BROOKLYN WALKING TOURS IN 2 DUMBO 4 DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN PURSUIT 7 BROOKLYN HEIGHTS OF 10 WEEKSVILLE Freedom 13 WILLIAMSBURG In Pursuit of Freedom explores the everyday heroes of Brooklyn’s anti–slavery movement. The public history project is a partnership of Brooklyn Historical Society, Weeksville Heritage Center, and Irondale Ensemble Project. The sites you’ll visit on this walking tour look very different today and in most cases are no longer standing. We have done our best to include images of Brooklyn during the time period to give you a sense of the streetscape. [ www.pursuitoffreedom.org ] 1 FULTON LANDING present–day Brooklyn Heights. The Old Fulton Street and the East River Fulton Landing lay at the heart of the town of Brooklyn. Businesses, then We are standing at one of the greatest houses, spread outward from here, as seaports on the East Coast. In 1646, streets were laid, shops, taverns, and DUMBO when the Dutch first settled here, churches built. Fulton’s steam ferry, this was part of the town of Breukelen, which travelled between Brooklyn and now Brooklyn. This busy area con- Manhattan, began running in 1814. It tained ships carrying imported goods decreased commuting times and made and exporting produce and other Brooklyn a desirable place to live for commodities to neighboring New those who worked in Manhattan. This Amsterdam (now Lower Manhattan), site is where the story of the emerging other colonies in the Americas, and city of Brooklyn begins. Europe. Now look across the river at the sailing ships at the South Street Let’s walk along Water Street, near 2 Seaport and imagine them unloading the river, to our next destination. JAY ST their cargo. That was the bustling town PEARL ST MAIN ST PLYMOUTHof ST New Amsterdam—the commercial A WASHINGTON ST and financial center of Dutch and 1 WATER ST later EnglishWATER colonial ST operations. MANHATTAN BRIDGE Ferries carried goods and people back 3 FRONTand ST forth. It was a busy, noisy place, OLD FULTON ST BROOKLYN BRIDGE strangeBRIDGE ST and frightening to many of 5 ADAMS ST VINE ST 4 the enslaved people arriving here. YORK ST By the end of the American FURMAN ST POPLAR ST 6 Revolution, in 1783, Brooklyn stretched GOLD ST MIDDAGH ST PROSPECT ST 7 from the DUMBO area up the hill to CRANBERRY ST SANDS ST COLUMBIA HEIGHTS FLATBUSH AVE SANDS ST 2 BROOKLYNTHOMAS QUEENS KIRK’S EX PRINT SHOP ORANGE ST Main and Water Streets CADMAN PLAZA E CADMAN PLAZA E PINEAPPLE ST JAY ST JAY ST NASSAU ST PRESSWAY ADAMS ST ADAMS ST HENRY ST N CONCORD ST CLARK ST CHAPEL ST W E WILLOW ST CATHEDRAL PL CADMAN PLAZA W S COLLEGE PL LOVE LN TILLARY ST MONROE PL HICKS ST PIERREPONT ST BROOKLYN QUEENS EXPRESSWAYPIERREPONT PL JOHNSON ST Brooklyn’sMONTAGUE anti–slavery ST movement began in the REMSEN ST GRACE CT neighborhoods we now call DUMBO and Vinegar Hill. CLINTON ST JAY ST At the end of the American Revolution, this was the The Sands family owned most of this area. Brothers Comfort and Joshua Sands town ofHUNTS Brooklyn. LN It was one of six agricultural towns JORALEMON ST were in the mercantile business, specializing in foreign trade. They also engaged in Kings County until it was incorporated as the city in land speculation and were politically well connected. Like many other wealthy of Brooklyn in 1834. men of their day, both men were slave holders. The Sands name is important to HICKS ST From 1810 onwards, this area was home to a self– local history, and we’ll revisit them later in the tour. LIVINGSTON ST GARDEN PL determined free black community. The community Water Street was a mix of small clapboard houses, wooden warehouses, COURT ST SIDNEY PL and stores. Houses lined the surrounding streets as well. Now look down built independent institutions to meet, study, pray, Main Street, with your back to the water. Along this street stood Thomas Kirk’s and combat the widespread racism around them. Print Shop and Brooklyn’s district school, which opened in 1816. They established a powerful anti–slavery agenda for The school stated explicitly that “no colored children would be received.” future generations of activists. Walk up Main Street, away from the water. 2 6 PETER AND BENJAMIN CROGER’S HOMES Prejudice, that monster that now stalks about Old address 89 and 91 Pearl Street Before the Jehovah’s Witnesses built these 20th–century factories to house their our streets, shall blush at its own deformity. printing presses, this area was residential. Peter Croger moved here from James Street some time after 1820. He and his family lived only two doors away from his Men are created equal. Man is everywhere the brother, Benjamin Croger. The Croger brothers were listed in city directories as “cleric,” “preacher,” and “class leader.” They were among the pillars of the African brother of men. American community. —JACOB TITUS B Keep walking south along Pearl Street, one block to Sands Street. Walk along Sands Street until we are out from under the Manhattan Bridge. 3 MR. MILL’S TAVERN 4 HENRY C. THOMPSON’S SHOE Main and Front Streets AND BOOT BLACKING BUSINESS Main and Front Streets Picture nothing here but wood– framed houses, taverns, and shops. South of this corner was Henry C. Main Street once extended all the Thompson’s boot blacking business. way up the hill to Old Fulton Street. Thompson was an African American But many buildings were demol- businessman with a busy shoe shine ished during the construction of and repair shop. Most people the Brooklyn Bridge, which began during this period only owned one in 1870. or two pairs of shoes. They would This parking lot was the location have relied on Thompson’s crucial of Mill’s Tavern. In 1818, it was the business to repair their shoes until starting place for a procession they were totally worn out. As an organized by the Brooklyn African activist, Thompson was a member Woolman Benevolent Society, a of the Brooklyn African Woolman group of free black Brooklynites Benevolent Society, and later became C who came together to assist one an early investor in Weeksville, the another. They took the “Woolman” African American community founded Image Captions name in honor of Quaker abolition- in 1838, in what is now Crown Heights. 7 SANDS STREET ist John Woolman. The march A Old Brooklyn Ferry- house of 1746, 1867 ended at the African Methodist Turn left on Front Street, then right In 1784, brothers Comfort and Joshua Sands N. Orr. M1988.2.2. Episcopal Church, Brooklyn’s first on Washington Street. At York Street, bought 160 acres along the Brooklyn waterfront Brooklyn Historical African American denomination, take a left until a parking lot stands for $12,000. As a result, the Sands family Society. in Downtown Brooklyn. on your right. once owned most of the DUMBO and B Speech by Jacob Vinegar Hill area. Titus at Brooklyn AME Joshua Sands was a congressman and Church. Delivered to president of the Board of Trustees of the Village Brooklyn African Woolman Benevolent 5 SITE OF PETER CROGER’S HOME of Brooklyn. He also owned a ropewalk, where he Society. Old address James Street manufactured shipping, rigging, and various kinds C Winter Scene in (no longer exists) of rope. His brother, Comfort, was a founder and Brooklyn, ca. 1819– director of the Bank of New York and president 1820. Francis Guy. Oil Use your imagination: instead of this of the New York Chamber of Commerce. on canvas, 58 3/8 x 74 modern parking lot, picture a street with In this area, now a barren entryway to two 9/16. Brooklyn Museum, small clapboard houses. This was the bridges, once stood homes and shops. Sands transferred from the Brooklyn Institute of approximate site of Peter Croger’s home, Street was an important thoroughfare between Arts and Sciences to where he operated a private African the town of Brooklyn and the Brooklyn Navy Yard the Brooklyn Museum, School (opened in 1815). His home was (established by the federal government in 1801). 97.13. originally located on James Street, Now it runs through the neighborhood of Vinegar which was razed when construction of Hill, named after a battlefield in Ireland, by the the Brooklyn Bridge began. Irish immigrants who settled here after 1820. Early Brooklynites included people of Dutch, German, Walk east along York Street. English, French, Scandinavian, Belgian, Irish, and Turn right up Pearl Street to African descent. Prospect Street. 3 PEARL ST WASHINGTON ST JAY ST MANHATTAN BRIDGE FRONT ST ADAMS ST BRIDGE ST YORK ST GOLD ST PROSPECT ST SANDS ST 1 SANDS ST BROOKLYN QUEENS E NAVY ST HIGH ST CADMAN PLAZA E 2 JAY ST NASSAU ST XPRESSWAY ADAMS ST 5 3 CONCORD ST CHAPEL ST FLATBUSH AVE 6 CATHEDRAL PL 4 TILLARY ST GOLD ST DOWNTOWN PARK AVE PRINCE ST JOHNSON ST 7 JAY ST LAWRENCE ST 11 BRIDGE ST 8 BROOKLYN MYRTLE AVE FLATBUSH AVE PRINCE ST PEARL ST DUFFIELD ST ASHLAND PL WILLOUGHBY ST N LIVINGSTON ST 9 10 In the early 19th century, W E this area was the village of RED HOOK LN S Brooklyn, located within the FLEET PL town of the same name. It was GALLATIN PL SMITH ST the heart of the burgeoning DEKALB AVE ELM PL city. Brooklyn’s anti–slavery 1 3 FULTON ST AFRICAN METHODIST CHURCH HOYT ST ROBERT H. COUSINS’S HOME pioneers—free African Corner of Jay and High Streets Jay and Concord Streets HANNOVER PL Americans—lived here from BOND ST 1810 onwards.