A Slice Of Brooklyn Neighborhood Tour - Part 3

After we left the Prospect Park and Windsor Terrace neighborhoods on The Slice of Brooklyn Neighborhood Tour, part two, we entered Green-Wood Cemetery. Green-Wood Cemetery has long been considered one of the world's most beautiful cemeteries and is the final resting place of nearly 600,000 people, including some of history's most memorable figures. It was establishment in 1838 and consists of 478 acres filled with thousands of trees, flowering shrubs and four lakes.

As the tour bus rolled along the cemetery's hills we were told stories about some of the famous people interred there, such as the musical great conductor Leonard Bernstein, the Brooklyn Dodgers' Charles Ebbetts, sewing machine inventor Elias Howe and his dog, Fannie, and the "Father of Baseball" Henry Chadwick, as we passed by their gravestone memorials.

The monument seen above is The Soldiers' Monument, erected in 1869 to honor the 148,000 New York men who fought for the Union during the Civil War. The figures represent the four military services of the Civil War era. (all photos can be clicked on to enlarge)

We got off the bus at Battle Hill and strolled up to the highest point in Brooklyn and saw spectacular views of the Manhattan skyline and New York harbor. The Altar of Freedom and The Minerva Monument is at the top of Battle Hill. It was erected in 1919 to commemorate The Battle of Brooklyn, also known as The Battle of Long Island, the first battle in America's Revolutionary War, and was dedicated on August 27, 1920. It was the gift of the Irish-American businessman, Charles M. Higgins.

The plaque at the base of the Minerva Monument reads as follows:

“The Place Whereon Thou Standest is Holy Ground”
Glory to the Memory of Our First National Heroes Who Fought and Fell on this Battle Ground to Win Our Liberty and Independence! Minerva, the Goddess of Wisdom, Glory and Patriotism, Here Salutes The Goddess of Liberty and Enwreathes This Altar in Tribute to the Heroes of American Liberty and to the Wisdom of American Institutions."

If you click on the photo above you will be able to read a short history about this battle and see the relationship on the map as to where we were standing in Green -Wood Cemetery.

This is the view of New York Harbor and the Manhattan skyline from Battle Hill, in the photographs above and two below. Please enlarge them to see the full effect of such a beautiful vista! Then try to imagine back 233 years ago when the newly formed rag tag American army of 9,000 men, had to face 22,000 professional British and Hessian soldiers in battle on this hill! They were being surrounded on almost all sides and it was by the bravery of 250 Maryland troops that stayed behind to fight, that George Washington and the rest of the troop were able to flee to safety across the East River.

A close up of, Minerva, on the Altar Of Liberty, as she waves towards New York Harbor. Can you guess who she is waving to?


Yes, she is waving to The Statue of Liberty, who is waving back to her! It is a very inspiring sight to see! May these symbols continue to represent freedom and liberty throughout the ages!

The very last portion of the tour now brings us away from Green-Wood Cemetery and over to a combination of neighborhoods which are known as Victorian Flatbush because of the large numbers of beautiful large Victorian era homes that still stand here.

The unique neighborhoods of Victorian Flatbush were designed and developed at the turn of the 20th century. Today, more than 100 years later, these neighborhoods still maintain the same feeling of suburbia within city limits.

Single family homes are beautifully maintained with spacious yards and wrap-around porches on tree lined streets.

We drove up and down the streets to admire the beautiful homes from the comfort of our bus.

This one almost looks as if it is a plantation in the antebellum south, and not in New York City!

This house reminded me of a Swiss Chalet.

Hardly any of the houses are the same, each one unique and a statement to past opulence.


A short video clip below from a local news channel after This Old House Magazine named Victorian Flatbush one of the best places to buy a house a few yeasr ago. It enters a few of them to see the lovely original architectural details many of them have retained.



A Slice Of Brooklyn tour came to an end, and our bus went back into Manhattan to drop everyone off at the pick up spot. The tour participants were very happy to have seen sights they could never have imagined being in Brooklyn, and I was happy to have seen my hometown borough impress and delight so many!
I hope if you ever visit New York City you'll consider taking a tour into Brooklyn. Between A Slice of Brooklyn Pizza Tour and A Slice of Brooklyn Neighborhood Tour you'll be entertained and enlightened, and well fed with some authentic Brooklyn treats!




If you missed Part One and/or Part Two of the tour click on the highlighted links.

I hope you enjoyed this virtual tour!