green leaves…
[Elaine Clark, Robert Clark and Roseanne Clark outside Marcy Houses], 1952, Photographic print, OSOS_0610; Our Streets, Our Stories collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History. Donated for capture by Roseanne Clark White at Boys and Girls High School.
How do you represent the history of a community? Through its people? Memories? Artifacts? In 2014, Brooklyn Public Library’s Brooklyn Collection – now the Center for Brooklyn History – wrestled with these questions as it sought to…
Canco Charlie, 1952, WORK_0173; Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
This 1,000-pound radio-controlled walking, talking, hand-shaking ambassador of goodwill for the American Can Company, gets last-minute road information from Pamela Livingston of Richmond Hill before taking off on a cross-country tour. Once I saw him, I couldn’t resist the combined creepy-cheery affect of today’s Photo of the Week. Our protagonist is “Canco Charlie” a robotic, hand shaking…
[Blossoms], May, 1975, V1990.2.251; Donald L. Nowlan Brooklyn collection, ARC.120; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Today's Photo of the Week shows the Cherry Esplanade in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in May 1975. The photograph comes from the Donald L. Nowlan Brooklyn collection ARC.120. Nowlan attended Saint Saviour Elementary School in Park Slope, high school at Manual Training High School, also in Park Slope, and Brooklyn College in Midwood. Through his time in Brooklyn he documented the beauty of the Botanic…
Meet Ruth Goring: Brooklynite, healthcare worker, assembly district leader, and co-founder of the Unity Democratic Club, a progressive, interracial political club based in Crown Heights in the early 1960s.
[Installation of first set of permanent markers on Eastern Parkway (crop)], October 19, 1979, gelatin silver print; Box 6, Folder 7, Eastern Parkway Coalition records, 2007.016; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
At the Center for Brooklyn History, we have an interview with Ruth Goring conducted on…
Boy with raccoon, 1986, COHEN_0019; George Cohen photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Move over rats and pigeons, today's Photo of the Week is looking at that other, often overlooked member of our city's wildlife: the raccoon. The little trash panda seen in this photograph was kept as a pet in Brighton Beach in the 1980s, but according to the City of New York, that's a big no-no. Wildlife NYC states "No one may possess a raccoon without a license, and licenses are not issued for…
Ecology cleanup along Coney Island Creek, 1971, HERZ_0058; Irving I. Herzberg photograph collection; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Tuesday, April 22 is Earth Day! And this week's Photo of the Week brings us to an ecology clean-up along Coney Island Creek in 1971. Photographer Irving Herzberg captured this intrepid group ready with rakes, brooms, trash cans, galoshes, and rain jackets. Once a wetland haven for fish and oysters, Coney Island Creek has been affected by urbanization and…
[Two dogs and a cat], [190-?], gelatin silver print, AUST_0545; Daniel Berry Austin photograph collection, Brooklyn Museum/Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
This Photo of the Week celebrates Canine Fitness Month with a breed not typically known for its agility, stamina, or physical prowess: the pug. Initially bred as palace dogs to Chinese emperors, the pug later became the mascot of the Netherland’s royal House of Orange in the 1500s. With the Dutch connection, one may wonder if Brooklyn’s early…
Mastheads from the Linewaiters' Gazette from various years, including latest (center) from the publication's online instance, 2025.
In 2013 Brooklyn Public Library’s archive, the Brooklyn Collection, acquired the earliest issues of The Linewaiters’ Gazette, the newsletter of the Park Slope Food Coop. At that time, our former collections manager, Ivy Marvel, announced the accession with this blog.Since then, the collection has been available and energetically used by researchers from all over the country, and from abroad…
[Sign for Zimets Bed Spring Corp.] 1934-1936, metal and paint. Artifact collection, M1990.42.1. Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
While searching for a seasonal image to share for our Photo of the Week, I came up with a different kind of “spring” entirely. This 6-inch metal sign from Zimets Bed Spring Corp. was likely originally attached to a bedspring made by this Brooklyn manufacturer. Though the Center for Brooklyn History doesn’t hold any records from the business itself, we can learn more about Zimets…
This blog post is the fourth in a series that is part of a project funded by The Robert David Lion Gardiner foundation to assess and improve access to archival collections in our holdings that relate to Long Island. It was written by Cecilia Wright, an assessment archivist working on the project.
The scan above is the title page of third volume of Unique Long Island (1899) explored within the following blog post. For more information about this object, one can visit the digital finding aid, or request to view the volume in…
This blog post is the third in a series that is part of a project funded by The Robert David Lion Gardiner foundation to assess and improve access to archival collections in our holdings that relate to Long Island. It was written by Cecilia Wright, an assessment archivist working on the project.In a manila folder stored with other manila folders concerning the Petit and Schenk families of Long Island, is a small 4.25” by 5” bound book. The inside page of this book reveals that its title is: The American Toilet. The date on this page, 1837, also explains the choice of “toilet,” which…
This blog post is the second in a series, that is part of a project funded by The Robert David Lion Gardiner foundation to assess and improve access to archival collections in our holdings that relate to Long Island. It was written by Cecilia Wright, an assessment archivist working on the project.
The photograph above is contained within the Plum Island chronicle explored within the following blog post. This chronicle contains a brief history of Plum Island, one of the many islands of Long Island, as well as daily entries…
Dabiel Cassel, Ex-Libris, color print; inside cover, Lincoln Landmark yearbook, Abraham Lincoln High School, 1938; Brooklyn yearbook collection, BCMS.0031, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Dedicated readers of this blog will know that I have a soft spot for our school history holdings. Recently, while searching our yearbooks from Abraham Lincoln High School (located on the border of Coney Island and Gravesend), I came across several charming ex libris illustrations inside their front covers. One…
[National Cold Storage Co.], 1955, WORK_0151, Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Center for Brooklyn History, Brooklyn Public Library.
I was drawn to today’s photo of the week for purely aesthetic reasons. The composition, with its strong angles and dynamic perspective, seems inspired by a Constructivist aesthetic. There is also some human interest in the details as we discover a group of children playing on a rooftop playground - a reminder that this quiet scene happens in a dense urban setting. …
[Photomontage of Coney Island], [192-?], CONE_0434, Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Center for Brooklyn History, Brooklyn Public Library.
Today's photo of the week is a dizzying montage of negative images from Coney Island. Among the images is Lane's Irish House, an Irish-themed eatery (as you can guess from the name). Though the cataloger dates the montage to the 1920s, results from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle suggest the eatery opened in 1932 at Bowery and West 15th street.Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s…
Content note: This story contains strong language, descriptions of violence, and descriptions of racism. On the morning of August 1st 1884, Alexander Jefferson, known to his family and friends as Alec, walked to the gallows surrounded by clergymen, doctors, and activists. His brother Celestial Jefferson did not attend, but spent time with him the night prior. A throng of spectators spilled out around Fort Greene’s Raymond Street Jail. The ministers sang “Nearer My God to Thee” and other hymns. Doctors stood by, waiting to autopsy and skeletonize his body for research and display.…
[Barrel of fun], circa 1953, CONE_256. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
The Barrel of Fun was a popular ride at Steeplechase Park in the shape of a cylinder that rotated as the ride-goer tried to walk through. The unsteady surface caused stumbles and tumbles, falling over family, friends, and dates in an effort to reach the other side. How would you fare in this classic Coney Island attraction? Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s collections? Visit…
This week's Photo of the Week is an image of the Williamsburgh Branch of Brooklyn Public Library located at 240 Division Avenue. The Williamsburgh Branch, which was built in 1903, was one of 21 branches created with funds provided by Andrew Carnegie. One of the more interesting facts about the Williamsburgh Branch is that enclosed in one of the cornerstones is a capsule containing Brooklyn Newspapers, the Carnegie contract, and other contemporary documents. Depicted are, presumably, school children, seated at the library with a librarian at the desk in the corner. It is assumed…
Brooklyn Eagle, Boro bazar battles smog, 1953, gelatin silver print. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, NEIG_2080. Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
From November 18th to the 23rd, 1953, a stagnant air mass trapped high levels of air pollution over New York City. The city’s Department of Air Pollution Control (which had opened earlier that year) was flooded with calls from residents reporting coughing and eye irritation. A 1962 analysis of mortality data found excess deaths between 18-26 persons a day during…
Plan for the improvement of Prospect Park, Brooklyn, 1861, cartographic print, B PP-1861.Fl c.2; Map Collections, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
In 1859 the legislation was passed to establish a sprawling public park in Brooklyn. In 1861, Egbert Viele published the first accepted plans for the park, which are captured in this Photo of the Week. The plans resemble the Prospect Park we know today, but with some very noticeable differences. Today’s park is encompassed by Grand Army Plaza in…
The talkative Annie Brown., 1942, FITZ_0137; Laura Fitzpatrick photograph collection; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
This week's Photo of the Week is a photograph taken by Laura Fitzpatrick of "the talkative Annie Brown" in 1942. Fitzpatrick took photographs of friends and family in Williamsburg and Bedford-Stuyvesant with her Agfa Billy camera in the late 1930s and 1940s, and these images make up the Laura Fitzpatrick photograph collection. The askew angle of the shot and Annie's jaunty pose show a playful…
[Prospect Branch librarian], black and white photographic print, circa 1910s, BPL_1134; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Today's Photo of the Week is an arresting portrait of a librarian at BPL's Prospect branch, now known as the Park Slope Library. According to the branch page on our website, "Park Slope Library began life as a small collection of books on natural history in Prospect Park's Litchfield Mansion. A storefront library soon opened on Ninth Street until the beautiful Andrew Carnegie-…
The Jewish Hospital, Brooklyn, N.Y., [191-?], postcard, V1973.4.384; Postcard collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Prior to the 20th century, the state of medical care for Jewish Brooklynites was dire. The closest Jewish hospitals were a long trip into Manhattan and overcrowded, while local hospitals could not meet religious requirements (e.g. kashrut: Jewish dietary laws). The result was that many Jews went without lifesaving care. However, on November 9, 1901, the State Board of Charities…
[Winter story hour] ... children standing next to snowman of their own creation; book shows illustration of snowman. CBPL_1236. [195-?] Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
For those who have been shocked by the recent cold temperatures, today’s Photo of the Week features a cheery winter scene of story hour held outside the children’s wing of Central Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza. A group of warmly bundled kids listen to an intrepid reader, but many…
Brooklyn Bridge Celebrations, 1977, V1984.1.77; Brooklyn slide collection; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Today's Photo of the Week is a Kodachrome slide showing a group of New Yorkers with drums and pompoms parading east over the Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan. The original cataloger does not identify the parade, but notes these clues:A 12-13. Bridges. Brooklyn Bridge. Celebrations [handwritten on mount].MAY 77N5 3 [stamped on mount].A curious researcher could search through our digitized newspapers to…
[South side of Kings Highway between E. 16th Street & E. 17th Street. Levine's Clothing, 1612 Kings Highway Adler's Ladies Specialty Shop -1610 Kings Highway], 1961, V1974.9.353, John D. Morrell photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
The John D. Morrell photographs collection includes over 2,000 black and white and color negatives and prints, donated by Long Island Historical Society (now CBH) assistant librarian John D. Morrell. Images include street scenes from almost…
George Bradford Brainerd, [Five children playing under the roof of a pavilion in the winter], [187?], gelatin silver print. George Bradford Brainerd photograph collection, BRAI_0406. Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
No skates? No problem! Taken by amateur photographer George Bradford Brainerd (1845–1887) in the 1870s, this photograph shows several children sliding around on the slushy snow beneath a pavilion in what is today called Fort Greene Park. The park would have been known as Washington Park at the time…
Glasslands Gallery was a club in Williamsburg, located at 289 Kent Avenue. It was opened by Brooke Baxter and Rolyn Hu in 2006. Baxter had a previous gallery in the same building which was called Glass House Gallery. As a concert venue, Glasslands was one of the longest running venues on the Williamsburg waterfront. As notoriety grew Glasslands started to attract bigger acts including Kyp Malone from TV on the Radio, Grizzly Bear, Matt and Kim, Deerhunter, Kimya Dawson and Julianna Barwick. Vampire Weekend and the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs, Bon Iver and MGMT were some of the earlier…
New Year's Day dinner toast, 6th Avenue. RCPO_0005. 1977. Larry Racioppo photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Bidding a firm farewell to 2024, we offer this Photo of the Week featuring the Racioppo family gathered for a celebratory meal, as they raise a glass to that coming year, 1977. May this New Year be a happy one for you and yours.More of Racioppo's photographs of his native Brooklyn - its people, streets and celebrations - are hosted on our digital collections page, and a…
Front cover, spine, back cover of First Impressions of the New World of Two Travelers from the Old, in the Autumn of 1858.
Many of the endsheets and title pages of the Center for Brooklyn History’s books are inscribed with holiday greetings, indicating that they were once given as gifts during the winter season. No harm ever came from gifting a book, right? Well, that depends on whether or not the book is bound in highly poisonous arsenical green pigment. In this Photo of the Week, we take a look at one such poisonous book in the…
A Syrian Jewish family. Two girls playing in the streets of Bensonhurst., 1951, BJHP_0027; Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
This week's Photo of the Week takes us to a sidewalk in Bensonhurst where Sally and her friend play in front of a laundromat in 1951. From the Biographical Note in the catalog record: The family of Isaac and his younger sister Sally is from Aleppo, Syria. Their father, Jacob, arrived in the United States in 1914, and first lived in the Bronx. He…
Bliss Castle, color postcard, circa 1910s, POST_0180; Brooklyn postcards collection, BCMS.0060, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Did you know there was once a "castle" in Bay Ridge? Today's Photo of the Week is a color postcard depicting the observatory and tower at the Eliphalet Williams Bliss estate, which eventually became Owl's Head Park. Bliss had purchased the estate from famed NY state senator Henry Cruse Murphy, under whose ownership the property "was the Mecca of prominent politicians, men…
[Librarians at fireplace], 1915?, BPL_0383. Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Christmas tree lots are fragrancing streetcorners, the sun is setting before 5, and a chill is driving us all into our homes where we light candles and settle in for the season. These librarians at Stone Avenue Library's gorgeous Carnegie building have set the perfect winter scene: a roaring fireplace, lit tapers, and coniferous adornments. Look at their perfectly trendy hair, some bobbed and some pinned up in a bob style for the…
The Center for Brooklyn History is home to a wide variety of portraits of Brooklyn residents. The walls of the Othmer Library include a handful of our portrait paintings—serious-looking oil on canvas images of wealthy 19th-century men and women dressed to impress.
Portraits on the west wall of the Othmer Library. Photo taken by Michelle Kennedy 2024.
Though most of these paintings were donated in the years between the founding of the Long Island Historical Society in 1863 to the early decades of the 20th century, the…
[Antique LIHS doorplate and knob], 2000. Renovation photographs, Brooklyn Historical Society Institutional Records, ARC. 288. Center for Brooklyn History, Brooklyn Public Library.
There are so many details in the décor and architecture throughout 128 Pierrepont Street. Some of the more noticeable ones immediately pop out to visitors, like the stained glass laylight and windows or the busts on the façade. But some of the intricate details are so small that you would easily miss them if you didn’t know where to look. A Center for…
[David Campanella] DODG_0045 [1950?] Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle collection has a large number of photographs concerning all aspects of the Brooklyn Dodgers: players on the field, in the locker room, at summer camp, crowds of celebrating fans, and all manner of general horsing around. Among them we also see Dodger families pictured. Today’s Photo of the Week features a Dodger family member, and a wonderful companion image. Our…
[1831 St. John's Place], 1945, PORT_0680; Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Today's Photo of the Week looks at 1831 St. John's Place, where the owners were supporting Kings County District Attorney William O'Dwyer in the 1945 mayoral race. O'Dwyer was elected the 100th mayor of New York City later that year, and after two terms was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Mexico by President Truman. Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s collections? Visit our online…
[Coney Island Carousel], 1969, HERZ_0022; Irving I. Hertzberg photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Today's Photo of the Week is by Irving Hertzberg depicting the B&B Carousel. Built in 1906 it incorporates the work of four distinct masters of Coney Island style craftsmanship and artistry: William F. Mangels, Marcus Charles Illions, Charles Carmel, and August Wolfinger and is the centerpiece of the Steeplechase Plaza and a signature attraction at Luna Park in Coney Island.…
