Archives & Library Special Collections
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Brooklyn Navy Yard Oral History, 2006-2011. Sound recordings: 47 digital audio WAV files (80hrs)
2010.003
In partnership with the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation, Brooklyn Historical Society collected interviews with men and women who worked in or around the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The majority of the interviews are with people who worked in the Yard during WWII. The narrators discuss growing up in New York, their work at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, their relationships with others in the Yard, gender relations and transportation to and from work. Many narrators bring up issues of ethnicity, race, and religion at the Yard or in their neighborhoods. Several narrators describe the launching of the U.S.S. Missouri battleship and recall in detail their daily tasks at the Yard as welders, office workers, and ship fitters. While interviews focus primarily on experiences in and around the Yard, many narrators also discuss their lives after the Navy Yard, relating stories about their careers, dating and marriage, children, social activities, living conditions, and changes in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
View List of Interviews
Recordings of these interviews and accompanying transcripts are available in the Brooklyn Historical Society’s Othmer Library and the Brooklyn Navy Yard Center at Building 92.
Brooklyn Navy Yard Oral History, 1987-1989. Sound recordings: 12 digital audio WAV files (6hr, 23min)
1995.005
In 1987-1989, Brooklyn Historical Society interviewed 10 people who worked in the Brooklyn Navy Yard during WWII. Interviews were conducted by Benjamin Filene and Diane Esses and focus on working conditions and the experiences of women doing nontraditional labor such as welding and shipfitting. These interviews were recorded on cassette tape and have been digitized to make them available for listening.
Recordings of these interviews and accompanying transcripts are available in the Brooklyn Historical Society’s Othmer Library and the Brooklyn Navy Yard Center at Building 92.
Arthur I. Okanst Scrapbooks, 1928-1965. 2 record cartons and 1 manuscript box (2.5 cubic feet).
ArMs 2004.023
Arthur I. Okanst was a Jewish-American Brooklynite who documented his life and interests in numerous scrapbooks. Born on 22 March 1886, Okanst lived with his wife and daughter in Flatbush, Brooklyn. He was an active member of his Jewish community and followed news related to the world and national state of Jewish affairs. Okanst also enjoyed popular entertainment, followed celebrity news, and frequently attended the theater. Nothing is known of his professional life. Okanst died in September of 1965.
A total of seventeen scrapbooks, as well as an incomplete index, are included in this collection. They contain clippings and published obituaries; theater and event programs and playbills; souvenirs, menus, leaflets and other printed ephemera; greeting cards (especially Birthday and Anniversary cards), telegrams, and invitations to weddings and bar mitzvahs. Also included are newsletters from Okanst’s local Temple and clippings documenting the events leading up to and during World War II.
Access Points:
Personal Names
- Grossfield, Anne Faith, b. 1942
- Grossfield, Avery
- Grossfield, Harriet
- Grossfield, Rena
- Okanst, Arthur I., 1886-1965
- Okanst, Helen (nee Newman), d. 1970
Subjects
- Temple Ahavath Sholom (Brooklyn, New York, N.Y.)
- Jews
- Jews-Charities-20th century
- Jews-United States-20th century
- Antisemitism in the press-20th century
- Zionism in the press-20th century
- World War, 1939-1945
- United States-Foreign relations-20th century
- United States presidents-20th century
- United States-Politics and government-20th century
- Celebrities-United States-20th century
- Theater-United States-20th century
- Television-United States-20th century
- Radio-United States-20th century
- Sports-United States-20th century
- Brooklyn (New York, N.Y)-Social life and customs-20th century
- Flatbush (New York, N.Y.)-Social life and customs-20th century
- New York (N.Y) -Social life and customs-20th century
- United States-Social life and customs-20th century
View Full Finding Aid
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