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South, Southern & Southwestern Brooklyn

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Gravesend

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  • MILESTONE PARK- 18 Ave, bet 81 St. and 82 St.,

    • Replica of the oldest remaining sandstone milestone in NYC (original at Brooklyn Historical Society) 

Bensonhurst

boundaries: surrounded by Dyker Heights, Borough Park, Flatush, Midwood & Gravesend

 

Back in the 1800 the Polhemus family had a farm in this area and Arthur W. Benson bought some of the land. He was the president of Brooklyn Gas and began to sell lots and called this area Bensonhurst by the Sea. Italians moved into the area, now it is a multi-ethnic area. 

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Bay Ridge

bounaries: N- Sunset Park; E- Dyker Heights; W- The Narrow Strait; S- Verrazano Bridge

 

Imagine having a name of Yellow Hook for decades and tragedy hits your community, yellow fever.  The residents of Yellow Hook came to the realization that they needed to change their name.  The community had a great view of the bay and there is a ridge going through the area. The combination of these two created the name of Bayridge. If you check the street names, you will discover that many of them have "bay, ridge or Bay Ridge" as part of their names.It has great waterfront views.

Bensonhurst
Gravesend

boundaries: E- Coney Island Ave.; W- Stillwell Ave., N- Kings Highway; S- Shore Parkway

 

Gravesend established by Lady Deborah Moody after Peter Stuyvesant allowed her to create a community. She had moved here from Massachusetts because of religious persecution there. Her home still exist, but it is a private home. The downtown has a plaque honoring the first woman to establish a community in the new world.

Plaque about Gravesend's founder- Lady Deborah Moody

History of Gravesend

The Story of

 

Lady Deborah Moody of 

Gravesend

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Sheepshead Bay

boundaries: Sheepshead Bay to Ave. P/Kings Highway; Nostrand Ave/ Gerritsen Ave.; Knapp St., Shell Bank Ave. to Ocean Pkwy

 

 

Sheepshead Bay named after a fish that is no longer swimming in its waters. One can still go out to fish fluke, blackfish, and other varieties of fishes.

Mural at subway station

Sheepshead Bay
Coney Island
Coney Island

boundaries: a peninsula, W- Sea Gate; E- Brighton Beach & Manhattan Beach; N-Gravesend

 

Coney Island known worldwide as one of New York cities great attractions. When the Europeans came to the island they encountered rabbits. The Dutch and English name translates to "Rabbit Island". Today, its amusement park, museums and beaches attract thousands to its shores.

Coney Island

  • CONEY ISLAND BEACH & Boardwalk, Corbin Pl. to W. 37 St., Boardwalk Brooklyn, NY

    • First Symphony of the Sea  

    • Jackie Robinson and Pee Wee Reese Monument

    • Coney Island Carousel

    • Coney Island Museum

    • The New York Aquarium at Coney Island

Midwood

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Midwood

boundaries: N- Avenue I; S- Avenue P/Kings Highway; E- Nostrand; W- Ocean Parkway

 

"Midwout" is a Dutch word for middle woods. When the Dutch settled here they encountered dense woods. This neighborhood saw few changes for a hundred years. In the 1920's developers changed the landscape with the building of homes and apartments.  

  • KELLY PARK- Ave. S bet. E. 14 St. and E. 15 St.  

    • WILLIAM KELLY MONUMENT by L.N. Anderson

Sea Gate

boundaries: E- West 37th Street; N/S/W- Atlantic Ocean

 

Seagate is a gated community in Brooklyn. At one time it had a casino and known for gambling outlets. In the early 1900 many rich New Yorkers had a home in the area and they were members of the Atlantic Yacht Club.

Coney Island Lighthouse

Sea Gate
Red Hook

boundaries:  peninsula between Buttermilk, Channel, Gowanus Bay & Gowanus Canal to Hamilton Ave.

 

Red Hook named for "red clay soil". When the Dutch settled in the area they named it "Roode Hoek" and the Dutch word for "point" is "hoek"  Ft. Defiance was constructed on the pint during the American Revolution. By the 1920's the ports in the area were extremely busy. 

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Red Hook

  • RED HOOK RECREATION AREA- Halleck St., Bush St. between Otsego St. and Court St. Brooklyn, NY

    • RED HOOK DOUGHBOY STATUE by Augustus Lukeman

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  • VALENTINO PIER- Ferris St. between Coffey St. and Van Dyke St. Brooklyn, NY  

    • Fort Defiance 

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Carroll Garden

boundaries: 15th St. to Uion St., Fourth Ave to Interstate 278 (BQE)

 

This neighborhood is named after one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The person was Charles Carroll, who was from Maryland. He survived all other signers. He died at the age of 95. This neighborhood is known for the large front gardens and this is a historic District.

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Carroll Garden

  • CARROLL PARK- Court St., Smith St., bet. Carroll St. and President St. Brooklyn, NY  

    • CARROLL PARK WAR MEMORIAL by Eugene H. Morahan  

Green-Wood Cemetery

Greenwood Heights

boundaries: N- Prospect Expressway; W- Gowanus Canal; E- 8th Avenue; S- 39th Street

 

Some have said that the name for this neighborhood derived from Green-Wood Cemetery. There is a history to this name; in 1846 an article in the Brooklyn Eagle publicized a ferry from Manhattan to the groves of Greenwood Heights. Did you know that Green-Wood Cemetery was one of the top tourist attractions. It was one of the few green spaces in New York City. The cemetery not only had dignataries buried there, but trees, beautiful sculptures, great views and mausoleums.

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Greenwood Heights

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Neighborhood

 

 

Gowanus

boundaries: Hoyt Street to Fifth Avenue and Baltic Street to Prospect Avenue/

 

Gowanus Bay was settled by  Dutch farmers in 1636. This was the first settlement. The area has industrial and shipping industries since the 1860's and there are still factories here.  Gowanus is known for its small manufacturing of goods and many hand-made products.

Gowanus Canal

Gowanus

  • CARROLL STREET BRIDGE, one of 2 retractile bridges in the New York City. This style bridge slides along a track to allow the bridge to move so that ships can pass. 

 

For more in depth information on these neighborhoods, please check some of the resources that we used to write our content.

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