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Please add profiles of people who were born, lived or died in Kings County, New York.
Although Brooklyn has been a borough of New York City for more than a century, it had a long and illustrious history as an independent city until that time. In 1890, the last census before it was annexed, Brooklyn ranked as the fourth largest city in the United States.
The first settlement in what is now Brooklyn took place in 1636, when a group of Dutch farmers established themselves along the shore of Gowanus Bay. Flatlands, on Jamaica Bay, and Wallabout were established at about the same time. In 1642, a ferry to Manhattan was established at what is now the foot of Fulton Street, and the community that grew up there became known as The Ferry. In 1645, a settlement was established near the site of the present borough hall and was designated Breuckelen, perhaps after a town in Holland. The spelling varied for more than a century before being settled as "Brooklyn."
During the Revolutionary War, Brooklyn was the site of the important Battle of Long Island. Fort Putnam, erected by General Nathanael Green in 1776, protected General Washington's retreat after the battle. On the same site, Americans built an earthworks fort to protect themselves against a British attack during the War of 1812. They named it Fort Greene, after General Greene.
The editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in 1846 was Walt Whitman, later to become one of America's most famous poets. At Whitman's urging, Brooklyn set aside land, including the site of Fort Greene, that in 1847 became Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn's first park. Construction on Prospect Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, began in 1866. The famous conductor and composer, Leonard Bernstein, was born in Brooklyn, as well as the actress and comedienne, Mae West.
During the 19th century, Brooklyn gradually absorbed neighboring districts, including incorporated towns like Williamsburg, until it extended to every corner of Kings County. In 1898, it surrendered its independent existence and became a borough of New York City.
Brooklyn was connected to Manhattan in 1883 by the Brooklyn Bridge, considered one of the engineering marvels of the age. The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge connects Brooklyn with Staten Island. The longest suspension bridge in the world at the time, it remains the longest in the United States.
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The original Dutch settlement of what is now Brooklyn consisted of six towns with clearly defined borders. These later became English settlements, and were consolidated over time until the entirety of Kings County was the unified City of Brooklyn. The towns were, clockwise from the north: Bushwick, Brooklyn, Flatlands, Gravesend, New Utrecht, with Flatbush in the middle. The modern neighborhoods bearing these names are located roughly in the center of each of these original towns. Certain portions of the original six towns were also independent municipalities for a time, before being reabsorbed. Following an 1894 referendum, the entire consolidated City of Brooklyn became a borough of New York City in 1898.
Towns: historic
- Bushwick
- Brooklyn
- Flatbush (Midwourt) (Vlacke Bos)
- Flatlands
- Gravesend
- New Utretcht
Neighborhoods: current day
- Albemarle-Kenmore Terraces
- Barren Island
- Bath Beach
- Bay Ridge
- Bedford-Stuyvesant
- Bensonhurst
- Bergen Beach
- Beverley Square (East and West)
- Boerum Hill
- Borough Park
- Bridge Plaza
- Brighton Beach
- Brooklyn Heights
- Brooklyn Navy Yard
- Brownsville
- Bushwick
- Cadman Plaza
- Canarsie
- Carroll Gardens
- Clinton Hill
- Cobble Hill
- Columbia Street Waterfront
- Coney Island
- Crown Heights
- Ditmas Park
- Downtown Brooklyn
- Dumbo
- Dyker Heights
- East Flatbush
- East New York
- East Williamsburg
- Fiske Terrace
- Flatbush
- Flatlands
- Fort Greene
- Fort Hamilton
- Fulton Ferry
- Gerritsen Beach
- Gowanus
- Gravesend
- Greenpoint
- Greenwood Heights
- Highland Park
- Homecrest
- Kensington
- Manhattan Beach
- Mapleton
- Marine Park
- Midwood
- Mill Basin
- Ocean Hill
- Ocean Parkway
- Pacific Park
- Park Slope
- Park Slope Village
- Plumb Beach
- Prospect Heights
- Prospect Park
- Prospect Park South
- Prospect Lefferts Gardens
- Red Hook
- Sea Gate
- Sheepshead Bay
- Spring Creek
- Starrett City
- Sunset Park
- The Hole
- Victorian Flatbush
- Vinegar Hill
- Weeksville
- Williamsburg
- Windsor Terrace
- Wingate
- Wyckoff Heights
Cemeteries
Links
Nat'l Reg. of Hist. Places in Brooklyn
List of Brooklyn neighborhoods
Jewish Genealogical Society Brooklyn Naturalizations
