A School Grows in Brooklyn
Writings from Racial Realities
Brooklyn Navy Yard at War
We are very pleased to see Brooklynites Carmela Zuza and Clarence Irving featured in this great video as part of New-York Historical Society's new exhibition WWII & NYC: You can see more from this exhibition on The New York Home Front here. And you can hear full interviews with Clarence Irving and Carmela Zuza and over forty other people who worked in the Brooklyn Navy Yard at BHS in the Othmer Library: Brooklyn Navy Yard Oral History, 2006 - 2011. Teachers: Bring your students to the Brooklyn Navy Yard Center at BLDG92 and check out the new Ingenious Inventions at the Brooklyn Navy Yard…
CBBG Sneak Peek!
Crossing Borders, Bridging Generations (CBBG) is BHS's oral history project and public programming series examining the history and experiences of mixed-heritage people and families, cultural hybridity, race, ethnicity, and identity. We are very excited to give you a sneak peek at the project's website-in-progress: cbbg.brooklynhistory.org You can learn more about CBBG, upcoming Events, Project News, Who's Involved, and we're continually adding new oral histories you can Listen to via the online archive. Also check out the first digital exhibit on the site: Interracial Brooklyn by…
In Memory of Elsie Richardson
What It Means to Be Hapa
Shirley Chisholm Day!
Celebrate Shirley Chisholm Day 11/30/11 by checking out The Shirley Chisholm Project's online collection of oral history interviews with people who knew her well, including Richard Green, founder of the Crown Heights Youth Collective, who worked on Chisholm's campaign; and feminist and journalist Gloria Steinem, who ran as a Chisholm delegate to the 1972 democratic convention. January 25, 2012 will mark the 40th anniversary of Shirley Chisholm's historic run for president, and launch a year-long, borough-wide celebration of this important Brooklynite - stay tuned! Intrepid political leader,…
Jungle Fever
https://youtu.be/kZ64smS4Lyk We're getting ready for the 20th anniversary screening of Jungle Fever (1991) at BAM next Tuesday 11/15 7PM. People who haven't seen the film an awhile remember that awesome Stevie Wonder song and that it was Halle Berry's first film role: We're interested in talking about how gender, race, and interracial romance play out in this film and we're curious about how people will receive the film 20 years later - especially a Brooklyn audience who will know why it's particularly relevant that Angie Tucci (Annabella Sciorra) is not only white, "H-bomb," says Cyrus (…
What Are You?
Today's guest post is by Jen Chau, founder of Swirl, a multi-ethnic, anti-racist organization that promotes cross-cultural dialogue. "What are you?" is one of those questions like "Where are you from, I mean from from?" that people pose (sometimes ungracefully) when they are curious about someone's racial/ethnic identity. What Are You? is also the title of an upcoming event (Monday, September 26th at 7pm), part of the Crossing Borders, Bridging Generations series, hosted here at the Brooklyn Historical Society and co-sponsored by Loving Day. BHS is learning more about Brooklyn's overlapping…
Crossing Borders this Fall
Does your family, relationship, or identity cross borders of race, ethnicity, or culture? We're learning more about Brooklyn’s overlapping, interweaving communities. Join the conversation at these upcoming events, on Twitter using #cbbg, and at brooklynhistory.org/cbbg. What Are You? a discussion about mixed heritage Monday, September 26, 2011 7 p.m. Othmer Library, Brooklyn Historical Society 128 Pierrepont Street, Brooklyn Heights Free Participate in this discussion about mixed heritage co-sponsored by Loving Day, a global network fighting racial…
BHS Celebrates Loving Day All Year
Are You Related to Royals?
Memories of MetroTech
The Ratzer Map 1770
Listen to historian Barnet Schecter, author of The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution, and conservator Jon Derow discuss the historical importance of this rare and recently conserved map of New York City made by Bernard Ratzer in the late 1760s.
You can read more about the Ratzer map in this recent article in The New York Times (1/16/2011).
Fort Greene / Clinton Hill Audio Tour
Calling Fort Greene / Clinton Hill
Centenarian Faity Tuttle!
BHS is happy to see Brooklynite Esther Leeming "Faity" Tuttle celebrated in The New York Times among fellow centenarians! Hear Faity talk about John's Group, a playgroup for children in Prospect Park, Brooklyn accents, and how John narrowly avoided being struck by the 1960 plane crash in Park Slope: Faity was born in 1911 and she grew up in Brooklyn Heights, on Henry Street. She became a professional actress, appearing on Broadway with Humphrey Bogart, among others. In 1944, she moved to Park Slope with her husband, Ben, and their three children. She's a longtime supporter of the Brooklyn…
Four Must-See Exhibits
Time Out New York has named BHS' exhibit Painting Brooklyn Stories of Immigration & Survival as one of Four Must-See Exhibits this Fall! Opening Reception: Thursday, September 16. 5:30 - 7:30 pm. Exhibit dates: September 17 – February 27, 2011
Gentrification in Fort Greene
Check out Story #1 on this City of Memory tour! You'll find a painting by Nina Talbot and oral history interview from the Weeksville Heritage Center's collections which are both featured in BHS' upcoming exhibit Painting Brooklyn Stories of Immigration and Survival which opens here Thursday, September 16. Curated by Nina Talbot, painter, in collaboration with Rachel Bernstein, public historian at New York University, the exhibit presents striking stories of Brooklyn residents through paintings, oral histories, poetry and personal effects. These different modes of expression offer multiple…
Bob Vadheim, 1920-2010
Dr. Robert H. Vadheim, preservationist, music lover, and longtime friend of BHS passed away on July 16 at 90 years old. I interviewed Bob at his home in Brooklyn Heights in 2008 for the BHS Oral History collection and remember feeling so inspired as he talked about Robert Johnson, his partner of 43 years, and the wonderful music salons they would hold in their home. Over tea after the interview, Bob and I got to talking about all kinds of things, favorite songs (Someone to Watch Over Me), movies (I had just discovered William Powell) and what life was like for a gay man in the 1950s. He…