Postcard Thursday: Historic Brooklyn Heights

Grace Court Alley, photographed by Edmund V. Gillon (courtesy of the Museum of the City of New York)

James had a story published yesterday on the history of Brooklyn Heights, which was designated a landmark district 50 years ago. Read the full story at Curbed: http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2015/03/18/how_brooklyn_heights_became_the_citys_first_historic_district.php.

(And, ICYMI, James also had an article on Monday on Curbed about Irish heritage in New York.)

Above and below are some of the archival photos (though not, technically, any postcards) that didn't make it into the final story. At the top that's Grace Court Alley, which is likely built over what was originally a Native American trail.

Map showing early Native American trails in Brooklyn (courtesy of the Brooklyn Historical Society)

The Low House on Pierrepont Place, photographed by Edmund V. Gillon (courtesy of the Museum of the City of New York)

View of Brooklyn Heights, 1838, courtesy of the Museum of the City of New York

One item we didn't have time to research is the grand, colonnaded building in the illustration above. Does anyone know what it was? If so, leave a comment.

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Explore more NYC history in

Footprints in New York: Tracing the Lives of Four Centuries of New Yorkers

If you haven't had a chance to pick up a copy of Footprints yet,

you can order it from your favorite online retailers (Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc.) or

from independent bookstores across the country.

And, of course, Inside the Apple is available at fine bookstores everywhere.