[Swerdlof Wedding], 1946, V1991.11.100.17; Harry Kalmus papers and photographs, ARC.046; Brooklyn Historical Society.Now that the holidays are behind us, the focus has shifted to the season of glitter, champagne, and the midnight ball drop. In Brooklyn, there are hundreds of events and parties to ring in the New Year. Whether you’re prepping for a festive night on the town or a low-key evening at home, there’s so much to celebrate. All of us at Brooklyn Historical Society wish you a very happy and healthy New Year. Cheers…
[Blizzard of 1888 postman], 1888, V1988.34.2; Carl H. Dahlstrom collection of Blizzard of 1888 photographs, V1988.034; Brooklyn Historical Society.December is almost over, yet it hardly feels like winter has begun. Just last week, temperatures reached 60 degrees and I saw sandals and shorts on the subway. In December! According to the National Weather Service (NWS), New York City temperatures have reached record highs this month. For mid-December, the average temperature in the city was 52 degrees, which is 12.1 degrees…
[Holidays view 18], circa 1956, 2006.001.1.128; Williamsburgh Savings Bank Building photographs and architectural drawings; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts a holiday display above the Williamsburgh Savings Bank entrance at One Hanson Place, sometime around 1956. This photograph comes from the Williamsburgh Savings Bank Building photograph and architectural drawings collection, which consists of photographs and architectural drawings spanning the years 1888 to 2001 that document the construction…
[Charles Blieffert and his parents, Helene and Charles], circa 1905, 2015.010.2.2; Charles (Karl) Blieffert photograph album; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts Charles Blieffert (at the wheel) with his parents, Helene and Charles, posing for a portrait at a Coney Island tintype studio sometime around 1905. Charles Blieffert was the only child of German immigrant parents. He grew up at the family home located at 18th Avenue near Gravesend Avenue in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn. In an effort…
[Horse-drawn cart], circa 1875, V1974.7.12; Adrian Vanderveer Martense collection; Brooklyn Historical Society.Over the last several years, food trucks have been popping up all over Brooklyn, reflecting a nationwide trend. The photo of the week takes us back to around 1875, long before food truck rallies existed. In this photograph, a man is driving Flatbush Parlor Bakery’s horse-drawn food cart hawking breads, cakes and pies at Caton and Ocean Avenue in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn.The origins of today's food…
[Thanksgiving dinner tables], 1910, V1981.284.53; Emmanuel House lantern slide collection, ARC.136; Brooklyn Historical Society.In light of the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow, the photo of the week depicts a Thanksgiving dinner table at the Emmanuel House in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn, sometime around 1910. Emmanuel House was a civic center and place of outreach run by the Young Men’s League of the Emmanuel Baptist Church. They offered Sunday school, kindergarten, and recreational classes to neighborhood…
[Lundy's Restaurant], 1961, V1974.4.1678; John D. Morrell photographs, ARC.005; Brooklyn Historical Society.Lundy’s Restaurant in the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn has seen its fair share of good and bad times since it opened in 1935. In its heyday, the restaurant reportedly seated over 2,000 patrons. Opened by Irving Lundy, the historic seafood restaurant operated from 1935-1977, and then again from 1997-2007. This photograph depicts the restaurant in 1961 at 1901 Emmons Avenue.Irving Lundy was born in 1895,…
[Girl Seated Wearing Bow-Trimmed Dress], circa 1865, V1978.174.66; Ramus family papers and photographs, 1978.174; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week is a portrait of an unknown girl, sometime around 1865. This photograph is possibly an example of hand-colored photography, which was the most popular and effective way to create color photographs until color film was introduced in the mid-20th century.Hand-colored photographs were created in an attempt to make monochromatic photographs more realistic. Johan…
[Woodworking class at the Continuation School], 1922, V1973.6.430; Brooklyn photograph and illustration collection, ARC.202; Brooklyn Historical Society.This photo of the week was taken in 1922. On the back (also called the verso) is a handwritten note that reads, “Woodworking class at the continuation school, where boys and girls who have to leave school to seek employment may continue their education.”The Brooklyn Continuation School was located at Ryserson Street, near Myrtle Avenue in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of…
Ball in Air, [Slim] Sallee pitching, circa 1912, V1981.15.205; Ralph Irving Lloyd lantern slides, v1981.015; Brooklyn Historical Society.It’s postseason for baseball and there’s a lot of buzz in New York with the Mets advancing to the World Series this year. With that in mind, the photo of the week depicts a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals around 1912 at Washington Park in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn.Before there was Ebbets Field, the Dodgers played at two separate…
[Untitled], circa 1890, V1994.013; Cranston family papers and photographs; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts a scene from the interior of the Cranston family home around 1890 in what is today the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. This photograph offers a glimpse into late 19th- century middle-class domestic life in Brooklyn, and it’s also an example of early flash photography.Alfred Cranston (pictured sitting) served with Engine 17 of Brooklyn’s Volunteer Fire Department as a young man,…
[Foffe's Restaurant, Montague Street.], 10/10/1958, V1974.4.714; John D. Morrell photographs, ARC.005; Brooklyn Historical Society.Pumpkins and other autumnal decorations are sprouting up everywhere in Brooklyn now that we are well into the fall season. Though it’s hard to pick out in this black and white photograph, the round objects are pumpkins, displayed as part of the Halloween decorations at Maison Foffe on Montague Street in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, on October 10, 1958.Maison Foffe was an…
[Mount Navigator and Vantage Defender ships in for minor repairs], 1978, v1988.21.348; Frank J. Trezza Seatrain Shipbuilding collection, V1988.21; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts Mount Navigator and Vantage Defender ships in for minor repair at Seatrain Shipbuilding, a private company located at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, in 1978.The Brooklyn Navy Yard has a long history of shipbuilding. In 1801 the United States Navy acquired the land to construct naval vessels. During World War II, the workforce…
Cat named “Lazybones,” circa 1910, V1981.15.182; Ralph Irving Lloyd lantern slides, V1981.15; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts a cat named “Lazybones,” likely in the backyard of a Park Slope home, around 1910. I often come across a similar scene in my Brooklyn neighborhood of Ditmas Park, with cats spotted on porches, fences, hidden in bushes, and peering out of windows. This photograph comes from the Ralph Irving Lloyd lantern slide collection. Lloyd photographed several neighborhood cats in this…
[Abraham & Straus storefront.], circa 1895, v1972.1.611; Early Brooklyn and Long Island photograph collection, ARC.201; Brooklyn Historical Society.Abraham & Straus was a department store founded in 1865 by Abraham Abraham and Joseph Wechsler with a flagship location at Fulton and Hoyt Streets in the Downtown Brooklyn neighborhood of Brooklyn. The photo of the week depicts the Abraham & Straus storefront around 1895, with an unknown man posing in front of the store display.Abraham & Straus was…
[Ritter Painless Dental Co.], circa 1908, v1973.2.186; Brooklyn Oversize, 19th century collection, v1973.002; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts the Ritter Painless Dental Co. office located at the intersection of Third Avenue, Schermerhorn Street, and Flatbush Avenue, sometime around 1908. If you look closely above the boy on the billboard, it reads “it won’t hurt a bit!” The business specialized in painless teeth extraction, as seen on the multiple advertisements displayed on the building. It…
[Public School Class Room with Students], 1897, V1972.1.1043; Early Brooklyn and Long Island photograph collection, ARC.201; Brooklyn Historical Society.It’s officially back to school season in Brooklyn, with most school-age children returning to school this week. In light of this, the photo of the week depicts an interior view of an unknown Brooklyn classroom during the fall of 1897. It features male and female students at small desks, and a teachers standing at the back of the room.Class portraits are now standard for…
[Ice Delivery from the American Ice Company to Emmanuel House], ca. 1910, V1981.284.12; Emmanuel House lantern slide collection, ARC.136; Brooklyn Historical Society.The photo of the week depicts a horse-drawn wagon delivering ice from the American Ice Company to the Emmanuel House in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn, sometime around 1910. On the back of the photograph, “Casper, Iceman” is handwritten to describe the person in the photograph.It’s very exciting that we have a photograph documenting the ice trade in…
[Untitled.], ca. 1950, v1991.11.17.4; Harry Kalmus papers and photographs, ARC.046; Brooklyn Historical Society.I rarely see an ice cream truck around Brooklyn that isn’t Mr. Softee, so it was a pleasant surprise to come across this photograph from the Harry Kalmus collection. In this photo of the week, children are getting ice cream from a Good Humor truck, sometime around 1950. I love the moment in this photograph—all the children lined up along the curb with ice cream in hand, and one child carefully deciding from the…
Cyclone No. 2, 2005, 2005, 2008.035.2; Ron Meisel photographs, 2008.035; Brooklyn Historical Society.It’s hard to believe summer is beginning to wind down—where did it go? When I look at this photograph, it speaks to my current state of wanting to get in as much summer fun as I can before fall rolls in. With that in mind, the photo of the week is a panoramic photograph of the Cyclone in Coney Island taken by Ron Meisel in 2005.The Cyclone is one of Brooklyn’s most notable landmarks. It was built in 1927 by Harry C. Baker…