The Center for Brooklyn History

Preserving Brooklyn's History—For the Future

Welcome to the Center for Brooklyn History (CBH). CBH is a research library and community hub dedicated to public history.

Formerly known as the Brooklyn Historical Society, CBH became part of Brooklyn Public Library in 2020 and is now free and accessible to all for research, education, culture and more. Our freshly renovated landmark building—home to the Othmer Library's magnificent reading room—is a trove of special collections, archives, ephemera, art exhibits and programs that bring our borough's rich history to Brooklynites of all ages.

 

Brooklyn Is exhibition image
Brooklyn Is ...

The Center for Brooklyn History reopened on September 14th with an exhibition that celebrates the people and neighborhoods of our diverse, richly textured borough. What captures Brooklyn for you?

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Search our collections

The Center for Brooklyn History makes its collections available to all researchers. Browse our books, photographs, oral histories, maps collections and more.

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Upcoming Public Programs

CBH hosts a wide range of free weekly programs to delight and engage our many audiences. See what's happening next, both virtual and in person. 

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Visit the Othmer Library

Located on CBH’s second floor, the Othmer Library and its reading room are home to special collections and archives for public use. Researchers are encouraged to make appointments in advance. 

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CBH Education Programs

The Center for Brooklyn History education department connects students, educators, and archivists in New York City and beyond to unique collections, programs, and events that bring the history of Brooklyn to life.

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Brooklynology

Fascinating Brooklyn stories from our local history archivists, featuring our popular Photo of the Week posts.

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A Wedding Party in the Othmer Library
Private Event Rentals

The Center for Brooklyn History is a perfect blend of a national historic landmark featuring timeless architectural details and state-of-the-art modern facilities to meet all your event needs.

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Our History

The story of the Center for Brooklyn History began in 1863 with the founding of the Long Island Historical Society (LIHS) during a time of tumultuous change. In only a few decades, Brooklyn had grown from a tiny agricultural backwater to the third largest city in the country. Civic pride was at an all-time high. Many of Brooklyn’s citizens believed they needed to commemorate their city’s rural past before it quickly faded from memory. Founders also envisioned the LIHS as a center for dialogue about history. In the nineteenth century, the society’s roster of speakers included newspaper editor and reformer Horace Greeley, writer Arthur Conan Doyle and abolitionist and women’s rights activist Julia Ward Howe. 

Over the next century, the fortune of LIHS mirrored that of Brooklyn: it navigated the consolidation into the City of Greater New York, played a part in historic conflicts such as its use as a Red Cross headquarters during World War I, and faced its own struggles as the city grappled with deindustrialization, economic decline and social change.

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Upcoming Events

CBH Talk | Indigenous Languages at the Brink

Tue, Oct 15 6:30pm
Center for Brooklyn History

author talks BPL Presents Center for Brooklyn History

The violent history of erasing First Nations language and culture, and decades of assimilation, threaten to end once and for all the rich linguistic heritage of Native Americans. Language is critical to keeping Indigenous cultural heritage alive. Language is inseparable from cultural…

CBH Talk | Uncrusted! A David and Goliath Story of Patents, Pizza, and the Invention of Stuffed Crusts

Wed, Oct 16 6:30pm
Center for Brooklyn History

BPL Presents Center for Brooklyn History conversations

What better way to pay tribute to October's Pizza Month than by spending an evening with Anthony “The Big Cheese” Mongiello, whose David and Goliath fight with Pizza Hut over who owns the idea for Stuffed Crust Pizza played out three decades ago, and continues to be an…

Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour

Fri, Oct 18 3:00pm
Center for Brooklyn History

brooklyn history Center for Brooklyn History exhibitions

Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!

Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together…

CBH Talk | Mourning and Adorning: Woven Hair Jewelry and Victorian Mourning Traditions

Mon, Oct 21 6:30pm
Center for Brooklyn History

artist talks BPL Presents Center for Brooklyn History

Mourning jewelry – jewelry created to remember deceased loved ones – dates back to the Middle Ages, but its popularity in Western Europe reached a peak with Queen Victoria whose mourning customs following Prince Albert’s death were imitated throughout Britain and beyond. In addition…

NYCHD 2025: Crafting an Argument

Wed, Oct 23 4:30pm
Center for Brooklyn History

Center for Brooklyn History educators NYC History Day

In this virtual workshop we will learn about how to turn our research into a historical argument. We will discuss what a thesis statement is and how to write our own. Come ready with a topic and questions the NYCHD Coordinator!

Open to all NYC teachers and students. Teachers will be…

Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour

Fri, Oct 25 3:00pm
Center for Brooklyn History

brooklyn history Center for Brooklyn History exhibitions

Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!

Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together…

CBH Workshop | Exploring the Archives with Historian Prithi Kanakamedala

Mon, Oct 28 6:30pm
Center for Brooklyn History

author talks book discussion BPL Presents

How do historians approach the vitally important work of conducting research in an archive? Where do they start? What is the process? And for those researching under-documented peoples and topics, how do they solve for the silences in the archives?

Join historian…

Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour

Fri, Nov 1 3:00pm
Center for Brooklyn History

brooklyn history Center for Brooklyn History exhibitions

Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!

Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together…

The Salon at CBH, Curated by Nikole Hannah-Jones

Sat, Nov 2 7:00pm
Center for Brooklyn History

BPL Presents Center for Brooklyn History conversations

Join us for CBH’s fall Salon, a curated party of conversation, lightening lectures, poetry, music and more, hosted by Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist and MacArthur “Genius” grant-winner Nikole Hannah-Jones, and inspired by The 1619 Project.

Spend the evening with Nikole…

Teaching with Primary Sources: The Brooklyn Connections Program — An Election Day Professional Development for Educators

Tue, Nov 5 9:00am
Center for Brooklyn History

Center for Brooklyn History CTLE educators

Please join us for our Election Day professional development workshop, "Teaching with Primary Sources: The Brooklyn Connections Program." This day-long event serves as an introduction to CBH Education’s signature archival education program. Participants will learn strategies for teaching with…

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Whether through membership or a one-time gift, your support helps connect the past to the present and makes Brooklyn's vibrant history tangible, relevant, and meaningful for today's diverse communities—and generations to come.

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Contact Us

For general inquiries regarding the Center for Brooklyn History, you can call or email us, or submit a research request.

718.222.4111

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