First commissioned in 1801 by Thomas Jefferson, the U.S. Navy bought Brooklyn's oldest industry, a shipyard in Wallabout Bay. The Brooklyn Navy Yard is bounded by Navy St., Flushing and Kent Aves., covering over 200 acres. During World War II it employed 70,000 people around the clock. This is a place that just aches with history. America's most famous warships were commissioned here, including the Monitor, the world's first modern warship, the Maine, whose sinking caused the Spanish-American War, the Arizona, whose sinking launched the U.S. into World War II, and the Missouri, on whose deck WWII ended. Great photos of the BNY are found in Thomas Berner's The Brooklyn Navy Yard.
Granite-walled Dry Dock No. 1 (pictured w/crane) is the 3rd oldest dry dock in the U.S. (1851). According to AIA Guide to NYC, it is attributed to Thornton MacNess Niven, architect and master of masonry. It was used to outfit the nation's first ironclad ship, USS Monitor, with turrets and guns, before it sailed south to fight the CSS Merrimac during the Civil War.
It also serviced the Niagara, the vessel that laid the first transatlantic cable. Kennedy's PT 109 was delivered for fitting in 1942, before sinking in the Pacific. No doubt many famous people reported for duty at the BNY including Humphrey Bogart (in 1918), later to become famous actor.
It also serviced the Niagara, the vessel that laid the first transatlantic cable. Kennedy's PT 109 was delivered for fitting in 1942, before sinking in the Pacific. No doubt many famous people reported for duty at the BNY including Humphrey Bogart (in 1918), later to become famous actor.The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. administers the BNY for the City of New York, which bought the 300+ acre site from the Navy for $24 million in 1966.
The emphasis is on Green Development and the massive Bldg #128 (see interior and exterior shots) will become the Green Manufacturing Center. It has 60 ft ceilings and once supported an 80 ton crane way. The Paymaster Building (photo) is undergoing renovation.
The New York Fire Department operates out of one of he Piers. Cumberland Packing Corp. (Sweet'n Low) is a noteworthy tenant. Also Steiner Studios, the largest film and television production studio complex outside of Hollywood, has a large new building at the BNY.
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