From Sea to Stall
A visit to my local Greenmarket on Saturday mornings is as much a part of my routine as a cup of coffee. And without a doubt, September is one of my … Continue reading
The Crown Jewel of Brooklyn – Prospect Park
What is it I associate so keenly with the summer smell and sensual keenness of Prospect Park? – Alfred Kazin[1] The construction of Central Park prompted the city of Brooklyn … Continue reading
Buffalo Bill’s New York
Running up and down Brooklyn’s Seventh Avenue in 1894, little boys snatched their mothers’ clotheslines, fashioning them into lassoes to rope their younger sisters [1]. Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show was … Continue reading
Happy Birthday to Berenice Abbott
Thursday, July 17th, is the 116th anniversary of Berenice Abbott’s birth (1898-1991). The Museum of the City of New York holds over 2500 works in the collection by Abbott, who … Continue reading
Morse Dry Dock and Repair Company
South Brooklyn isn’t the first place that comes to mind when you think of perq-filled employment in the early parts of the last century. If you happened to be working … Continue reading
Notable City Residences
8,336,697 people lived in New York City as of July 2012 according to the United States Census Bureau, and a lucky few of them live in fascinating places. Here we … Continue reading
New York City on Two Wheels
May is National Bicycle Month and is recognized by various local and national bicycle and transportation advocacy groups such as New York’s Transportation Alternatives and the League of American Bicyclists. … Continue reading
Fulton Ferry and the Creation of New York’s First Suburb
Ferries have made a bit of a comeback lately with the East River Ferry, Governor’s Island Ferry, and even a ferry to Ikea in Brooklyn. The first ferry route between … Continue reading
Brooklyn’s Boweries
A few months ago I attended the Wyckoff House’s country fair, held on the grounds of New York City’s oldest surviving building. The house is an anachronism among the car … Continue reading
The Beecher-Tilton Affair
What do women’s rights, religion, and sex all have in common? The Beecher – Tilton Affair. Henry Ward Beecher was the first minister of the Plymouth Church, in Brooklyn, appointed … Continue reading
Hidden in Plain Sight
New York is home to many humble cemeteries right on the beaten path, their presence unannounced by towering monuments. Many of the city’s parks, such as Madison Square and Bryant … Continue reading
Officer Stanley Kronzak, North Brooklyn Beat from 1936-1954
Like most of New York City, the Williamsburg and Greenpoint neighborhoods of north Brooklyn have changed considerably in the last 75 years. I obtained a unique glimpse into these neighborhoods’ … Continue reading
Summer in the City
Now that summer is in full swing, we look back at the ways New Yorkers have either escaped or embraced the heat. The Drive in Central Park was a place … Continue reading
MCNY Blog: New York Stories 