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Trump’s Muslim Ban Halted Right Here in Brooklyn Heights

If you heard the roar of a crowd tonight, it was coming from the Eastern District federal courthouse on Cadman Plaza. At around 8:30 p.m., the chant “Let them stay! Let them stay!” was heard from a boisterous group of protesters outside the courthouse. Why were protesters outside the courthouse on a Saturday night? According to […]

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Two Montague Street Buildings Designated Landmarks

The Eagle reports that the Landmarks Preservation Commission has voted unanimously to designate two buildings on Montague Street’s “Bank Row” between Clinton and Court streets as city landmarks. We noted their nomination for landmark status last August. The buildings–181-183 Montague, the People’s Trust Company Building, now occupied by Citibank; and 185 Montague, the National Title […]

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Coming at Brooklyn Historical Society

This Wednesday evening, January 11 at 6:30, the Brooklyn Historical Society will present “Civic Responsibility Then and Now: A View from the Archives”, in which BHS’s Director of Public History Julie Golia and Oral Historian Zaheer Ali will “delve into our archives to consider the varied approaches to Civil Rights tactics over the course of […]

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Catching Up With Kenn Lowy: The Last Owner of Brooklyn Heights Cinemas

Brooklyn Heights Cinemas, at the end of its 42-year run, was the oldest independently-owned cinema in all of New York City. When the cinema shut off its projectors for good in 2014, the neighborhood collectively mourned the loss of yet another community sanctuary. A place where neighbors and visitors gathered for shared experiences. A place […]

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Coming at Brooklyn Historical Society

This Tuesday evening, December 13, at 7:00, food historian Sarah Lohman will be at the Brooklyn Historical Society to discuss “How Immigrant Cooks Shape American Food”. Joining her will be Jonathan Wu of Fung Tu and Mario Carbone of Carbone. Admission is $10, or $5 for BHS or Green-Wood members; purchase tickets here. Criminologist Michael […]

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BHS to Present Brooklyn Documentary Films, Featuring Ric Burns, Wednesday, December 21

On Wednesday evening, December 21, at 6:30, at the Brooklyn Historical Society, the Brooklyn Film & Arts Festival will present a screening of Brooklyn documentary films. The main feature will be an excerpt of Ric Burns’ New York, A Documentary Film, followed by a discussion with the filmmaker. The event is free, but you must […]

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Al Capone, Brooklyn Native, Subject of Book Talk at BHS Monday

On Monday evening, December 5, at 6:30, the Brooklyn Historical Society will host a book talk by Deirdre Bair, author of Al Capone: His Life, Legacy, and Legend. Born in Brooklyn in 1899, Capone rose to infamy as head of the rackets–principally bootlegging during the prohibition years–in Chicago. “With exclusive access to his descendants,” Ms. […]

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Coming Next Week at Brooklyn Historical Society

This coming Monday evening, November 28 at 6:30, at the Brooklyn Historical Society, two noted historians, Steven Hahn and Eric Foner, will discuss Hahn’s book, A Nation Without Borders, which is not about America after the closing of a major bookstore chain, but instead “takes a provocative new look at the eight decades surrounding the […]

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German Consul to Speak at Kristallnacht Remembrance, Congregation Mt. Sinai Saturday

The night of November 9-10 will be the 78th anniversary of Kristallnacht (“the night of broken glass”; see photo), when mobs led by Nazi soldiers and police attacked Jewish people and their homes, places of business, and houses of worship. Congregation Mount Sinai, at 250 Cadman Plaza West, will remember Kristallnacht this Saturday, November 5, […]

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Electeds, Preservationists Celebrate Brooklyn Heights Historic District at Plaque Re-Dedication Ceremony

Fifty years ago, Brooklyn Heights was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service. This distinction and the advocacy of many dedicated  preservationists, lead to the passing of New York City’s Landmarks Law in April 1965 and in November of 1965, Brooklyn Heights was designated New York’s first Historic District.  And so to […]

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