Brooklyn Sites

Now a part of the much larger Calvert Vaux Park (also still referred to as Dreier-Offerman Park), this smaller playground at Cropsey Ave. and Bay 46th St. was constructed by the Department of Parks in 1934. Mayor La Guardia attended the opening ceremony in November 1934. The press release announcing the opening described the new playground as having "a wading pool and a two-story brick field house. The sand tables, seesaws, slides and swings for small children are located on the Bay side of the building.  Apparatus for older children is located in the space adjoining Cropsey Avenue." This playground...

The federal Works Progress Administration undertook a $93,900 project starting in 1935 to modernize and otherwise improve several public (now-former) bath facilities in Brooklyn, NY. The public baths at 42 Duffield Street were constructed in 1905; the building has since been demolished. The facilities identified as part of the WPA project were: 209 Wilson Ave. Municipal Baths, Coney Island Duffield Street Hicks Street Pitkin Ave. Huron St. Montrose Ave.

The Dyker Beach Golf Course first opened in 1897. It was redesigned by Jon Van Kleek in 1935-1936. On May 7, 1936, the Department of Parks announced that the Dyker Beach Golf Course had been “thoroughly reconstructed with new tees and greens throughout…with relief funds provided by the C.W.A., T.E.R.A. and W.P.A.” The renovation project was part of a larger city wide renovation of public golf courses that was funded by New Deal programs. David Owen, staff writer at The New Yorker, remarks that "Dyker is where Tiger Woods’s father, Earl, learned to play golf, in the early nineteen-seventies. (He was...

Dyker Beach Park, located just south of the Dyker Beach Golf Course and north of the Belt Parkway was assembled in eight stages between 1895 and 1934. In 1942, the WPA and the Department of Parks completed extensive work on the park, much of which is still visible today. A press release announcing the completion of a field house and playground described the finished and ongoing work: "The field house, a one story brick structure, approximately 44' x 100' is located at the east end of the athletic field in a paved plaza designed as a focal point for the park...

The federal Work Projects Administration (WPA) undertook several road improvement projects along roads in Brooklyn, New York. One such project involved the removal of malls and other repair work along the modest stretch of East 93rd Street from Lenox Rd. to Kings Highway.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) undertook a sizable public building improvement project in Brooklyn, New York beginning in 1935.  The project involved the "Improvement of Public Buildings and Offices" at more than 30 locations, including the no-longer-extant Family Court building at 327 Schermerhorn St.

The New York Times reported in late 1941 that WPA laborers had begun construction of a new playground at 3rd Ave. and 64th St. in Brooklyn, NY. The 1.25-acre plot was to contain several recreational facilities.

Edward Laning completed a mural entitled "The Role of the Immigrant in the Industrial Development of America" in 1938 for the Dining Hall in the Administration Building on Ellis Island with funding from the WPA's Federal Art Project. "The mural was 10 feet tall by 190 feet long...The sweep of the mural’s length echoed the grand scope of its narrative" that spanned American immigration history, geography, and industrial development.  Unfortunately, "Most of the mural was ruined in the 1950s when a storm damaged the roof of the facility. Portions of original were salvaged in 1970, when Judge Jacob Mishler of the Eastern Court of New York...

The historic Flatbush Station post office on Church Ave. in Brooklyn, New York was constructed with federal Treasury Department funds and is still in use today. "It was built in 1936, and designed by consulting architect Lorimer Rich in the Colonial Revival style, for the Office of the Supervising Architect of the United States Department of the Treasury. The building is a symmetrical, two-story, red brick building with a gable roof and a large one-story rear wing." (Wikipedia) The building became listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

The federal Work Projects Administration put many men to work starting in 1935 with a $197,000 street repair and maintenance project, along what were then dirt roads, throughout the borough of Brooklyn, New York. Roads improved included: Flatlands Ave.: E. 108th St. to Fairfield Ave. Fairfield Ave.: Flatlands Ave. to Pennsylvania Ave. Fairfield Avenue no longer exists as such: a New York City law passed in 1956 changed the name of what was then Fairfield Avenue, which extended from Louisiana Ave. east to the Brooklyn-Queens border, to Flatlands Avenue. (CUNY) Thus, the WPA project in question improved what is now the stretch of Flatlands...

Between 1934 and 1938 the WPA funded extensive construction and improvement projects at Floyd Bennett Airport. "Work completed by the WPA significantly modernized the airport facilities. By 1938, federal funds spent on airfield construction far outweighed funds contributed by New York City. During the four years the WPA worked on projects at Floyd Bennett Airport, the federal program spent approximately $4.7 million. During the same period, the city of New York contributed just over $339,000." (Cody) WPA projects in New York included "the laying of concrete runways and the erection of a machine shop at Floyd Bennett airport." Floyd Bennett Field...

Floyd Bennett Field received a  New Deal mural, commissioned by the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP), in 1934, and possibly in subsequent years by the Federal Art Project. The location and status of these works is unknown to Living New Deal.

This large, lush Brooklyn park dates back 150 years. NYC Parks explains that "Another series of renovations made in the 1930s further enhanced the classical design of the park. Parks architect Gilmore D. Clarke regraded the grounds, added new trees and shrubs, replaced the winding paths with more formal walks, remodeled the playgrounds, and created new spaces for athletic activities." These and other activities were announced in several Department of Parks press releases at the time. In May 1936, a new playground was opened in the northwest corner of the park. In October of the same year, the children's garden in...

The WPA undertook several projects to improve Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, New York during the 1930s and early 1940s. One project called for the WPA to repair and reconstruct buildings; improve the "water and lighting installations" as well as "sewer installation and other utilities" at; and "improve the roads and grounds" at the base.

The federal Work Projects Administration worked to improve the facilities at Fort Lafayette, located in an island off Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, during the early 1940s. One project involved "removing and replacing deck, sheathing, stringers, camps, bracing, fenders, and piles; improving baffles, painting, grading, filling," and performing other related work. "Upon the close of the War, Fort Lafayette no longer had a role in military operations, and fell in to a state of disrepair. In 1948, the Fort was transferred to the City of New York. It was demolished in 1960, and in its footprint was built a colossal tower rising...

Franklin K. Lane High School, located in the Cypress Hills neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, was constructed with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration funds during the 1930s (PWA Docket No. NY 8884-R). Short and Stanley-Brown write: "This is one of the largest and most modern schools in New York City and has been highly rated by the Municipal Art Commission. It is in a residential district. It contains the usual administrative offices, service rooms, 84 classrooms, library, commercial museum, 4 gymnasiums, rooms for social activity, homemaking, artcraft, 8 drawing rooms, a swimming pool, and an auditorium. The student capacity is...

This bridge was constructed with funds and labor provided by the Works Progress Administration (WPA).

In 1940 the Department of Parks announced the opening of a new playground was opened in what is today Fulton Park, located in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. The playground was "designed by the Park Department and built and landscaped by the Work Projects Administration," and describes the playground as follows: "This small children's playground consists of kindergarten swings, see-saws, slides, a sand pit and a free play space with a shower basin and has been surfaced with bituminous material to provide for all year round usage. The entire area is landscaped with shade trees and concrete benches have been provided." Fulton...

The Department of Parks acquired this land, later named the Galapo Playground, in 1940 and announced the completion of a playground on the site in July 1941: "New concrete walks have been centered in the 24' sidewalk area along Avenue "V" and Bedford Avenue with a row of pin oaks on each side in panels of concrete blocks. Continuous sections of benches have been placed against the Avenue "V" property line fence adjacent to the entrances. A concrete walk extends along East 24 Street and Gravesend Neck Road with a single row of trees spaced in a concrete block strip adjacent...

This property in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn, just next to Milestone Park, was acquired by Parks in 1937. In March, 1939, Parks announced the completion of a new playground on the site "equipped with swings, see-saws, jungle gym, slides and a shower basin which can also be used as a roller skating rink." The new playground also contained a "brick comfort station" and "concrete benches and shade trees." The work "was performed by the Works Progress Administration but planned and inspected by the Department of Parks." The site remains a functioning playground today.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) undertook a sizable public building improvement project in Brooklyn, New York beginning in 1935.  The project involved the "Improvement of Public Buildings and Offices" at more than 30 locations, including the old Gates Avenue Court Building.

A March 27, 1936 Department of Parks press release announced the opening of this new WPA playground: "The Department of Parks will open ten new playgrounds Saturday, March 28, making a total of 125 added to the recreational system in two years. …at White, McKibben and Bogart Streets there will be three hand-ball courts, three shuffle-board courts, three horseshoe pitching courts, three basketball courts and swings… All of these playgrounds were constructed as Works Progress Administration projects." In July of the same year, Parks announced the further completion of "a large game area, a wading pool and complete apparatus for children" and benches "placed...

On July 28, 1937, the Department of Parks announced the opening of "five playgrounds, constructed by the Department of Parks with relief labor and funds," noting that "These playgrounds are five of the twenty-four sites in neglected areas selected by the Commissioner of Parks and acquired by condemnation after authorization by the Board of Estimate and Apportionment on July 15, 1936." One of these five playgrounds was Grace Playground. The playground has since been expanded, most recently in 1994. Although the 1937 press release does not mention which New Deal agencies were involved, researcher Frank da Cruz explains here that almost all...

A Department of Parks press release from March 17, 1935 describes the extensive improvements made to Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza with New Deal support: "The Grand Army Plaza, constituting the main entrance to Prospect Park, Brooklyn, is to be completely rebuilt by the Department of Parks. The general design will remain unchanged but the promenade around the Bailey Memorial Fountain has been redesigned and the north entrances have been relocated away from the existing subway grating which is to be completely shielded by ground covering. The path around the oval is to be relocated somewhat nearer to the street to increase the...

This dramatic arch in Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza was created by architect John Hemingway Duncan in 1889-1892. The statuary on the arch was added over the next several years, by several different artists including William Rudolf O'Donovan (men), Thomas Eakins (horses) and Frederick MacMonnies (Army and Navy sculptures and the allegorical crowning sculpture). In the 1930s, the sculpture was restored with federal funding under Karl Gruppe, "chief sculptor of the Monument Restoration Project of the New York City Parks Department, from 1934 to 1937." The program was initially supported by federal funding from the Public Works of Art Project (Lowrey, 2008),...

"This large bronze equestrian statue by William Ordway Partridge (1861-1930) depicts Civil War General and 18th United States President Ulysses Simpson Grant (1822-1885). Though Grant’s reputation was tarnished after serving as President amidst one of the most corrupt administrations in the nation’s history, he is revered for his decisive action in bringing about the end of the Civil War... The sculpture of Grant was commissioned by the Union Club of Brooklyn and unveiled on April 27, 1896, the 74th anniversary of his birth. Partridge depicts a determined Grant in his military outfit, including his signature wide-brimmed hat. The work is one...

On May 25, 1942 the Parks Department announced the completion of a major reconstruction of the Gravesend Park Playground in Brooklyn. After removing much outdated equipment, the WPA constructed significant new facilities: "The new development permits greater utilization of space by segregation of smaller compact use areas equipped with increased facilities. A central tree shaded bench lined mall extends from the main park gate to the existing comfort station which has been given a new setting of block paving, trees and a flagpole. On both sides of the mall two main fence enclosed sections, approximately 1 acre each, are subdivided into various...

The former Greenpoint Hospital was constructed during the 1930s with the assistance of federal Public Works Administration funds (Docket No. 9063). According to New Deal New York, "The Public Works Administration helped to finance the construction of a new out-patient building and nurses' homes at this facility." The City of New York ceased operations at Greenpoint Hospital in 1982, and the Greenpoint Renaissance Enterprise Corporation took over the site.

Anton Refregier's first mural assignment under the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project (WPA-FAP) in the 1930s was to paint a mural for the children's ward at Greenpoint Hospital in Brooklyn. Joining the WPA rolls allowed him to get off relief. He was paid $23.86 a week and was assisted by five other WPA artists. In an interview conducted for the Archives of American Art Refregier stresses that although he was assigned to be the leader of the mural project, the group decided to undertake the project cooperatively which was more in line with their values. In an interview for...

Today's NYC Parks site explains: "Greenwood Playground is bounded by Fort Hamilton Parkway, and Prospect and Greenwood Avenues." "Greenwood Playground first opened to the public on December 19, 1935, as one of hundreds of Works Progress Administration-era playgrounds commissioned throughout the city, and built under the direction of Parks Commissioner Robert Moses (1888-1981). It contained a recreational building, a large wading pool, and standard playground features such as seesaws, monkey bars, slides, handball courts, and an open play area. At the time, its single acre was surrounded by residential lots to the east and the Greenwood Avenue Methodist Church to the...

In April 1942, the WPA and the Department of Parks completed the reconstruction of Hamilton Metz Field in Brooklyn. After removing an existing football field and other facilities, the WPA constructed extensive new facilities: "The area has been completely enclosed by chain link fence, a portion of which, along the north and south property lines, is set on new concrete retaining walls. These structures have permitted the grading and paving of level play surfaces. Two gate controlled entrance stairways from Lefferts Avenue will provide access to the one and one quarter acre grass surfaced athletic field, at the west end of...

The NYC Parks website explains that, "This playground received its name after the city purchased the land from the Heckscher Foundation for Children in 1935.  The property had served as a public playground since 1934.  When Parks took over, the property included a recreation building with a dental facility and an indoor play area.  The park was home to summer activities such as puppet shows, storytelling, and arts and crafts.  Originally, the playground was a little under one acre in size." The Department of Parks further improved the playground and officially opened it to the public in December 1935. As researcher...

The federal Works Progress Administration undertook a $93,900 project starting in 1935 to modernize and otherwise improve several public (now-former) bath facilities in Brooklyn, NY. The public baths at 486 Hicks Street were constructed in 1903; the building was "demolished in 1941 for construction of the BQE" (Brooklyn Relics). The facilities identified as part of the WPA project were: 209 Wilson Ave. Municipal Baths, Coney Island Duffield Street Hicks Street Pitkin Ave. Huron St. Montrose Ave.

The New York Times reported that WPA laborers had begun work in late 1941 on a playground consisting of "two and one-third acres ... The facilities will include a brick comfort station, concrete wading pool, irrigated sandpit and mothers' sitting area, swings, slides, handball court, pipe-frame exercising unit, and areas for skating, basketball and softball." The completion of the project was announced in June 1942.

The federal Works Progress Administration (WPA) undertook a sizable public building improvement project in Brooklyn, New York beginning in 1935.  The project involved the "Improvement of Public Buildings and Offices" at more than 30 locations, including the old Homicide Court Building at 33-to-35 Snyder Ave. The Homicide Court Building referred to was a 1929 addition to a structure built in 1875 as the Flatbush Town Hall: "When Flatbush and the rest of Brooklyn became part of New York City in 1894, the Town Hall became a police precinct headquarters and the 7th District Magistrate’s Court. In 1929, an addition was built to...

The New York Times reported in 1941 that the WPA was to be involved with several street improvement projects in Brooklyn, including "the widening of Howard Avenue in Brownsville."

The federal Works Progress Administration undertook a $93,900 project starting in 1935 to modernize and otherwise improve several public (now-former) bath facilities in Brooklyn, NY. The public baths on Huron St. (a few hundred feet west of Manhattan Avenue, on the north side of the road) were constructed in 1903-4; the baths closed in 1960, but the building is still standing. The facilities identified as part of the WPA project were: 209 Wilson Ave. Municipal Baths, Coney Island Duffield Street Hicks Street Pitkin Ave. Huron St. Montrose Ave.

What's now the Dyker Heights Intermediate School was constructed during the mid-1930s as a Public Works Administration (PWA) project.

The Sixth Avenue branch trunk line of New York City's Independent Subway (IND) was constructed during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. On January 1, 1936, four subway stations opened in southern Manhattan, part of a $17.3 million project that extended the subway from Washington Square to the Lower East Side. The Rutgers Street subway tunnel enabled further extension of the line to Brooklyn at the York Street Station.   Use of the tunnel began in 1936.

The Sixth Avenue trunk line of New York City's Independent Subway (IND) was constructed during the 1930s with the aid of federal Public Works Administration (PWA) funds. In January 1936, four subway stations opened in southern Manhattan, part of a $17.3 million project that extended the subway from Washington Square to the Lower East Side. Construction of the Rutgers Street tunnel enabled further extension of the line to York Street in Brooklyn. The York Street subway station opened April 9, 1936.