In the 1950’s when the BQE was built many of the oldest neighborhoods in this city were effectively abandoned and brooklynites lost access to their waterfront.  Vinegar Hill was permanently cut off from the rest of the city and today has the feel of an urban ghost town, with rows of vacant  store fronts and empty cobble stone streets.

Admiral’s House

Last week after dinner at Vinegar Hill House ,which was excellent, we decided to check out the neighborhood.  We did not pass a single person on the streets or see a moving car.  We walked to the end of the Evans Street cul de sac to the gates of the above mansion, which is right privately owned and fronting the East River.

Vinegar Hill House-theselby.com

I decided I had to know more.  Vinegar Hill was developed in the early1800’s, and most of the houses were built in the next fifty years.  The area was named after a bitter and infamous battle of the 1798  Irish revolution against the British; the battle of Vinegar Hill.  Many people died that day including women and children, so the name would have had strong appeal to Irish immigrants.  The first mass in Brooklyn was celebrated in  local tavern there in 1818.

The good news is that after years under attack from outside forces, the remaining thirty three houses are now historically landmarked.  In someways too little too late but at least we know that this special enclave will remain.

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