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Brooklyn History Photo of the Week: Off the Clock

Off the Clock, circa 1887, v1972.1.1242; Early Brooklyn and Long Island photograph collection; Brooklyn Historical Society.

From the desk of Keara Duggan, BHS Public Programs Manager: I don’t know much about this photograph. I know it was taken around 1887 by Walter H. Nelson. I know that it’s a part of BHS’s early Brooklyn and Long Island photograph collection, which is comprised of 1,400 black-and-white photographs taken from 1860 to 1920. And I know that the softly rippling waters look cool and inviting to me at a time of year when the summer heat is heavy and humid. BHS is also nice and cool this time of year, a great escape from the hot sun. Come in, explore our collections, and enjoy our temperature-controlled library, archives, and museum.

Interested in seeing more photos from BHS’s collection? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images. To search our entire collection of images visit BHS’s Othmer Library Wed-Fri, 1:00-5:00 p.m.

 

Brooklyn Documentaries

To help celebrate their one year anniversary DocumentaryStorm, a New York City-based website for documentary lovers, hand picked and organized a selection of documentaries focusing on Brooklyn and its community. BHS is proud to share this selection of documentaries with you.

The Brooklyn Bridge: This documentary gives a contemporary twist to the story of the legendary Brooklyn Bridge. Completed in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the entire world for the rest of the century. An excellent documentary about one of the wonders of modern architecture, the Brooklyn Bridge was designated as a Historical Landmark in 1972. Interviews were conducted with the men, women, and children who pass over and under the bridge every day.

A Portrait of Williamsburg: Williamsburg is a section of Brooklyn, New York that is currently going dramatic gentrification. This historic neighborhood boasts a melting pot of various cultures, including Italians, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, and Hasidic Jews. A blossoming hipster culture has resulted in soaring real estate prices. What are the effects of this gentrification on the local population, young and old?

Trial By Fire, the New York City Fire Museum: The New York City Fire Department helps keep Brooklyn safe. This documentary dives into the history of this important institution, tracing its origins, its evolving procedures, and even its wardrobe choices through the years. The documentary provides an interesting look at the transitional time in history when firefighters went from volunteers to paid city workers. Complete with compelling interviews and archived footage, few details of our past and present heroes history is left out.

The Empire State Building Shall Rise: The Empire State Building is clearly visible from almost any roof in Brooklyn. The tallest building in New York City would not have been built without sacrifice of hundreds of Brooklyn based construction workers. In fact, the building’s successful construction is a miracle when one puts it into the context of the Great Depression. Standing 102 stories tall, the building was built by men without harnesses, proper training, or any fear of heights.

Brooklyn History Photo of the Week: Isidore Aschner Cabinet Card

Isidore Aschner cabinet card, ca. 1890, v1992.40.12; Fred Hoyt family research collection; Brooklyn Historical Society.

This image is of Isidore Aschner, one of Abraham and Jeannette Aschner’s six children. The Aschners were German natives who immigrated to New York around 1870. The family lived at 67 Pineapple Street in Brooklyn Heights and owned cigar emporiums around Manhattan and Brooklyn. This cabinet card was donated to BHS in 1990 by Fred Hoyt in as part of the Fred Hoyt family research collection. Isidore, the gentleman featured in the image above, was Fred Hoyt’s great uncle (brother of Fred’s grandmother Ernestine Aschner).

The Hoyt collection features papers and photographs, dating from 1850 to 1974. Mr. Hoyt collected many of these materials while conducting genealogical research. The collection includes correspondence, genealogy notes, school papers, commencement programs, a deed, calling cards, religious writings, obituaries, wills, birth certificates, death certificates, marriage certificates, and citizenship papers.

This image was taken by Samuel Bowne Duryea at his studio located at 253 Fulton Street, Brooklyn. Duryea was a well-known portrait studio in Brooklyn. BHS has images from Duryea and a number of other Brooklyn studios as part of our Brooklyn studio portrait collection, which includes primarily cabinet cards of individual men, women, and children, circa 1875 to 1899. Cabinet cards were an extremely popular style of portraiture in the 1870s and 1880s before being replaced by snapshot and personal photography in the 1890s.

Interested in seeing more photos from BHS’s collection? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images. To search our entire collection of images visit BHS’s Othmer Library Wed-Fri, 1:00-5:00 p.m.

Brooklyn History Photo of the Week: Louis and Rose Lebman, ca.1950

Louis and Rose Lebman, ca.1950, v1986.2.3; Photograph collection; Brooklyn Historical Society.

This photograph, circa 1950, features Louis and Rose Lebman, husband and wife. Louis Lebman owned the Wellmade Glove shop in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Lebman was a Polish immigrant who worked as a glovemaking apprentice before opening his own shop in Brooklyn, specializing in fine gloves produced from fabric and goatskin. Lebman and his wife Rose lived with their daughter Maria in the same building that housed the Wellmade Glove shop. This photograph was taken at the rear of the shop at 480 Seventh Avenue, Brooklyn.

BHS’s archive holds the Wellmade Glove records, which includes extensive information about the shop, the glovemaking business, and the Lebman family.

Interested in seeing more photos from BHS’s collection? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images. To search our entire collection of images visit BHS’s Othmer Library Wed-Fri, 1:00-5:00 p.m.

Brooklyn History Photo of the Week: Lovers’ Lane

Lovers’ Lane, ca.1887, v1972.1.1233; Early Brooklyn and Long Island photograph collection, ARC.201; Brooklyn Historical Society.

This week, in honor of Valentine’s Day, we share a photograph of Lovers’ Lane in Prospect Park. This image, ca. 1887, features a picturesque pathway, with sunlight softly drifting through the trees. When amateur photographer Walter H. Nelson took this picture, the Frederick Law Olmstead-designed park had been open for two decades. Olmstead intended Prospect Park to offer Brooklynites a secluded, naturalistic escape from the bustling urban center that Brooklyn was becoming – a quality that Nelson’s photograph captures perfectly.

In and out of Prospect Park, Brooklyn offers a number of striking places to walk with your loved ones. As a matter of fact, Brooklyn Historical Society was named as one of the best date spots in Brooklyn by Time Out New York. So celebrate love this week by strolling in a local park, visiting BHS, or taking in the sights of Brooklyn.

Interested in seeing more photos from BHS’s collection? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images. To search our entire collection of images visit BHS’s Othmer Library Wed-Fri, 1:00-5:00 p.m.