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March, 2010

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Dropping Anchor in Brooklyn

Written by Sady on March 30th, 2010

Watch this great video of a giant anchor arriving home to the Brooklyn Navy Yard where it will soon become part of the exhibition at the Brooklyn Navy Yard Center at Building 92.  

Since 2007, BHS and BNYDC have partnered on an oral history project documenting the important work that happens in the Navy Yard.  We are currently interviewing people who worked in they Yard in the 1950s and 1960s and for any of the private shipbuilders after the 1966 decommissioning.

You can listen to some clips from WWII-era interviews here.  And to suggest someone we should interview please contact the BHS Oral History Program.

Posted in Brooklyn Past & Present, Oral History | No Responses »
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Postcard craze

Written by Julie on March 25th, 2010

The recent New Yorker blog post “Off the shelf: Folk Photography” by Rollo Romig about the popularity of postcards renewed my enthusiasm for our collection at the Brooklyn Historical Society.  Widely printed, mailed, and collected, we have thousands of postcards depicting a long ago Brooklyn and from one Brooklynite to another.  Not only are the images great to see, they show a Brooklyn from years ago that may or may not still exist and the correspondence is fascinating to read.  They are somewhat like the tweets, text messages, and emails we send today.  At only a penny to send, why not, right?  Here is a small selection of our postcards.

November 29, 1891. No chance to write, calls all morning . . . v1973.4.761. Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

November 29, 1891. No chance to write, calls all morning . . . v1973.4.761. Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

November 20, 1906. Dear Laura, Another for your collection . . .

November 20, 1906. Dear Laura, Another for your collection . . . v1973.4.296. Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

I am trying to get you a soldier. Estelle.

I am trying to get you a soldier. Estelle. v1988.20.68. The Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

1890. The view from our garden. 1 Grace Court. Brooklyn Heights.

1890. The view from our garden. 1 Grace Court. Brooklyn Heights. v1973.4.953. The Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

No Date. When you are big enough you must go to Luna Park to see the circus.

No Date. When you are big enough you must go to Luna Park to see the circus. v1973.4.712. The Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

This view was taken just south of Cortelyou Road, and is looking north. The avenue was still a dirt road with wooden planks. Note the Jeremiah Lott homestead.

Flatbush Avenue, ca. 1880. This view was taken just south of Cortelyou Road, and is looking north. The avenue was still a dirt road with wooden planks. Note the Jeremiah Lott homestead. v1973.4.641. The Photography Collection of the Brooklyn Historical Society.

Posted in Library & Archives | 5 Responses »
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Taylor Branch at BHS Library Dinner

Written by Sady on March 19th, 2010

On March 8, 2010 Pulitzer Prize-winning author Taylor Branch spoke at the Brooklyn Historical Society’s Annual Library Dinner.  Taylor Branch is a native of Atlanta, Georgia and author of the King Era Trilogy, a narrative history of the U.S. during the Civil Rights era which includes Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-1963 winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Non-Fiction and the Pulitzer Prize for History.

His most recent book is The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President (Simon and Schuster 2009), a presidential memoir based on secret late-night interviews Branch and Clinton conducted over the 8 years of Clinton’s presidency.

Listen to a short clip of Taylor Branch’s talk here (6:53):

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Listen to the full talk here (33:04):

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And Listen to Taylor Branch’s band Off Our Rocker here!

Mayor Bloomberg at the Library Dinner; photo by Kristen Artz courtesy of nycmayorsoffice on Flickr

Mayor Bloomberg at the Library Dinner; photos by Kristen Artz courtesy of nycmayorsoffice on Flickr

BHS President Deborah Schwartz, Mayor Bloomberg and Library Dinner Honorees Marty and Robert Rubin

BHS President Deborah Schwartz, Mayor Bloomberg & Library Dinner honorees Marty & Robert Rubin

Posted in Brooklyn Past & Present, Events, Library & Archives | No Responses »
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Basketball in Brooklyn

Written by Sady on March 10th, 2010

Bats, Balls, Nets and Hoops: Stories of Sports in Brooklyn is the latest in a series of educational curriculum kits from the Brooklyn Historical Society (forthcoming Spring 2010).

Organized around four case studies, the kit is packed with more than 50 primary source documents from the BHS archives, including newspaper articles, photographs and oral histories of Brooklyn athletes born between the 1920s and 1950s.   Each case study comes in a separate folder with critical thinking questions and document-analysis activities to help students observe, question, analyze and interpret the material.

Here’s a basketball-themed sample of stories from the kit (also available on iTunes):

Introduction by Deborah Schwartz, Brooklyn Historical Society President

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Albert King was born in Fort Greene, Brooklyn in 1959. He attended Fort Hamilton High School and the University of Maryland on an athletic scholarship before being drafted to play professional basketball.  Photo courtesy of Albert King.

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From 1981 to 1989, Albert King played professional basketball for the New Jersey Nets.  Photo courtesy of Albert King.

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Alan Fishman was born in Brownsville, Brooklyn in 1946 and attended Erasmus Hall High School. He has worked in the banking industry for over 30 years and he is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Brooklyn Community Foundation. Image courtesy of cybernetiks2, Flickr.

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Albert Vann was born in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn in 1934. From 1975 to 2001, he served as a member of the New York State Assembly representing the 56th District. He is currently a New York City Council member representing the 36th District, Brooklyn. Photo by Andrew Schwartz.

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sobers_schoolMary DeSaussure Sobers was born in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn in 1931. In 1945, she won a Gold medal for the 40-yard dash at a Borough-wide track meet in Madison Square Garden. She went on to found the Trail Blazers, New York City’s first track-and-field club for African American girls.  Photo courtesy of Mary DeSaussure Sobers.

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Click here for more information on how to order Bats, Balls, Nets and Hoops and to find out how it connects to curriculum guidelines as outlined in the New York City K–8 Social Studies Scope and Sequence.

Bats, Balls, Nets and Hoops: Stories of Sports in Brooklyn and the  forthcoming curriculum kit are made possible by generous funding from Barclays Nets Community Alliance.


Posted in Brooklyn Past & Present, Education, Oral History | No Responses »
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Rites and Ceremonies of the Brooklyn African Diaspora

Written by Sady on March 5th, 2010
West Indian Day Parade, Brooklyn 2008; photo by David Berkowitz, Flickr

West Indian Parade, Brooklyn 2008; photo by David Berkowitz, Flickr

BHS is pleased to join the Brooklyn Arts Council in hosting a discussion panel featuring founders of annual events, ceremonies and rituals in Brooklyn, including Yolanda Lezama-Clark from the West Indian American Labor Day Parade, Brenda Grenne from the National Black Writers’ Conference, Akeem from Tribute to the Ancestors at Coney Island and others.

WHEN: Wednesday, March 17, 6:30 – 8:30pm

WHERE: Brooklyn Historical Society

Do you have a rites and ceremonies story to tell?

Join BHS and BAC early on March 17th from 4:30-6pm to record your story for the Black Brooklyn Renaissance archive.


Posted in Brooklyn Past & Present, Oral History, Public Programs | No Responses »
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