122-644: Fountain Avenue is a north–south running street in Brooklyn , New York . Traffic on the avenue is bidirectional for most of its length. Its north end is at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Conduit Avenue . The south end, previously a swampland-like landfill near the Erskine Street exit off the Belt Parkway , has been developed as part of the neighborhood of Spring Creek and Shirley Chisholm State Park , built on
244-540: A Liberty Pole . It became a rallying point for mass meetings and an emblem of the American cause. In June, two regiments of British regulars arrived in New York and were quartered in the upper barracks. These troops cut down the liberty pole on August 10. A second and third pole were erected and also cut down. A fourth pole was erected and encased in iron to prevent similar action. In 1766, widespread tenant uprisings occurred in
366-489: A Pakistani enclave. Brooklyn's most populous racial group, white, declined from 97.2% in 1930 to 46.9% by 1990. The borough attracts people previously living in other cities in the United States. Of these, most come from Chicago , Detroit , San Francisco , Washington, D.C. , Baltimore , Philadelphia , Boston , Cincinnati , and Seattle . Given New York City's role as a crossroads for immigration from around
488-551: A humid subtropical climate ( Cfa ), with partial shielding from the Appalachian Mountains and moderating influences from the Atlantic Ocean . Brooklyn receives plentiful precipitation all year round, with nearly 50 in (1,300 mm) yearly. The area averages 234 days with at least some sunshine annually, and averages 57% of possible sunshine annually, accumulating 2,535 hours of sunshine per annum. Brooklyn lies in
610-527: A 14-block area in 1890. On the southwestern waterfront of Kings County, railroads and industrialization spread to Sunset Park (then coterminous with the city's sprawling, sparsely populated Eighth Ward) and adjacent Bay Ridge (hitherto a resort-like subsection of the Town of New Utrecht ). Within a decade, the city had annexed the Town of New Lots in 1886; the Towns of Flatbush , Gravesend and New Utrecht in 1894; and
732-698: A compelling argument for deauthorizing the property as part of Gateway National Recreation Area and restoring it as a temporary waste disposal site only for trash generated in Brooklyn". Bill Farrell, writing for the New York Daily News , summarized the condition of the area during a 2003 article: "The malodorous, toxic and visual nightmare reviled by drivers along the Belt Parkway will soon be transformed into 400 acres (1.6 km) of parkland along Jamaica Bay." On February 12, 2004, New York City Sanitation filed
854-546: A debt. The territory was named after the Island of Jersey , Carteret's ancestral home. The other section of New Jersey was sold to Lord Berkeley of Stratton , who was a close friend of the Duke. As a result, Carteret and Berkeley became the two English Lords Proprietors of New Jersey . The Province of New Jersey was created, but the border was not finalized until 1765 (see New York-New Jersey Line War ). In 1667, territories between
976-527: A decrease in housing affordability. Some new developments are required to include affordable housing units. Since the 2010s, parts of Brooklyn have evolved into a hub of entrepreneurship, high-technology startup firms , postmodern art , and design. The name Brooklyn is derived from the original Dutch town of Breukelen . The oldest mention of the settlement in the Netherlands is in a charter of 953 by Holy Roman Emperor Otto I as Broecklede . This form
1098-636: A fleet to take the Dutch colony of New Netherland , then under the Directorship of Peter Stuyvesant . Stuyvesant surrendered to the English fleet without recognition from the Dutch West India Company . The province was renamed for the Duke of York, as its proprietor. England's rule was established de facto following military control in 1664, and became established de jure as sovereign rule in 1667 in
1220-453: A hill near the west end of present-day Atlantic Avenue , was reported to have emotionally exclaimed: "What brave men I must this day lose!". The fortified American positions at Brooklyn Heights consequently became untenable and were evacuated a few days later, leaving the British in control of New York Harbor . While Washington's defeat on the battlefield cast early doubts on his ability as
1342-675: A longstanding cultural lineage include Canarsie , Sea Gate , and Crown Heights , home to the Chabad world headquarters. Neighborhoods with largely defunct yet historically notable Jewish populations include central Flatbush, East Flatbush, Brownsville, East New York, Bensonhurst and Sheepshead Bay (particularly its Madison subsection). Many hospitals in Brooklyn were started by Jewish charities, including Maimonides Medical Center in Borough Park and Brookdale Hospital in East Flatbush. According to
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#17328441057641464-556: A major role in supplying troops and materiel for the American Civil War . The best-known regiment to be sent off to war from the city was the 14th Brooklyn "Red Legged Devils" . They fought from 1861 to 1864, wore red the entire war, and were the only regiment named after a city. President Abraham Lincoln called them into service, making them part of a handful of three-year enlisted soldiers in April 1861. Unlike other regiments during
1586-485: A meeting at Burns Tavern of New York merchants, where they agreed to boycott all British imports until the Stamp Act was repealed. A leading moderate group opposing the Stamp Act were the local Sons of Liberty headed by Isaac Sears , John Lamb and Alexander McDougall . Historian Gary B. Nash wrote of what was called the "General Terror of November 1–4": But New York's plebeian element was not yet satisfied. Going beyond
1708-622: A quartering bill in 1766 to provide barracks and provisions in New York City and Albany which satisfied most, but not all of the requirements of the Quartering Act. London suspended the assembly for failure to comply fully, and Governor Moore dissolved the House of Assembly, February 6, 1768. The next month New Yorkers went to the polls for a new assembly. In this election, with the Sons of Liberty support,
1830-602: A request to operate a yard waste composting facility. The application was completed in March 2006. BergerWorld reported in its 2nd Quarter 2006 report: "Berger, teamed with URS, is assisting the New York City Department of Environmental Protection in the $ 160 million, 297-acre (1.20 km) Pennsylvania & Fountain Avenue Landfills (PAFAL) closure project in Brooklyn, NY, one of the largest closures ever undertaken in
1952-649: A royal province. In May 1688, the Province of New York was made part of the Dominion of New England . However, in April 1689, when news arrived that King James had been overthrown in the Glorious Revolution , Bostonians overthrew their government and imprisoned Dominion Governor Edmund Andros . The province of New York rebelled in May in what is known as Leisler's Rebellion . King William's War with France began during which
2074-529: A separate mayor, elected a Borough President . In 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was completed, transportation to Manhattan was no longer by water only, and the City of Brooklyn's ties to the City of New York were strengthened. The question became whether Brooklyn was prepared to engage in the still-grander process of consolidation then developing throughout the region, whether to join with the county of Richmond and
2196-503: A variation of the place name " Canarsie ". Bands were associated with place names, but the colonists thought their names represented different tribes. The Breuckelen settlement was named after Breukelen in the Netherlands ; it was part of New Netherland . The Dutch West India Company lost little time in chartering the six original parishes (listed here by their later English town names): The colony's capital of New Amsterdam , across
2318-577: A variety of Jewish businesses. Adjacent to Borough Park, the Kensington area housed a significant population of Conservative Jews (under the aegis of such nationally prominent midcentury rabbis as Jacob Bosniak and Abraham Heller) when it was still considered to be a subsection of Flatbush; many of their defunct facilities have been repurposed to serve extensions of the Borough Park Hasidic community. Other notable religious Jewish neighborhoods with
2440-441: A water meter magnate and close friend of President Grover Cleveland ), with nearby Crown Heights gradually fulfilling an analogous role for the city's Jewish population as development continued through the early 20th century. Northeast of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Bushwick (by now a working class, predominantly German district) established a considerable brewery industry; the so-called "Brewer's Row" encompassed 14 breweries operating in
2562-761: Is made up of the words broeck , meaning bog or marshland , and lede , meaning small (dug) water stream, specifically in peat areas. Breuckelen on the American continent was established in 1646, and the name first appeared in print in 1663. Over the past two millennia, the name of the ancient town in Holland has been Bracola , Broccke , Brocckede , Broiclede , Brocklandia , Broekclen , Broikelen , Breuckelen, and finally Breukelen . The New Amsterdam settlement of Breuckelen also went through many spelling variations, including Breucklyn , Breuckland , Brucklyn , Broucklyn , Brookland , Brockland , Brocklin , and Brookline/Brook-line . There have been so many variations of
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#17328441057642684-486: Is served by the following: Brooklyn Brooklyn is a borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the State of New York . Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County , one of twelve original counties established under British rule in 1683 in the then Province of New York . As of the 2020 United States census , the population stood at 2,736,074, making it
2806-452: Is the state of New York's fourth-smallest county by land area and third smallest by total area. Brooklyn was founded by the Dutch in the 17th century and grew into a busy port city on New York Harbor by the 19th century. On January 1, 1898, after a long political campaign and public-relations battle during the 1890s and despite opposition from Brooklyn residents, Brooklyn
2928-444: Is water (27%); the borough is the second-largest by land area among the New York City's boroughs. However, Kings County, coterminous with Brooklyn, is New York State's fourth-smallest county by land area and third-smallest by total area. Brooklyn lies at the southwestern end of Long Island, and the borough's western border constitutes the island's western tip. Brooklyn's water borders are extensive and varied, including Jamaica Bay ;
3050-456: The New-York Gazette , started November 8, 1725, by William Bradford . It was printed on a single sheet, published weekly. During Queen Anne's War with France from 1702 to 1713, the province had little involvement with the military operations, but benefited from being a supplier to the British fleet. New York militia participated in two abortive attacks on Quebec in 1709 and 1711. When
3172-590: The Atlantic Ocean ; The Narrows , separating Brooklyn from the borough of Staten Island in New York City and crossed by the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge ; Upper New York Bay , separating Brooklyn from Jersey City and Bayonne in the U.S. state of New Jersey ; and the East River , separating Brooklyn from the borough of Manhattan in New York City and traversed by the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel ,
3294-601: The Brighton Beach Line in 1878 heralded the end of this isolation. Sports in Brooklyn became a business. The Brooklyn Bridegrooms played professional baseball at Washington Park in the convenient suburb of Park Slope and elsewhere. Early in the next century, under their new name of Brooklyn Dodgers, they brought baseball to Ebbets Field , beyond Prospect Park. Racetracks, amusement parks , and beach resorts opened in Brighton Beach , Coney Island , and elsewhere in
3416-563: The British took over, the great majority of Dutch families remained, with the exception of government officials and soldiers. However, new Dutch arrivals became very few. While the Netherlands was a small country, the Dutch Empire was large, meaning that emigrants leaving the mother country had a wide variety of choices under full Dutch control. The major Dutch cities were centers of high culture, but they sent few immigrants. Most Dutch arrivals to
3538-652: The Brooklyn Bridge , the Manhattan Bridge , the Williamsburg Bridge , and numerous routes of the New York City Subway . To the east of Brooklyn lies the borough of Queens, which contains John F. Kennedy International Airport in that borough's Jamaica neighborhood, approximately two miles from the border of Brooklyn's East New York neighborhood. Under the Köppen climate classification , Brooklyn experiences
3660-471: The Brooklyn Fire Department (BFD) also gave way to the new Metropolitan Fire District. Throughout this period the peripheral towns of Kings County, far from Manhattan and even from urban Brooklyn, maintained their rustic independence. The only municipal change seen was the secession of the eastern section of the Town of Flatbush as the Town of New Lots in 1852. The building of rail links such as
3782-529: The Byram River and Connecticut River were split off to become the western half of Connecticut . The acquired territory land designations were reassigned by the crown, leaving the territory of the modern State of New York, including the valleys of the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers , and future Vermont . The territory of western New York was disputed with the indigenous Iroquois Confederacy, and also disputed between
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3904-611: The Dutch West India Company in New Netherland created a settlement at present-day Albany, and in 1624 founded New Amsterdam , on Manhattan Island. The Dutch colony included claims to an area comprising all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey , Delaware , and Vermont , along with inland portions of Connecticut , Massachusetts , and Maine in addition to eastern Pennsylvania . New Amsterdam surrendered to Colonel Richard Nicholls on August 27, 1664; he renamed it New York. On September 24 Sir George Carteret accepted
4026-536: The Middle Colonies of nascent British America . On November 1, 1683, Kings County was partitioned from the West Riding of York Shire, containing the six old Dutch towns on southwestern Long Island, as one of the "original twelve counties" . This tract of land was recognized as a political entity for the first time, and the municipal groundwork was laid for a later expansive idea of a Brooklyn identity. Lacking
4148-569: The New Netherland colony in 1664, a prelude to the Second Anglo-Dutch War . New Netherland was taken in a naval action, and the English renamed the new capture for their naval commander, James, Duke of York , brother of the then monarch King Charles II and future king himself as King James II . Brooklyn became a part of the West Riding of York Shire in the Province of New York , one of
4270-733: The Stamp Act of 1765 . In October, at what became Federal Hall in New York, representatives of several colonies met in the Stamp Act Congress to discuss their response. The New York assembly petitioned the British House of Commons on December 11, 1765, for the Americans' right of self taxation. In August, the intimidation and beating of stamp agents was widely reported. The New York stamp commissioner resigned his job. The act went into effect on November 1. The day before, James De Lancey organized
4392-627: The Treaty of Breda and the Treaty of Westminster (1674) . It was not until 1674 that English common law was applied in the colony. In the late 18th century, colonists in New York rebelled along with the other Thirteen Colonies , and supported the American Revolutionary War that led to the founding of the United States . British claims in New York were ended by the Treaty of Paris of 1783 , with New York establishing its independence from
4514-477: The Treaty of Hartford negotiated by the English and Dutch colonies in 1650 but not recognized by either the Dutch or English governments) putting the new province in conflict with the Massachusetts charter. In general terms, the charter was equivalent to a conveyance of land conferring on him the right of possession, control, and government, subject only to the limitation that the government must be consistent with
4636-447: The USDA plant hardiness zone 7b . Brooklyn's neighborhoods are dynamic in ethnic composition. For example, the early to mid-20th century, Brownsville had a majority of Jewish residents; since the 1970s it has been majority African American. Midwood during the early 20th century was filled with ethnic Irish , then filled with Jewish residents for nearly 50 years, and is slowly becoming
4758-632: The Unadilla River , with Iroquois lands to the west and colonial lands to the east. During the middle years of the 18th century, politics in New York revolved around the rivalry of two great families, the Livingstons and the De Lanceys. Both of these families had amassed considerable fortunes. New York City had an inordinate influence on New York province politics because several of the assembly members lived in New York City rather than in their district. In
4880-501: The automobile and commuter rail -driven vogue for more remote prewar suburban communities, such as Garden City, New York and Montclair, New Jersey . The rapidly growing population needed more water, so the City built centralized waterworks, including the Ridgewood Reservoir . The municipal Police Department, however, was abolished in 1854 in favor of a Metropolitan force covering also New York and Westchester Counties. In 1865
5002-509: The patroon and tenant farmer system established along the Hudson River Valley , this agricultural county unusually came to have one of the highest percentages of slaves among the population in the "Original Thirteen Colonies" along the Atlantic Ocean eastern coast of North America . On August 27, 1776, the Battle of Long Island (also known as the 'Battle of Brooklyn') was fought,
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5124-654: The " Little Fuzhou ( 小福州 )" of Brooklyn. Many Chinese restaurants can be found throughout Sunset Park, and the area hosts a popular Chinese New Year celebration. Since the 2000s going forward, the growing concentration of the Cantonese speaking population in Brooklyn have dramatically shifted to Bensonhurst/Gravesend and Homecrest creating newer Chinatowns of Brooklyn and these newer Brooklyn Chinatowns are known as "Brooklyn's Little Hong Kong/Guangdong" due to their Chinese populations being overwhelmingly Cantonese populated. Province of New York The Province of New York
5246-597: The 'h' from its name. By 1841, with the appearance of The Brooklyn Eagle, and Kings County Democrat published by Alfred G. Stevens, the growing city across the East River from Manhattan was producing its own prominent newspaper. It later became the most popular and highest circulation afternoon paper in America. The publisher changed to L. Van Anden on April 19, 1842, and the paper was renamed The Brooklyn Daily Eagle and Kings County Democrat on June 1, 1846. On May 14, 1849,
5368-400: The 1752 election, De Lanceys' relatives and close friends controlled 12 of the 27 seats in the assembly. The De Lanceys lost control of the assembly in the election of 1761. Governor Cadwallader Colden tried to organize a popular party to oppose the great families, thus earning the hatred of the city elite of both parties. The Livingstons looked to the imperial ties as a means of controlling
5490-838: The 1883 poem, " The New Colossus " by Emma Lazarus , which appears on a plaque inside the Statue of Liberty . The poem calls New York Harbor "the air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame". As a twin city to New York, it played a role in national affairs that was later overshadowed by decades of subordination by its old partner and rival. During this period, the affluent, contiguous districts of Fort Greene and Clinton Hill (then characterized collectively as The Hill) were home to such notable figures as Astral Oil Works founder Charles Pratt and his children, including local civic leader Charles Millard Pratt ; Theosophical Society co-founder William Quan Judge ; and Pfizer co-founders Charles Pfizer and Charles F. Erhart . Brooklyn Heights remained one of
5612-531: The 19th century and two-thirds of the 20th century. The first center of urbanization sprang up in the Town of Brooklyn, directly across from Lower Manhattan , which saw the incorporation of the Village of Brooklyn in 1816. Reliable steam ferry service across the East River to Fulton Landing converted Brooklyn Heights into a commuter town for Wall Street . Ferry Road to Jamaica Pass became Fulton Street to East New York . Town and Village were combined to form
5734-617: The 19th century and was consolidated in 1898 with New York City (then confined to Manhattan and the Bronx ), the remaining rural areas of Kings County, and the largely rural areas of Queens and Staten Island , to form the modern City of New York. The Dutch were the first Europeans to settle Long Island's western edge, which was then largely inhabited by the Lenape , an Algonquian-speaking American Indian tribe often referred to in European documents by
5856-640: The 19th century. The waterfront from Gowanus to Greenpoint was developed with piers and factories. Industrial access to the waterfront was improved by the Gowanus Canal and the canalized Newtown Creek . USS Monitor was the most famous product of the large and growing shipbuilding industry of Williamsburg. After the Civil War , trolley lines and other transport brought urban sprawl beyond Prospect Park (completed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux in 1873 and widely heralded as an improvement upon
5978-573: The American Civil War, the 14th wore a uniform inspired by the French Chasseurs , a light infantry used for quick assaults. As a seaport and a manufacturing center, Brooklyn was well prepared to contribute to the Union's strengths in shipping and manufacturing. The two combined in shipbuilding; the ironclad Monitor was built in Brooklyn. Brooklyn is referred to as the twin city of New York in
6100-549: The American Jewish Population Project in 2020, Brooklyn was home to over 480,000 Jews. In 2023, the UJA-Federation of New York estimated that Brooklyn is home to 462,000 Jews, a large decrease compared to the 561,000 estimated in 2011. The predominantly Jewish, Crown Heights (and later East Flatbush)-based Madison Democratic Club served as the borough's primary "clubhouse" political venue for decades until
6222-635: The Belt Parkway, at the site of the former Fountain Avenue Landfill. The Fountain Avenue Landfill has been developed for public use as part of Shirley Chisholm State Park . Future Plans include a parking facility for the State Park at the southern end of Fountain Avenue. Various tests of the Fountain Avenue area and landfills were conducted in 1985 and 1986. A December 4, 1998 press announcement by Congressman Vito Fossella stated that Fossella "laid out
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#17328441057646344-413: The City and Colony of New York which was an excellent piece of political propaganda denouncing the De Lanceys for betraying the liberties of the people by acknowledging the British power of taxation. The Sons of Liberty switched their allegiance from the De Lanceys to the Livingstons. Alexander McDougall was arrested for libel. Conflict between the Sons of Liberty and the troops in New York erupted with
6466-467: The De Lancey faction gained seats, but not enough for a majority. In 1768, a letter issued by the Massachusetts assembly called for the universal boycott of British imports in opposition to the Townshend Acts . In October, the merchants of New York agreed on the condition that the merchants of Boston and Philadelphia also agreed. In December, the assembly passed a resolution which stated the colonies were entitled to self-taxation. Governor Moore declared
6588-412: The Duke of York from the Earl of Stirling , and are no longer within the territory of the State of New York, having been transferred by treaty to Massachusetts . While the number of counties has been increased to 62, the pattern still remains that a town in New York State is a subdivision of a county, similar to New England. An act of the assembly in 1683 naturalized all those of foreign nations then in
6710-407: The Dutch town of Breukelen in the Netherlands, Brooklyn shares a border with the borough of Queens . It has several bridge and tunnel connections to the borough of Manhattan, across the East River , and is connected to Staten Island by way of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge . With a land area of 69.38 square miles (179.7 km ) and a water area of 27.48 square miles (71.2 km ), Kings County
6832-407: The East River, obtained its charter in 1653. The neighborhood of Marine Park was home to North America's first tide mill . It was built by the Dutch, and the foundation can be seen today. But the area was not formally settled as a town. Many incidents and documents relating to this period are in Gabriel Furman 's 1824 compilation. Present-day Brooklyn left Dutch hands after the English captured
6954-519: The English and the French from their northern colonial province of New France (modern eastern Canada ). The province remained an important military and economic link to Canada throughout its history. Vermont was disputed with the Province of New Hampshire to the east. The first governor Richard Nicolls was known for writing " The Duke's Laws " which served as the first compilation of English laws in colonial New York. Nicholls returned to England after an administration of three years, much of which
7076-401: The French attacked Schenectady . In July, New York participated in an abortive attack on Montreal and Quebec. A new governor Henry Sloughter arrived in March 1691. He had Jacob Leisler arrested, tried, and executed. New York's charter was re-enacted in 1691 and was the constitution of the province until the creation of the State of New York . The first newspaper to appear in New York was
7198-451: The French, but many prisoners were then massacred by the Indians. Some prisoners had smallpox, and when Indians took the scalps to their home villages, they spread a disease that killed large numbers. In the end the British won the war and took over all of Canada, thereby ending French-sponsored Indian attacks. One of the largest impressment operations occurred in New York in the spring of 1757 when three thousand British troops cordoned off
7320-404: The Heights, the less exclusive South Brooklyn was home to longtime civic leader James S. T. Stranahan , who became known (often derisively) as the " Baron Haussmann of Brooklyn" for championing Prospect Park and other public works. Economic growth continued, propelled by immigration and industrialization , and Brooklyn established itself as the third-most populous American city for much of
7442-575: The New World in the 17th century had been farmers from villages who on arrival in New Netherland scattered into widely separated villages that had little cross contact with each other. Even inside a settlement, different Dutch groups had minimal interaction. With very few new arrivals, the result was an increasingly traditional system cut off from the forces for change. The folk maintained their popular culture, revolving around their language and their Calvinist religion. The Dutch brought along their own folklore, most famously Sinterklaas , which evolved into
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#17328441057647564-436: The New York assembly refused to raise troops and only appropriated a token £3,000. The assembly was opposed to a significant war effort because it would interrupt trade with Quebec and would result in higher taxes. The French raid on Saratoga in 1745 destroyed that settlement, killing and capturing more than one hundred people. After this attack the assembly was more generous and raised 1,600 men and £40,000. Upstate New York
7686-763: The New York metropolitan area's most august patrician redoubts into the early 20th century under the aegis of such figures as abolitionist clergyman Henry Ward Beecher , Congregationalist theologians Lyman Abbott and Newell Dwight Hillis (who followed Beecher as the second and third pastors of Plymouth Church , respectively), financier John Jay Pierrepont (a grandson of founding Heights resident Hezekiah Pierrepont ), banker/art collector David Leavitt , educator/politician Seth Low , merchant/banker Horace Brigham Claflin , attorney William Cary Sanger (who served for two years as United States Assistant Secretary of War under Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt ) and publisher Alfred Smith Barnes . Contiguous to
7808-429: The Ted Weiss Federal Building at 290 Broadway. Historians estimated 15,000–20,000 Africans and African Americans had been buried in the approximately 8 acres surrounding there. Because of the extraordinary find, the government commissioned a memorial at the site, where the National Park Service has an interpretive center. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark and National Monument . Excavation and study of
7930-440: The Town of Flatlands in 1896. Brooklyn had reached its natural municipal boundaries at the ends of Kings County. Low's time in office from 1882 to 1885 was marked by a number of reforms: Brooklyn elected a mayor from 1834 until 1898, after which it was consolidated into the City of Greater New York , whose own second mayor (1902–1903), Seth Low, had been Mayor of Brooklyn from 1882 to 1885. Since 1898, Brooklyn has, in place of
8052-430: The application of Dutch law to bargains and contracts made prior to the capitulation. In 1664, James, Duke of York , was granted a proprietary colony which included New Netherland and present-day Maine. The New Netherland claim included western parts of present-day Massachusetts (to an extent that varied depending on whether the reference was the States General claim of all lands as far east as Narragansett Bay or
8174-406: The area on a "New York Habitat Restoration" webpage. Fountain Avenue has been infamous as a dumping ground for bodies of people slain by the mob . In the 1930s a group known as Murder, Inc. used the area as a dumping ground for bodies. Later the DeMeo crew disposed of many victims there. In 2006, the body of Imette St. Guillen , who was murdered on February 25, was discovered. Fountain Avenue
8296-436: The area, and afterward the British generally enjoyed a dominant Loyalist sentiment from the residents in Kings County who did not evacuate, though the region was also the center of the fledgling—and largely successful— Patriot intelligence network , headed by Washington himself. The British set up a system of prison ships off the coast of Brooklyn in Wallabout Bay . More American patriots died there than in combat on all
8418-424: The area. It is called "Brooklyn's Chinatown" and originally it was a small Chinese enclave with Cantonese speakers being the main Chinese population during the late 1980s and 1990s, but since the 2000s, the Chinese population in the area dramatically shifted to majority Fuzhounese Americans , which contributed immensely to expanding this Chinatown, and bestowing the nicknames " Fuzhou Town ( 福州埠 ), Brooklyn" or
8540-795: The ascendancy of Meade Esposito 's rival, Canarsie-based Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club in the 1960s and 1970s, playing an integral role in the rise of such figures as Speaker of the New York State Assembly Irwin Steingut ; his son, fellow Speaker Stanley Steingut ; New York City Mayor Abraham Beame ; real estate developer Fred Trump ; Democratic district leader Beadie Markowitz; and political fixer Abraham "Bunny" Lindenbaum. Many non-Orthodox Jews (ranging from observant members of various denominations to atheists of Jewish cultural heritage) are concentrated in Ditmas Park and Park Slope , with smaller observant and culturally Jewish populations in Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Brighton Beach, and Coney Island. Over 200,000 Chinese Americans live throughout
8662-421: The attached conditions were unsatisfactory. While New York was boycotting British imports, other colonies including Boston and Philadelphia were not. The De Lanceys tried to reach a compromise by passing a bill which allowed for the issuing of paper currency, of which half was for provisioning of the troops. Alexander McDougall , signed a 'Son of Liberty', issued a broadside entitled To the Betrayed Inhabitants of
8784-629: The avenue gains a median. The median continues past Flatlands Avenue , ending at Seaview Avenue. Between Flatlands Avenue and Seaview Avenue, Fountain Avenue borders the newly developed Spring Creek Neighborhood and the Brooklyn DDSO office to the West, and the Spring Creek AWPCP to the east. Fountain Avenue continues through past Seaview Avenue, where it curves under the Belt Parkway . The publicly accessible portion of Fountain Avenue ends just south of
8906-682: The battlefield engagements of the American Revolutionary War combined. One result of the Treaty of Paris in 1783 was the evacuation of the British from New York City , which was celebrated by New Yorkers into the 20th century. The first half of the 19th century saw the beginning of the development of urban areas on the economically strategic East River shore of Kings County, facing the adolescent City of New York confined to Manhattan Island. The New York Navy Yard operated in Wallabout Bay (border between Fort Greene and Williamsburg) during
9028-539: The borough seal and flag , is Eendraght Maeckt Maght , which translates from early modern Dutch as ' Unity makes strength '. Educational institutions in Brooklyn include the City University of New York 's Brooklyn College , Medgar Evers College , and College of Technology . In the first decades of the 21st century, Brooklyn has experienced a renaissance as a destination for hipsters , with concomitant gentrification , dramatic house-price increases, and
9150-538: The capitulation of the garrison at Fort Orange, which he called Albany, after another of the Duke of York's titles. The capture was confirmed by the Treaty of Breda in July 1667. Easing the transition to British rule, the Articles of Capitulation guaranteed certain rights to the Dutch; among these were: liberty of conscience in divine worship and church discipline, the continuation of their own customs concerning inheritances, and
9272-400: The city and impressed nearly eight hundred persons they found in taverns and other gathering places of sailors. New York was the centre for privateering . Forty New York ships were commissioned as privateers in 1756 and in the spring of 1757 it was estimated the value of French prizes brought into New York was two hundred thousand pounds. By 1759, the seas had been cleaned of French vessels and
9394-552: The colonies by the Dutch, and thereafter by the British, largely bought from African tribal chiefs who exploited prisoners taken during the numerous tribal wars of that period. In the 1690s, New York was the largest importer of the colonies of slaves and a supply port for pirates. The black population became a major element in New York City, and on large upstate farms. With its shipping and trades, New York had use for skilled African labor as artisans and domestic servants. New York sold these slaves using slave markets, giving slaves to
9516-536: The colony professing Christianity. To encourage immigration, it also provided that foreigners professing Christianity may, after their arrival, be naturalized if they took the oath of allegiance as required. The Duke's Laws established a non-denominational state church. The British replaced the Dutch in their alliance with the Iroquois against New France , with an agreement called the Covenant Chain . The colony
9638-517: The commander, the tactical withdrawal of all his troops and supplies across the East River in a single night is now seen by historians as one of his most brilliant triumphs. The British controlled the surrounding region for the duration of the war, as New York City was soon occupied and became their military and political base of operations in North America for the remainder of the conflict. The Patriot residents largely fled or were cleared from
9760-588: The countryside north of New York City centered on the Livingston estates . They marched on New York expecting the Sons of Liberty to support them. Instead, the Sons of Liberty blocked the roads and the leader of the tenants was convicted of treason. In the last years of the French and Indian War London approved a policy of keeping twenty regiments in the colonies to police and defend the back country. The enabling legislation took
9882-499: The crown. The final evacuation of New York City by the British Army was followed by the return of General George Washington 's Continental Army on November 25, 1783, in a grand parade and celebration. This British crown colony was established upon the former Iroquois nation and then Dutch colony of New Netherland , with its core being York Shire , in what today is typically known as Downstate New York . In 1617, officials of
10004-417: The day shift and another 12 on the night shift. Every time a rash of burglaries broke out, officials blamed burglars from New York City. Finally, in 1855, a modern police force was created, employing 150 men. Voters complained of inadequate protection and excessive costs. In 1857, the state legislature merged the Brooklyn force with that of New York City. Fervent in the Union cause, the city of Brooklyn played
10126-535: The earlier Central Park ) into the center of the county, as evinced by gradual settlement in the comparatively rustic villages of Windsor Terrace and Kensington in the Town of Flatbush. By century's end, Dean Alvord 's Prospect Park South development (adjacent to the village of Flatbush) would serve as the template for contemporaneous " Victorian Flatbush " micro-neighborhoods and the post-consolidation emergence of outlying districts, such as Midwood and Marine Park . Along with Oak Park, Illinois , it also presaged
10248-489: The first major engagement fought in the American Revolutionary War after independence was declared , and the largest of the entire conflict. British troops forced Continental Army troops under George Washington off the heights near the modern sites of Green-Wood Cemetery , Prospect Park , and Grand Army Plaza . Washington , viewing particularly fierce fighting at the Gowanus Creek and Old Stone House from atop
10370-445: The first of its kind in the colonies. This constitution gave New Yorkers more rights than any other group of colonists including the protection from taxation without representation . On November 1, 1683, the government was reorganized, and the state was divided into twelve counties , each of which was subdivided into towns . Ten of those counties still exist (see above ), but two ( Cornwall and Dukes ) were in territory purchased by
10492-412: The first, kernel incarnation of the City of Brooklyn in 1834. In a parallel development, the Town of Bushwick, farther up the river, saw the incorporation of the Village of Williamsburgh in 1827, which separated as the Town of Williamsburgh in 1840 and formed the short-lived City of Williamsburgh in 1851. Industrial deconcentration in the mid-century was bringing shipbuilding and other manufacturing to
10614-497: The form of the Quartering Act which required colonial legislatures to provide quarters and supplies for the troops. The Quartering Act stirred little controversy and New Yorkers were ambivalent about the presence of the troops. The assembly had provided barracks and provisions every year since 1761. However, the tenant riots of 1766 showed the need for a police force in the colony. The Livingston-controlled New York assembly passed
10736-455: The former Fountain Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue landfills. For many years, this segment of Fountain Avenue, between Flatlands Avenue and the Belt Parkway, was undeveloped and used primarily as a site for illegal drag racing. At its north end, Fountain Avenue is just a side street, carrying one lane of southbound traffic only. Between Sutter Avenue and Linden Boulevard , Fountain Avenue is a six-lane, undivided roadway. South of Linden Boulevard,
10858-518: The highest bidder at an auction. Two notable slave revolts occurred in New York in 1712 and 1741 . The numbers of slaves imported to New York increased dramatically from the 1720s through 1740s. By the 17th century, they established the African burial ground in Lower Manhattan, which was used through 1812. It was discovered nearly two centuries later during excavation before the construction of
10980-472: The influence of James De Lancey . The De Lanceys regarded imperial ties to be a tool for personal advantage. Parliament passed the Stamp Act 1765 to raise money from the colonies. New York had previously passed its own stamp act from 1756 to 1760 to raise money for the French and Indian war. The extraordinary response to the Stamp Act can only be explained by the build-up of antagonisms on local issues. New York
11102-1001: The largest single group of immigrants before the Revolutionary War. By comparison, Manhattan then had only 6,000 people. Initially, the Germans were employed in the production of naval stores and tar along the Hudson River near Peekskill. In 1723 they were allowed to settle in the central Mohawk Valley west of Schenectady as a buffer against the Native Americans and the French. They also settled in areas such as Schoharie and Cherry Valley . Many became tenant farmers or squatters. They kept to themselves, married their own, spoke German, attended Lutheran churches, and retained their own customs and foods. They emphasized farm ownership. Some mastered English to become conversant with local legal and business opportunities. The first slaves were introduced to
11224-547: The laws of England. The Duke of York never visited his colony and exercised little direct control of it. He elected to administer his government through governors, councils, and other officers appointed by himself. No provision was made for an elected assembly. Also in 1664, the Duke of York gave the part of his new possessions between the Hudson River and the Delaware River to Sir George Carteret in exchange for settlement of
11346-399: The loss of Brooklyn's separate identity as a city was met with consternation by some residents at the time. Many newspapers of the day called the merger the "Great Mistake of 1898", and the phrase still elicits Brooklyn pride among old-time Brooklynites. Brooklyn is 97 square miles (250 km ) in area, of which 71 square miles (180 km ) is land (73%), and 26 square miles (67 km )
11468-564: The merchant ship Polly carrying stamps for Connecticut was boarded in New York Harbor and the stamps destroyed. Up to the end of 1765 the Stamp Act disturbances had largely been confined to New York City, but in January the Sons of Liberty also stopped the distribution of stamps in Albany. In May 1766, when news arrived of the repeal of the Stamp Act the Sons of Liberty celebrated by the erection of
11590-547: The mob actions in New York with those in Boston. In Boston, after the initial unrest, local leaders such as the Loyal Nine (a precursor to the Sons of Liberty) were able to take control of the mob. In New York, however, the "mob was largely made up of seamen, most of whom lacked deep community ties and felt little need to submit to the authority of the city's shorebound radical leaders." The New York Sons of Liberty did not take control of
11712-456: The modern day Santa Claus . They maintained their distinctive clothing and food preferences. They introduced some new foods to America, including beets, endive, spinach, parsley, and cookies. After the British takeover, rich Dutch families in Albany and New York City emulated the English elite, purchasing English furniture, silverware, crystal, and jewelry. They were proud of the Dutch language, which
11834-452: The most populous of the five boroughs of New York City, the most populous county in the state. Brooklyn, at 37,339.9 inhabitants per square mile (14,417.0/km ), is the second most densely populated county in the U.S. after Manhattan (New York County), as of 2022. Had Brooklyn remained an independent city, it would now be the fourth most populous American city after the rest of New York City, Los Angeles , and Chicago . Named after
11956-410: The name that its origin has been debated; some have claimed breuckelen means "broken land". The current name, however, is the one that best reflects its meaning. The history of European settlement in Brooklyn spans more than 350 years. The settlement began in the 17th century as the small Dutch-founded town of "Breuckelen" on the East River shore of Long Island , grew to be a sizeable city in
12078-462: The name was shortened to The Brooklyn Daily Eagle ; on September 5, 1938, it was further shortened to Brooklyn Eagle . The establishment of the paper in the 1840s helped develop a separate identity for Brooklynites over the next century. The borough's soon-to-be-famous National League baseball team, the Brooklyn Dodgers , also assisted with this. Both major institutions were lost in the 1950s:
12200-454: The nation. Brooklyn contains dozens of distinct neighborhoods representing many of the major culturally identified groups found within New York City. Among the most prominent are listed below: Over 600,000 Jews , particularly Orthodox and Hasidic Jews , have become concentrated in such historically Jewish areas as Borough Park , Williamsburg , and Midwood , where there are many yeshivas , synagogues , and kosher restaurants, as well as
12322-488: The northern part of the county. Each of the two cities and six towns in Kings County remained independent municipalities and purposely created non-aligning street grids with different naming systems. However, the East River shore was growing too fast for the three-year-old infant City of Williamsburg; it, along with its Town of Bushwick hinterland, was subsumed within a greater City of Brooklyn in 1855, subsequently dropping
12444-482: The opposition until after November 1. On November 1, the crowd destroyed a warehouse and the house of Thomas James, commander at Fort George . A few days later the stamps stored at Fort George were surrendered to the mob. Nash notes that, "whether the Sons of Liberty could control the mariners, lower artisans, and laborers remained in doubt," and "they came to fear the awful power of the assembled lower-class artisans and their maritime compatriots." On January 7, 1766,
12566-487: The paper closed in 1955 after unsuccessful attempts at a sale following a reporters' strike, and the baseball team decamped for Los Angeles in a realignment of Major League Baseball in 1957. Agitation against Southern slavery was stronger in Brooklyn than in New York, and under Republican leadership, the city was fervent in the Union cause in the Civil War . After the war the Henry Ward Beecher Monument
12688-534: The peace in 1674, the Duke of York appointed Sir Edmund Andros as Governor of his territories in America. Governor Edmund Andros in 1674 said "permit all persons of what religion soever, quietly to inhabit within the precincts of your jurisdiction" Nonetheless, he made the Quakers of West Jersey pay toll on the Delaware, but they applied to England and were redressed. He was followed by Colonel Thomas Dongan in 1682. Dongan
12810-598: The privateers were diverted into trading with the enemy. The ending of the war caused a severe recession in New York. Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet , negotiated an end to Pontiac's Rebellion . He promoted the Proclamation of 1763 and the Treaty of Fort Stanwix to protect the Indians from further English settlement in their lands. The treaty established a boundary line along the West Branch Delaware River and
12932-406: The remains has been described as the "most important historic urban archaeological project undertaken in the United States." This province, as a British colony, fought against the French during King George's War . The assembly was determined to control expenditures for this war and only weak support was given. When the call came for New York to help raise an expeditionary force against Louisburg ,
13054-473: The resolution repugnant to the laws of England and dissolved the assembly. The De Lancey faction, again with Sons of Liberty support, won a majority in the assembly. In the spring of 1769, New York was in a depression from the recall of paper boycott and the British boycott. By the Currency Act New York was required to recall all paper money. London allowed the issuance of additional paper money, but
13176-547: The respectable leaders of the Sons of Liberty, the lower orders rampaged through the town for four days. Some two thousand strong, they threatened the homes of suspected sympathizers of British policy, attacked the house of the famously wealthy governor Cadwallader Colden, paraded his effigy around town, and built a monstrous bonfire in the Bowling Green into which the shouting crowd hurled the governor's luxurious two sleighs and horse-drawn coach. Historian Fred Anderson contrasted
13298-638: The southern part of the county. Toward the end of the 19th century, the City of Brooklyn experienced its final, explosive growth spurt. Park Slope was rapidly urbanized, with its eastern summit soon emerging as the city's third "Gold Coast" district alongside Brooklyn Heights and The Hill; notable residents of the era included American Chicle Company co-founder Thomas Adams Jr. and New York Central Railroad executive Clinton L. Rossiter. East of The Hill, Bedford-Stuyvesant coalesced as an upper middle class enclave for lawyers, shopkeepers, and merchants of German and Irish descent (notably exemplified by John C. Kelley,
13420-525: The southern parts of Brooklyn, primarily concentrated in Sunset Park , Bensonhurst , Gravesend , and Homecrest . Brooklyn is the borough that is home to the highest number of Chinatowns in New York City . The largest concentration is in Sunset Park along 8th Avenue, which has become known for its Chinese culture since the opening of the now-defunct Winley Supermarket in 1986 spurred widespread settlement in
13542-469: The state of New York" The landfill was mentioned on July 10, 2007, as undergoing a $ 20 million ecological restoration with the Pennsylvania landfill. The area is also under discussion by local government to be considered for more development . City Line Park was mentioned as being redesigned and transformed under a $ 1.5 million renovation launched this day. Ecological concerns were later expressed for
13664-554: The western portion of Queens County , and the county of New York , which by then already included the Bronx , to form the five boroughs of a united City of New York. Andrew Haswell Green and other progressives said yes, and eventually, they prevailed against the Daily Eagle and other conservative forces. In 1894, residents of Brooklyn and the other counties voted by a slight majority to merge, effective in 1898. Kings County retained its status as one of New York State's counties, but
13786-421: The world, Brooklyn has evolved a globally cosmopolitan ambiance of its own, demonstrating a robust and growing demographic and cultural diversity with respect to metrics including nationality, religion, race, and domiciliary partnership . In 2010, 51.6% of the population was counted as members of religious congregations. In 2014, there were 914 religious organizations in Brooklyn, the 10th most of all counties in
13908-505: Was a British proprietary colony and later a royal colony on the northeast coast of North America from 1664 to 1783. It extended from Long Island on the Atlantic, up the Hudson River and Mohawk River valleys to the Great Lakes and North to the colonies of New France and claimed lands further west. In 1664, Charles II of England and his brother James , Duke of York raised
14030-440: Was built downtown to honor a famous local abolitionist . A great victory arch was built at what was then the south end of town to celebrate the armed forces; this place is now called Grand Army Plaza . The number of people living in Brooklyn grew rapidly early in the 19th century. There were 4,402 by 1810, 7,175 in 1820 and 15,396 by 1830. The city's population was 25,000 in 1834, but the police department comprised only 12 men on
14152-462: Was consolidated in and annexed (along with other areas) to form the current five-borough structure of New York City in accordance to the new municipal charter of " Greater New York ". The borough continues to maintain some distinct culture . Many Brooklyn neighborhoods are ethnic enclaves . With Jews forming around a quarter of its population, the borough has been described as "the most Jewish spot on Earth". Brooklyn's official motto, displayed on
14274-486: Was empowered, on the advice of William Penn , to summon "...a general assembly of all the freeholders, by such persons they should choose to represent them to consult with you and said council what laws are fit and necessary to be made..." A colonial Assembly was created in October 1683. New York was the last of the English colonies to have an assembly . The assembly passed the Province of New York constitution on October 30,
14396-557: Was experiencing a severe recession from the effects of the end of the French and Indian war. The colonies were experiencing the effects of a very tight monetary policy caused by the trade deficit with Britain, a fiscal crisis in Britain restricting credit, and the Currency Act , which prevented the issuing of paper currency to provide liquidity. From the outset, New York led the protests in the colonies. Both New York political factions opposed
14518-474: Was one of the Middle Colonies , and ruled at first directly from England. When the Duke of York ascended to the throne of England as James II in 1685, the province became a royal colony. In 1664, after the Dutch ceded New Netherland to Britain , it became a proprietary colony under James, Duke of York . When James ascended the throne in February 1685 and became King James II , his personally owned colony became
14640-557: Was strongly reinforced through the church, but were much slower than the Yankees in setting up schools for their children. They finally set up Queens College, which is now Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey . They published no newspapers, and published no books and only a handful of religious tracts annually. Nearly 2,800 Palatine German emigrants were transported to New York by Queen Anne's government in ten ships in 1710,
14762-402: Was taken up in confirming the ancient Dutch land grants. Francis Lovelace was next appointed Governor and held the position from May 1667 until the return of the Dutch in July 1673. A Dutch fleet recaptured New York and held it until it was traded to the English by the Treaty of Westminster . A second grant was obtained by the Duke of York in July 1674 to perfect his title. Upon conclusion of
14884-496: Was the scene of fighting during the French and Indian War , with British and French forces contesting control of Lake Champlain in association with Native American allies. Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet , and other agents in upstate New York brought about the participation of the Iroquois. The French and their Indian allies laid siege to Fort William Henry at the southern end of Lake George in 1757. The British forces surrendered to
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