POTW: Happy Holidays!

[Holidays view 19], ca 1965, 2006.001.1.129; Williamsburgh Savings Bank Building photographs and architectural drawings, ARC.116; Brooklyn Historical Society.

It’s the most festive time of year in Brooklyn. Christmas-related festiveness is just one of the many forms of celebrations taking place this time of year. This includes pop-up holiday markets, Christmas tree stands, and festive home decorations galore. However you choose to celebrate, we wish you a happy and healthy holiday season!

With that in mind, the photo of the week depicts a pageant of schoolchildren singing around a piano, many wearing costumes, around 1965. The banner reads “Ye Olde Carolers of P.S.9.” The photograph comes from the Williamsburgh Savings Bank photographs and architectural drawings collection that comprises photographs, architectural drawings, and ephemera related to the Williamsburgh Savings Bank, with the bulk of the collection from 1927 to 1929. The Williamsburgh Savings Bank building originally opened in 1851 in a rented basement located in the Town of Williamsburgh (now the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn). In 1926, a new property was purchased in the Fort Greene neighborhood of Brooklyn, and the 34-story Williamsburgh Savings Bank building was built at 1 Hanson Place. The skyscraper is 512 feet tall and was considered the tallest building in Brooklyn until 2009, when The Brooklyner condominiums surpassed it. To see more photographs from this collection, check out this gallery.

Interested in seeing more photos from BHS’s collection? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images. Interested in seeing even more historic Brooklyn images? Visit our Brooklyn Visual Heritage website here. To search BHS’s entire collection of images, archives, maps, and special collections visit BHS’s Othmer Library Wed-Sat, 1:00-5:00 p.m. library@brooklynhistory.org