Fort Greene
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The neighborhood of Fort Greene is listed on the National and New York State Registry of Historic Places, and is a New York City designated Historic District. It is bounded, roughly, by The Brooklyn Navy Yard to the north, Flatbush Avenue to the west, Classon Avenue to the east and Atlantic Avenue to the south. Fort Greene is named after a Revolutionary War era fort that was rechristened in honor of General Nathaniel Greene of New Hampshire. General Greene aided General George Washington during the Battle of Brooklyn in 1776. Fort Greene Park is also, obviously, derived from General Greene's name and the neighborhood. In the park is the notable Prison Ships Martyrs monument and crypt, which honors some 11,500 patriots who died aboard British prision ships during the War of Independence. Poet and one-time resident Walt Whitman influenced the creation of Fort Greene Park in 1843.
In addition to Whitman, Fort Greene has also been the home of poet Marianne Mooore and Richard Wright, the author of Native Son, and the rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard.
Fort Greene is comprised of many superb examples of mid-19th Century Italianate and Eastlake architecture, most of which is well preserved. The area is the home of the famed Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Brooklyn Music School, Brooklyn Tech, The Paul Robeson Theater, Urban Glass works, 651 Arts perfoming center for African-American presenters, and the Atlantic Center commercial and transportation hub.
External links
- Fort Greene Association (http://www.historicfortgreene.org)
- Fort Greene Park Conservancy (http://www.fortgreenepark.org)
- FortGreeneBrooklyn.com (http://www.fortgreenebrooklyn.com)