Blog posts by Allyson

POTW: The Williamsburgh Branch

Allyson

 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…

Glasslands Gallery

Allyson

 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…

Black and white photograph of two carved carousel horses

POTW: Coney Island Carousel

Allyson

[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.…

Black and white photograph of children reading at a library

POTW: Back to School

Allyson

Prospect Branch, circa 1910s, BPL_1117; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
 It's back to school time! Today's Photo of the Week shows school children sitting in a reading room at the Prospect Branch of Brooklyn Public Library, a Carnegie library, located at 431 Sixth Avenue. The branch was renamed the Park Slope Branch in 1975. Even back then, kids knew the library was a great place to get their school work done. Just like kids today! Interested in seeing more photos from CBH's collections?…

Black and white photograph of the Coney Island boardwalk under construction

POTW: Coney Island Boardwalk

Allyson

Rutter, E.E. [Coney Island Boardwalk], 1922, RUTT_0247; Edgar E. Rutter photography collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
It's officially summer time so today's Photo of the Week is brought to you by the Edgar E Rutter collection. It is an 8 x 10 print that shows the exterior view of Coney Island beach and the boardwalk under construction. Image includes a portion of the amusement park in the distant background. Inscription reads: "General view looking east from Steeplechase Pier."Edgar E.…

An embellished cabinet card with a small black and white portrait photograph of a Civil War soldier in a gilded surround

Dipping into the Collection: Thall and Lopez family papers and photographs

Allyson

For this month's blog post we thought we might take a peek into the collection, looking at the Thall and Lopez family papers and photographs. The collection consists of documents, ephemera, and photographs related to several generations of the Thall and Lopez families of Canarsie, Brooklyn. Included in the collection are letters, photographs, account ledgers, blueprints, wills, deeds, stock certificates, a Civil War infantry manual, Civil War currency, notes, newspaper clippings, electrification contracts, and assorted legal documents. It’s an interesting look at a family that has lived in…

Black and white photograph of a Black man with a Black child on his shoulders during a protest

POTW: Happy Black History Month

Allyson

Anthony Geathers, Man carrying small boy on his shoulders at demonstration at Borough Hall, 2020, GEAT_0017; Anthony Geathers photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Happy Black History Month! Today's Photo of the Week is from the Anthony Geathers photograph collection, which consists of about 66 images taken in 2020 during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations throughout Brooklyn. This image depicts a young boy on a man's shoulder as they listen to people speaking at a…

From the Vault: Ruby's Bar

Allyson

This From the Vault post was originally written by Julie May and published on May 13, 2013 by the Brooklyn Historical Society. To see the latest Photo of the Week entries, visit the Brooklynology blog home, or subscribe to our Center for Brooklyn History newsletter. This Photo of the Week was originally written and published by the Brooklyn Historical Society, so some terms and links may be out of date. To see the latest Photo of the Week entries, visit the Brooklynology blog home, or subscribe to the Center for Brooklyn History…

Prospect Park Zoo

Allyson

Prospect Park Buffalo, Daniel Berry Austin photograph collection, Brooklyn Museum/Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Today's Photo of the Week is from the Daniel Berry Austin collection. Austin was an amateur photographer whose subjects often included farms and landscapes. This photo, of one of the buffalo's at the Prospect Park Zoo, was taken in 1902. The Prospect Park Zoo opened in 1890. At the time it was known as The Menagrie. Of the original facilities in the park, the Deer Paddock, located near the present Carousel, was…

POTW: Telephone Booth: From the Vaults

Allyson

 

[Yard worker in a telephone booth], circa 1965, v1988.37.36, Anthony Costanzo Brooklyn Navy Yard Collection, v1988.37; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
This From the Vault post was originally written by Tess Colwell and published on October 4, 2017 by the Brooklyn Historical Society. To see the latest Photo of the Week entries, visit the Brooklynology blog home, or subscribe to our Center for Brooklyn History newsletter. In the not-so-distant past, telephone booths could be seen on…

POTW: When Disco Was King

Allyson

Patrick D. Pagnano photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
For this week's Photo of the Week we are rolling back the clock to 1980 and we're strapping on our skates for a cruise around the dance floor of the Empire Roller Disco on Empire Boulevard in Crown Heights. The indoor rink could accommodate 2,500 skaters and was reportedly so crowded that "if you fell, you didn't fall."  In February of 1980 Patrick D. Pagnano, the street photographer, was hired by Forbes Magazine to capture that moment.  “It…

Eugenie Fribourg: Nearly 99 Years in Brooklyn

Allyson

May is Jewish American Heritage Month and to celebrate I thought we could take a closer look at the Eugenie Fribourg Family Photographs and Ephemera Collection. It is comprised of materials relating to and documenting the family and professional life of Eugenie Merzbach Fribourg, a Jewish-American Brooklynite whose life spanned nearly the entire 20th century. She was born in 1908 and died in 2007, just weeks before her 99th birthday and the vast majority of her life was spent in Brooklyn.

Eugenie and Louis Fribourg, twins. Eugenie Fribourg collection.…

POTW: The Shot Heard Round the World

Allyson

 

Ralph Branca, 1952, DODG_0006; Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
To celebrate the return of baseball season, today's Photo of the Week is of Ralph Branca, the man who became famous for what would be called The Shot Heard Round the World. Ralph Branca pitched for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1944-1953 and then again in 1956. He also pitched for the Tigers (1953-1954) and the Yankees (1954). A three-time All-Star, he won 80 games for the Dodgers with a career high of 21 wins in 1947. In 1948 he…

POTW: Soup Season: The Syrian-Jewish Edition

Allyson

The Hidary and Abadi families. Older woman sipping soup at a soup pot in her kitchen. 1999. BJHP_0283z. Brooklyn Jewish History Project, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
It's Soup Season! Today's Photo of the Week comes from our Brooklyn Jewish History Project. This is Fritzie Abadi (Hidary) on a Syrian cooking day, testing her recipe. Fritzi (Frieda) was chef Jennifer Abadi's grandmother. Her cookbook-memoir, “A Fistful of Lentils: Syrian-Jewish Recipes from Grandma Fritzie’s Kitchen” (now in its new and revised…

POTW: Brooklyn Theater Fire: The Musical!

Allyson

[Mid Flame and Smoke, undated]. THEA_0011. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
On this day, December 5th, 1876, the Brooklyn Theater, on the corner of Washington and Johnson Streets caught fire. This was a terrible tragedy, and close to 300 people lost their lives. You can read more about that tragedy on our The Brooklyn Theater Fire of December 1876: a community's response post. Instead, today's post is inspired by J.W. Turner, singer/songwriter, who took that tragedy and turned it…

POTW: The Elephantine Colossus

Allyson

Elephantine Colossus], circa 1893, Illustration, V1972.1.1090; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
This From the Vault post was originally written by Dan Brenner and published on November 6, 2019 by the Brooklyn Historical Society. To see the latest Photo of the Week entries, visit the Brooklynology blog home, or subscribe to our Center for Brooklyn History newsletter.   The Elephantine Colossus was an elephant-shaped hotel attraction located in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Coney Island from 1885 through…

POTW: Jacob Mann Photographs

Allyson

 

Sunrise on Brighton Beach, 2009, 2010.008.2; Jacob Mann photographs, 2010.008; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
  This From the Vault post was originally written by Tess Colwell and published on February 28, 2018 by the Brooklyn Historical Society. To see the latest Photo of the Week entries, visit the Brooklynology blog, or subscribe to the Center for Brooklyn History newsletter. Brooklyn Historical Society is fortunate to have several fine art photographers represented in the photography…

POTW: Kindergarten Class at Fort Greene Park

Allyson

[Kindergarten class at Fort Greene Park], circa 1910, V1981.284.32, Emmanuel House lantern slide collection, v1981.284; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
This From the Vault post was originally written by Tess Colwell and published on September 20, 2017 by the Brooklyn Historical Society. To see the latest Photo of the Week entries, visit the Brooklynology blog home, or subscribe to the Center for Brooklyn History newsletter. No matter the decade or time period, it sure is challenging to keep kindergarteners…

POTW: Jamel Shabazz's Portrait of Louis Reyes Rivera

Allyson

Louis Reyes Rivera. SHBZ_0092. Jamel Shabazz photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
For this Photo of the Week, we are highlighting the work of Jamel Shabazz, a Brooklyn photographer who picked up his first camera at the age of fifteen. Shabazz says his goal is to contribute to the preservation of world history and culture. While having incredible range, Shabazz is often most known for documenting the people of Red Hook, Brownsville, Flatbush, Fort Green, Harlem, the Lower East Side and Bronx's Grand Concourse.…

POTW: The Evolution of Thought: Work by Lucille Fornasieri Gold

Allyson

Boys with butterfly, 1975, Photographic print, V2008.013.1; Lucille Fornasieri Gold photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
This week's Photo of the Week highlights the work of Lucille Fornasieri Gold, a Brooklyn photographer. She started photographing with a Leica camera in 1968, while her children were in school. She would develop and print in the kitchen darkroom of her home in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn. When she moved, she lost her darkroom and while her negatives were processed, they remained unprinted for…