1. PROPERTY SALE VALUE (1850 – 1910)
Real Estate Development in Brooklyn Heights Before and After the Brooklyn Bridge
Author: Ann Jean
Mentors: Monica Berger, Barbara Mishara, Alexander Aptekar
Technological advances drive societal change. Often technology leads to the development of new infrastructure which is at the core of urban development which in turn affects real estate values and demographics. The opening of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883 reshaped the socio-economic and architectural character of the two areas it connected, lower Manhattan and the Brooklyn waterfront (DUMBO) and Brooklyn Heights. By the 1830s, the neighborhood of Brooklyn Heights emerged as a residential enclave even before the invention of steam power ferries which made commuting to lower Manhattan reliable and inexpensive (Furman 73). Today, its charming brownstone lined streets are forever preserved through its status as a historic district.
This project uses archival research to document real estate price changes in Brooklyn Heights from 1850 to 1910, before and after the Brooklyn Bridge--a major infrastructure--was being constructed. Quantitative analysis of archival real estate listings from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn Public Library) provides a baseline that can be used to compare fluctuations in value of properties. This case study focuses on the block bounded by Poplar Street to the north, Hicks Street to the east, Middagh Street to the south and Poplar Street to the west. Property values are extrapolated from archival conveyances and documentation of property transfers from the Brooklyn Department of Finance. This research used property value change data to analyze neighborhood change.
ABSTRACT
A year to year analysis of Sanborn maps led to the selection of block 210 as a case study, which offers a variety of building uses (residence or manufacture) to investigate. Archival real estate listings from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle were used to create a graph that details the fluctuation of real estate market prices throughout the years. In selecting the data, two points were important. First, the listings could precisely be located within the area bounded by old Fulton Street, the Brooklyn Bridge, Boerum Place and Atlantic Avenue, which include present-day Brooklyn Heights and Cadman Plaza. Second, a sale price was clearly listed. This data was supplemented with records of conveyances in the Real Estate Records and Builders Guide and Department of Finance.
To create the graph, the prices were adjusted for inflation using the Consumer Price Index compiled from research done by Samuel H. Williamson of Measuring Worth and its contributing members.
METHOD
CASE STUDY BLOCK: 210
Sanborn Maps
Originally created to assess fire insurance liabilities following damaging fires. They contain a variety of information from building materials to number of floors.
Brooklyn Heights as described by the Landmarks Preservation Commission
Block 210 today
Map of 1855
Brick or Stone (II)
Wood Frame (III)
Hazardous
Map of 1884
Brick or Stone (II)
Wood Frame (III)
Map of 1898
Brick (II)
Wood Frame (III)
Map of 1903
Brick (II)
Wood Frame (III)
TYPE CLASSIFICATION
Type I Vacant Lot
Type II Wood
Type III Brick/Stone
PROPERTY SALE VALUE (1850 – 1910)
POPULATION GROWTH IN BROOKLYN
Construction of bridge
Analysis of the data compiled from the Real Estate listings of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle shows highs and lows in the real estate market throughout the years. However this data has several flaws. First, the listing price isn’t necessarily the price at which the property was sold. Second, the criteria for selection has produced at times gaps in the data where some entries were discarded in the selection process. This in turn makes it difficult to compare the market value to the population growth. The population growth graph shows that population in Brooklyn has increased steadily from the end of 19th century. There are two leaps in the data, from 1840 to 1850 and from 1880 to These two periods coincide with the merging of the Fulton Ferry Company and the South Ferry Company (Brooklyn Daily Eagle 1886), and the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge, respectively. Alternatively real estate assessment books made by private assessors would be a better source for the figures needed for this research.
CONCLUSION
Columbia University Libraries. The Real Estate Record
Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Real Estate. Brooklyn Public Library
Brooklyn Daily Eagle Almanac
Brooklyn Department of Finance. Conveyance Books.
Furman, Robert and Brian Merlis. Brooklyn Heights: the Rise, Fall and Rebirth of Americas First Suburb. The
History Press, 2015.
Lancaster, Clay. Old Brooklyn Heights: New York's First Suburb. Dover Publications, 1979.
Lawrence H. Officer and Samuel H. Williamson, 'The Annual Consumer Price Index for the United States,
1774-Present. Measuring Worth, 2018.
Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division, The New York Public Library. "Volume 1
Index Map" The New York Public Library Digital Collections,
a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
3D Warehouse models.
RESOURCES
1800
The settlements in present-day Brooklyn were Olympia, Brooklyn, Bedford, Gowanus, Brooklyn Ferry, Red Hook and Wallabout.
1834
In 1834, Brooklyn was granted a
municipal charter, and became a city.
1855
Bushwick, Greenpoint and Williamsburg become part of the City of Brooklyn. .
1870
Brooklyn Bridge construction starts
1883
The Brooklyn Bridge opened on 24 May 1883, linking Manhattan and Brooklyn. Cost: $15,000,000.
1898
In 1898, Brooklyn becomes part of Greater New York City.
1909
The Manhattan Bridge opened in 1909