Blog posts by Deborah

five young people sitting on ground in garden sketching

POTW: Sketching in the Garden

Deborah,

Students sketching at botanic garden, 2008, DODIN_0134. Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Very quickly spring is upon us in earnest and this week’s POTW gives us a spring view from 18 years ago, but eternal.We have five college-age students seated on the ground sketching at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. We know the season because we can see in the flower bed behind the students large purple ball flowers, the spring blooming Allium (ornamental onions), a little past their prime. The herring bone paving and the widthe of the…

Twins in flowered blouses choosing flowers in a shop

POTW: Double Blooms

Deborah,

Twins with matching hairstyles buying flowers, circa 1978, V2008.013.80. Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Inspired by warming temperatures and seeing the first early spring shoots peek up from the ground I went in search of flowers. My search uncovered a gem from the  Lucille Fornasieri Gold collection for our Photo of the Week - a bouquet to tide us over until the bulbs burst forth.I love this photograph for its composition, which seems accidental luck, but is in truth a result of the photographer’s speedy and…

cover and page of 19th century photo album with pictures of house with porch decorated with bumting

POTW: Another Kind of Flip Book

Deborah,

Cover and page from Charles (Karl) Blieffert photograph album, 2015.010. 1900-1917.
Today’s POTW comes from a collection I discovered when it was requested by a researcher. It is one of the many at CBH that is not digitized so can only be appreciated in person.I was originally struck by the album because it is constructed in a way I have never seen, with multiple photographs attached to a page by tabs which hold them in offset stacks, like shingles on a roof. It is an ingenious way to store quite a few photographs overlapping in a compact way in…

illustration of decorative ceramics with cameo of old frame building and below an aerial view of large ceramics factory.

Going to Pot in Greenpoint: Origins of the US Porcelain Industry

Deborah,

The Union Porcelain Works and Wares, The civil, political, professional and ecclesiastical history, and commercial and industrial record of the county of Kings and the city of Brooklyn, N.Y., from 1683 to 1884, by Henry Reed Stiles, 1832-1909, editor, p.763
Some years ago, while researching a blog on Henry Reed Stiles, a prominent historian of Brooklyn, I was looking through the omnibus he edited with the help of many subject experts on Brooklyn history and the illustration above caught my eye. The book, published a short time before the…

Art Deco skyscraper-artist's rendering.

POTW: Art Deco Jewel on Montague

Deborah,

National Title Guaranty Co., 1929. BANK_0191, Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Center for Brooklyn History
Most days on my way to work, I pass a building which is a beautiful exemplar of the Art Deco style. The façade looks at first glance to be abstract, but on closer examination its symbols emerge - warriors in spartan helmets with large fanned crests, and fierce geometric eagles.
Photograph of 185 Montague Street by Deborah Tint, 2022.
Photograph of 185…

Tall woman offers the hand of a scarecrow cutout doll to a little girl in a party hat.

POTW: Meet Mr. Halloween

Deborah,

Meet Mr. Halloween--Ida MacDermott of Visiting Nurse Association of Brooklyn staff introduces scarecrow to Linda Specht. 1953. WORK_0616. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
The spooky season is upon us! Today's Photo of the Week was surely meant to be a cheery holiday Eagle feature about the Visiting Nurse Association of Brooklyn's annual Halloween party for children, but ended up creepier than intended. I can’t even discern what the arms of the pumpkin doll might have looked like in the…

Older woman wearing black and leopard patterned outfit holding a cat in her arms.

POTW: Madame Kitty's Day at the Beach

Deborah,

[Woman and cats, Coney Island], circa 1975, V2008.013.8; Lucille Fornasieri Gold photographs; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
For today’s Photo of the Week we have an offering to fans of felines everywhere. Here, the cats are on an expedition to the beach at Coney Island accompanied by their leopard-patterned mistress.The photographer is Lucille Fornasieri Gold, born in the Bay Ridge neighborhood of Brooklyn in 1930. Her father, a professor of architectural studies, first exposed her to photography as a child. She attended…

Mailman holding large leather bag, mopping his forehead.

POTW: Neither Snow nor Rain nor Heat …

Deborah,

Brother, it's hot! NEIG_2302 1949. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Mailman Anthony D'Angelo of Brooklyn soldiers on to deliver his letters in sweltering temps. We urge everyone to stay safe and comfortable during the summer heat. Some Brooklyn Public libraries serve as cooling centers, as well as many other local sites and businesses. To find them look at the NYC Cool Options page.Interested in seeing more images from CBH’s collections? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a…

Large robotic man made of cans with young woman standing next to him and smiling.

POTW: Can of the Hour

Deborah,

Canco Charlie, 1952, WORK_0173; Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History 
This 1,000-pound radio-controlled walking, talking, hand-shaking ambassador of goodwill for the American Can Company, gets last-minute road information from Pamela Livingston of Richmond Hill before taking off on a cross-country tour. Once I saw him, I couldn’t resist the combined creepy-cheery affect of today’s Photo of the Week. Our protagonist is “Canco Charlie” a robotic, hand shaking ambassador for the American…

Collage of Linewaiters' Gazette mastheads from different years.

Linewaiters' Gazette: Early Years of the Park Slope Food Coop's Newsletter

Deborah,

Mastheads from the Linewaiters' Gazette from various years, including latest (center) from the publication's online instance, 2025.
In 2013 Brooklyn Public Library’s archive, the Brooklyn Collection, acquired the earliest issues of The Linewaiters’ Gazette, the newsletter of the Park Slope Food Coop. At that time, our former collections manager, Ivy Marvel, announced the accession with this blog.Since then, the collection has been available and energetically used by researchers from all over the country, and from abroad, to learn how this…

Row of fire escapes on warehouse wall with complex shadows, and group of children playing on rooftop nearby.

POTW: Angular Beauty in Brooklyn Heights

Deborah,

[National Cold Storage Co.], 1955,   WORK_0151, Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Center for Brooklyn History, Brooklyn Public Library.
I was drawn to today’s photo of the week for purely aesthetic reasons. The composition, with its strong angles and dynamic perspective, seems inspired by a Constructivist aesthetic. There is also some human interest in the details as we discover a group of children playing on a rooftop playground - a reminder that this quiet scene happens in a dense urban setting. Interested in seeing more…

Group of children gathered near a snowman listening to story hour.

POTW: Story Hour in the Snow

Deborah,

[Winter story hour] ... children standing next to snowman of their own creation; book shows illustration of snowman. CBPL_1236. [195-?] Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
For those who have been shocked by the recent cold temperatures, today’s Photo of the Week features a cheery winter scene of story hour held outside the children’s wing of Central Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza.  A group of warmly bundled kids listen to an intrepid reader, but many appear distracted by a…

Family around a dinner table raising a glass for a toast.

POTW: New Beginnings

Deborah,

New Year's Day dinner toast, 6th Avenue. RCPO_0005. 1977. Larry Racioppo photograph collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
Bidding a firm farewell to 2024, we offer this Photo of the Week featuring the Racioppo family gathered for a celebratory meal, as they raise a glass to that coming year, 1977. May this New Year be a happy one for you and yours.More of Racioppo's photographs of his native Brooklyn - its people, streets and celebrations - are hosted on our digital collections page, and a short bio of the artist can…

Young boy holding his school report at a desk in his classroom.

POTW: Tribute to a Dodger Dad

Deborah,

[David Campanella] DODG_0045 [1950?] Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History 
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle collection has a large number of photographs concerning all aspects of the Brooklyn Dodgers: players on the field, in the locker room, at summer camp, crowds of celebrating fans, and all manner of general horsing around. Among them we also see Dodger families pictured. Today’s Photo of the Week features a Dodger family member, and a wonderful companion image. Our first photo shows a smiling…

Small boy standing on sidewalk, blowing a horn.

POTW: Jewels in the Sidewalk

Deborah,

 

Patric Piccione playing with a noise maker. OSOS_0194. [1923?] Our Streets, Our Stories collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
 Today’s photo of the week features little Pat Piccione blowing a noisemaker on a Brooklyn street. His clothing is quaintly old-fashioned to our eyes: a blousy tunic and shorts, complete with gaiters - twice as much clothing as one would expect to see on a modern child. Adding a note of mystery is the shadow silhouette of a woman photographer in dress and hat using a top-down…

Group of schoolchildren gathered in front of libary under a banner reading: Make it a library summer.

POTW: Is Your Summer Booked?

Deborah,

Library festival, BPL_0440. 1968. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs
Summer is here, bringing long lazy days with time for relaxed reading at the beach and parks. This photo shows a group of youngsters attending a library festival at the Bushwick Branch of Brooklyn Public Library in 1968. Every year the library hosts free programs and resources to enrich your summer with reading and cultural activities. See what we have on offer this year on our Summer at the Library page.Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s collections? Visit our…

Small observatory building with dome in residential neighborhood.

Seeing Stars: Astronomical Observatories in Brooklyn

Deborah,

Astronomical observatory/laboratory, Flatbush. [191-?] NEIG_0750. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs.
Close on the heels of the recent excitement around the 2024 solar eclipse, we received an email from one of our readers who was able to expand on what we know about one of our photographs from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle: an astronomical observatory in the back yard of a Flatbush home. (I emphasize astronomical because I found in my research in our Brooklyn Newsstand that the word observatory was often used for observation points on high buildings…

The Rocks Cry Out

Deborah,

One among a row of boulders in Prospect Park with protest posters showing the faces of Oluwatoyin Salau, Rem'mie Fells, Dominique Jonathan Ferrell and Freddie Carlos Gray Jr. in Prospect Park; BRCP_0039. 2020. Brooklyn Resists community photographs, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History 
On June 8, 2020, at the height of the Black Lives Matter protests in Brooklyn, I took a walk in Prospect Park on a shady path across the East Drive from the Vale of Cashmere, notable for a line of large rocks sheltered under a row of…

Railfan Sandwich Man's Loco-Motive to Increase Business

Deborah,

Sodas delivered by train. WORK_0842. 1951. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs 
Local businesses are acts of faith - an individual dream of creating a place that people will want to patronize, enriching the owners and community alike. This Photo of the Week shows one inventive owner’s novel idea to boost his business. In early 1951, Ben Lewanda took over the Parkway Sandwich Shop, 4223 Fort Hamilton Parkway. Finding his custom lacked pep, he got the idea of installing a model train to travel around the periphery of his lunchroom and…

Man and woman breaking out of closet with baseball bats.

Honor Among Thieves?

Deborah,

How they got out. CRIM_0143. 1952. Brooklyn Daily Eagle photographs
Today’s dramatic Photo of the Week documents a slick Flatbush burglary with an unusual conclusion. A tenacious robber, who tried several times to gain entry claiming to be a repairman, finally hoodwinked the wary housekeeper by waiting until she brought out the garbage. He brandished a gun and then, joined by a partner lurking nearby, they gained access. Once in, they stole furs, jewels and cash and locked Mrs. Arline Tompkins and the other person on the premises,…