Brooklyn Heights Blog

Mr. Junkersfeld files this companion dispatch to go along with his latest film: Read more »

In the 1977 movie The Sentinel, the top rear window of 10 Montague Terrace served as the really spooky Gate to Hell where a blind priest stand on guard for demons and the undead.

The movie does boast some scary moments (Sylvia Miles naked! Arrr!) and any movie featuring Christopher Walken is a-ok in our book.

During the “neckdown” construction project on Henry Street,  Karl “Add Urban Archeologist to my Resume” Junkersfeld caught a glimpse of  old timey cobblestones that have been hidden under asphalt at Henry and Cranberry for decades.

The Brooklyn Eagle’s Brad “Mick” Lockwood offers up this video tour of Brooklyn Writers starting in Brooklyn Heights.

The Brooklyn Historical Society, in conjunction with Kea Carpets and Kilims, is holding a sale of antique carpets and tribal kilims this weekend to raise funds for the Society. There will be an opening reception this Thursday evening, September 24, featuring a lecture by Kea owner Susan Gomersall. From the Society’s press release:

Join BHS and Kea Carpets & Kilims for a Weekend Sale of Kea’s antique carpets and tribal kilims. Kea’s magnificent carpets come from across the globe. On September 24-27 Kea will transform the first floor of BHS into an elegant and eclectic international bazaar. Feel good about updating your home’s look with a new carpet from the sale, because proceeds will benefit the Brooklyn Historical Society!

Opening Night Reception: Thursday, September 24, 6:00—8:00 pm featuring an informal lecture on tribal carpets by Kea owner Susan Gomersall. Sale continues: Friday, Sept. 25—Sunday, Sept. 27 during regular BHS hours.

BHS is located at 128 Pierrepont Street, at the southwest corner of Pierrepont and Clinton. It is open Wednesday-Friday and Sunday 12-5 P.M., and Saturday 10 A.M.-5 P.M.

This Brooklyn Public library photo shows a pre-BQE promenade at the end of Montague Street.  The arched viaduct (far right), greenhouse and buttressed wall were accessible via the stairway that also led to a ferry landing below.  Everything was demolished in 1946 to build the promenade and the BQE.

The Brooklyn Eagle writes today about legendary author/former 70 Willow Street resident Truman Capote on the 25th anniversary of his death.

Neil Freeman is an urban planner, artist, and Brooklyn resident. His work appears on his website, fake is the new real. Thanks to Urban Omnibus, we’ve been alerted to a project of Freeman’s that should be of interest to all Brooklynites, including Heights residents. This is his “Brooklyn Typology. ” In Freeman’s words:

Brookyn Typology is an investigation of borough’s population and urban form. It consists of 2100 photographs taken in a sample of blockgroups in Brooklyn, plus detailed Census, historical, and typological data about the residential and housing in area. Together, the interlinked photographs and
data form a portrait of the urban fabric of Brooklyn.

Two of the “blockgroups” included in “Brooklyn Typology” are in the Heights: tract 3.01, blockgroup 1, consisting of the area bounded by Pineapple Street on the north, Hicks Street on the east, Pierrepont Street on the south, and Willow Street on the west; and tract 5, blockgroup 2 bounded by Pierrepont on the north, Clinton Street on the east, Joralemon Street on the south, and Henry Street on the west. Read more »

Next Saturday, July 25, the Long Island Rail Road will celebrate its 175th anniversary with a one day excursion that will depart from LIRR’s Atlantic Avenue station at 8:12 A.M. and return at 8:42 P.M. The special train will travel the entire length of the main line to Greenport, on the North Fork, with stopovers there and at Riverhead to enjoy local attractions. According to the LIRR’s press release:

Rail and history buffs will certainly enjoy this LIRR Getaway as will the casual rail rider. The “175th Anniversary Train” will travel along the Main Line of the LIRR from the urban and suburban areas of Queens and Nassau Counties to the rural, farming areas of Eastern Suffolk County’s North Fork. Knowledgeable docents from the Long Island Sunrise Trail Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society will be onboard the train to answer history-related questions. Read more »

The New York Times has produced an informative and picturesque video, narrated by Corey Kilgannon, about Governors Island, now accessable by ferry from Fulton Landing. You can read about Homer and Mrs. Fink’s visit to the Island here.