Blog posts by Julie May

POTW: A Man Playing the Trumpet in Prospect Park

Julie May

v200801381A Man Playing the Trumpet in Prospect Park, ca. 1975, V2008.013.81; Lucille Fornasieri Gold Photographs, 2008.013; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Spring is in the air here in Brooklyn! It’s time to shed those protective layers, put away that winter jacket, and enjoy the warm weather! Whether it be taking a walk through park or playing your trumpet while people are trying to relax on a nearby bench (as seen in this photograph) – the objective is to go outside and enjoy yourself. What are your favorite things to do when winter ends and springtime begins? Let us know in…

POTW: Juxtaposition

Julie May

20100082Sunrise on Brighton Beach, 2010.008.2; Jacob Mann photographs, 2010.008; Brooklyn Historical Society.
At Brooklyn Historical Society, we strive to collect photographs that document a moment in the history of the borough while also conveying a particular aesthetic that appeals to our aspirations to exhibit beautiful works of art. This photograph is one of those successful juxtapositions that tell us something about the built environment of Brooklyn in 2010 that is also a beautiful execution of the art form. Of his photographs, Jacob Mann says “My photography is a…

POTW: Flatbush Avenue

Julie May

v1973.5.1486612 Flatbush Avenue, 1971, V1973.5.1486; Brooklyn photograph and illustration collection, ARC.202; Brooklyn Historical Society.
This week's photograph highlights the quotidien caught on the streets of Brooklyn. Flatbush Avenue runs from Downtown Brooklyn through several neighborhoods and over Jamaica Bay into Queens. Driving a portion of it is a tumultuous journey through cultures that demonstrate the variety of Brooklyn life and culture. On the block in this photograph, you could grab a Schaefer beer, buy your favorite lipstick, and head upstairs to your great…

POTW: High Hopes for Snow!

Julie May

From My Office, 1888 V1974.7.81; Adrian Vanderveer Martense collection, ARC.191; Brooklyn Historical Society.
I hate to be repetitive, but with this week’s forecast seems both promising and a little harrowing. We may avoid the arctic tundra that the northern Midwest will experience, but may encounter the usual “wintry mix.” As seasoned Brooklynites know, this could mean anything from skating rinks for sidewalks to pellet-rain that permeates the thickest of puffy coats. Or no precipitation WHAT. SO. EVER. Nevertheless, I’m hoping to wake up to that elusive and calming blanket…

POTW: Doing the Snow Dance!

Julie May

Snow Storm, 450 9th Street, Brooklyn, ca. 1905, V1981.15.134; Ralph Irving Lloyd lantern slides, V1981.015; Brooklyn Historical Society.
It’s mid-January and New York City has yet to see significant snowfall. I don’t know about you, but I am eager to wake up to a delicate blanket of white throughout what feels like the urban jungle. This week’s photo depicts a man walking through a blizzard upon already well-laid tracks. In addition to carrying a bundle with his left arm, that may also be his winter warrior canine companion…

Call for Donations: Public Protest Materials

Julie May

In January 2016, Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) posted a call for Brooklynites to donate their Women’s March Posters. We received 50 contributions that now make up the Women’s March Poster collection. Brooklynites have a long history of actively participating in local, regional, and national events that have an impact on Brooklyn and the United States. As the one-year anniversary of the Women’s March and the 45th President’s Inauguration approach, BHS invites Brooklynites once again to help build our collections. We seek to broaden our scope by documenting Brooklyn’s history and…

Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) Launches website, The Packer Collegiate Institute: A Story of Education in Brooklyn

Julie May

In 1845, a group of Brooklynites formed a committee to establish a school for "Female Education." This group established a board of trustees, raised money to build the school and it opened as The Brooklyn Female Academy on Joralemon Street in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn with increasing success year after year.  A fire nearly destroyed the school's future in 1853, but Harriet Putnam Packer offered the funds to rebuild. The school was designed by Minard LaFever (also known for St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church) and reopened as The Packer Collegiate Institute in 1854. The…

Love Letters from David C. Hurd, a Jamaican immigrant in Brooklyn

Julie May

This post was written by Yingwen Huang, Processing Intern “I only wish I could send you some of this nice cool weather along with some rain and hail that we are having just now; for it would do Kingston a world of good. Even a little snow wouldn’t do any harm.” -- David C. Hurd to his pen pal Avril Cato in Jamaica, March 16, 1914.

Portrait of David C. Hurd, 1914. David C. Hurd papers, 2015.019, Brooklyn Historical Society.
In 2015, Brooklyn Historical Society acquired the papers of David C. Hurd from his granddaughter,…

POTW: Bitterly Cold

Julie May

[Windmill in snow-covered field], ca. 1875, v1974.7.4; Adrian Vanderveer Martense collection, ARC.191; Brooklyn Historical Society.
It’s cold out there, Brooklyn.  I think this photograph illustrates the minimal amount of snow we have but how small and cold one can feel facing the windchill today.  This photograph was taken by Adrian Vanderveer Martense, an amateur photographer and member of the Brooklyn Camera Club, somewhere on the Vanderveer farm Flatbush.  The windmill also played a key role during the 1863 Draft Riots…

POTW: Merry Christmas

Julie May

Holidays View 12, ca. 1956, 2006.001.1.131; Williamsburgh Savings Bank Building photographs and architectural drawings, arc.216; Brooklyn Historical Society.
It’s a festive time of year all over Brooklyn and the above photograph is just one of many in our collections illustrating just how celebratory our very own Williamsburgh Savings Bank became while it functioned as a bank.  Extremely large Christmas trees, piles of gifts, highly visible decorations on the façade of the already visible building, and Christmas Shows.  You…

POTW: Festival of Lights

Julie May

Brilliant Luna Park at Night, 1903, v1972.1.1031; Early Brooklyn and Long Island photograph collection, ARC.201; Brooklyn Historical Society.
This week’s photo is to acknowledge the Festival of Lights, Chanukkah.  The festival began on Tuesday at sundown and continues all the way to Christmas Eve!  Enjoy the chocolates, dreidl spinning, and fried food.  If you find yourself unfamiliar with this holiday, read more here.The above stereograph is of Luna Park in its heyday when electricity was still a novelty and Coney Island…

POTW: House Research

Julie May

[House on back of parking lot at 47 McDonald Avenue], 1956, v1974.16.1423; Edna Huntington papers and photographs, ARC.044; Brooklyn Historical Society.
This week’s photograph is interesting on many levels.  First, it’s a wood frame house (although in a sorry state); second, it’s on a weird shaped lot in Windsor Terrace; and third, it was taken by our own Edna Huntington.Let’s start with the first area of interest: wood frame houses.  Wood houses were common until the fear of rampant fires set in within urban environments…

POTW: Repeal Day!

Julie May

[Portrait of men and women in prop automobile], 1937, v1986.283.46; Burton family papers and photographs, ARC.217; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Friday, December 5 marks the anniversary of the repeal of the 18th Amendment with the 21st Amendment in 1933.  The 21st Amendment made it legal once again for Americans to distill, distribute, and consume alcohol.  While this is a Federal law, more specific rules are set by each State regarding the sale, import, distribution, and possession of alcohol within its boundaries – for…

POTW: Parades

Julie May

Bicycle Parade Passing Through Park Plaza Entrance, ca.1890, v1986.250.1.7; William Schroeder, Sr. scrapbook collection, ARC.121; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Brooklyn and New York City love parades.  I wasn’t able to locate a Thanksgiving parade photograph, but hopefully a bike parade is sufficient.  This particular parade shows the entrance to Prospect Park on the right, the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Memorial arch on the left, the empty spot where the Brooklyn Public Library’s main branch now stands in the center, and a clear…

POTW: The building of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge

Julie May

[Verrazano Narrows], 1963, v1984.1.137; Brooklyn slide collection, v1984.001; Brooklyn Historical Society.
This year is the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.  The construction of the bridge began in 1959, the upper deck was finished and opened in November of 1964, and the lower deck was completed five years later in 1969.  It was named after the Italian explorer Giovanni de Verrazano and the body of water over which it spans, the Narrows.The MTA website describes several interesting facts about…

POTW: In Honor of Our Veterans

Julie May

[Survivors of the Fourteenth Regiment], ca. 1890, v1991.12.7; Brooklyn photograph and illustration collection, ARC.202; Brooklyn Historical Society.
In honor of Veterans Day yesterday, this week’s photograph highlights Brooklyn’s veterans.  The above photograph depicts veterans of the 14th Regiment, New York State Militia (also known as the 84th New York Infantry), at the dedication of their monument on the battlefield at Gettysburg. The regiment lost a total of 217 men over the course of the three-day battle.The regiment,…

POTW: Food vendors at Wallabout Market

Julie May

Wallabout Market, Brooklyn, ca. 1895, v1973.5.994; Brooklyn photograph and illustration collection, ARC.202; Brooklyn Historical Society.
This week Brooklyn Historical Society is hosting our annual fundraising party, Brooklyn Bounty!  Unlike last year, we will be holding this event at a new venue in the DUMBO neighborhood of Brooklyn.  There will be music, beverages, auctions, and food.  We expect it to be as bountiful as the Wallabout Market, pictured above.  Not too far from DUMBO, the Wallabout Market was the host for…

POTW: Highland Park

Julie May

Sunday afternoon at Highland Park, Brooklyn, N.Y., ca. 1900, V1973.4.1021; Postcard collection, v1973.004; Brooklyn Historical Society.
For whatever random reason, I thought about posting a picture about music this week.  I came across several pavilions dotting Brooklyn’s amusement areas, parks, and waterfronts.  Highland Park’s Music Pavilion was among them, but so was the confusion about in what neighborhood it’s located.  Some of our records indicate it’s located in East New York; others Bushwick; a few Cypress Hills; and…

POTW: Autumn Harvest Season

Julie May

[Farmhouse and factory in Bergen Beach, Brooklyn], ca. 1885, V1974.28.70; Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Long Island lantern slide collection, ARC 195; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Fall happens to be my favorite season of the year.  I especially enjoy it in Brooklyn and the Northeast because of the Autumnal colors after a sun-bleached summer and before a dishwater grey winter.  As you roam around Brooklyn this week, you might also notice the many sukkahs on the balconies of Jewish families in neighborhoods like Williamsburg,…

POTW: Transformation & Discovery

Julie May

Cortelyou Road and Flatbush Avenue, 1916, v1973.2.106; Brooklyn oversize 19th century collection, v1973.002; Brooklyn Historical Society.
As we should expect of our climate these days, the weather has been all over the place.  While I’m not one to complain about warm weather, sunny skies, and a gentle breeze, I have to admit I’m eager to don a cozy sweater, perhaps some light gloves, and to reacquaint myself with my tights collection.  I’ve always looked forward to Fall for the fashion magazines, new school supplies, any…