Borough and State: Brooklyn, New York
Listed: 1983
Type of district: National Register historic district, state historic district, local historic district
Main Intersection: DeKalb and Cumberland Streets, at the South East corner of Fort Greene Park
Fort Greene National Register Historic District Report
Fort Greene National Register Historic District Map
The central part of the neighborhood is Fort Greene Park, site of a Revolutionary War skirmish and a monument to those who died aboard British prison ships in nearby Wallabout Bay. Development of the vicinity around the park began in earnest in the 1850s thanks to an influx of residents and the need for streets. Gas lighting, water lines and flush toilets were common in the grand Italianate row houses that had finishing touches of doorway ornaments and bracketed cornices.
History continued to be made during the 19th century in Fort Greene, especially for African Americans. The principal of P.S. 67 in 1863 was African American, and by 1882 Dr. Phillip A. White became the first black member of Brooklyn’s Board of Education. Although Fort Greene had declined by the mid 20th century, it was another African American, Herbert Scott Gibson, who sought to restore the grandeur of the neighborhood and formed the Fort Greene Landmarks Preservation Committee. The committee spurred the remodeling of many buildings to their original splendor.