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East Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the northwestern portion of
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, United States. East Williamsburg consists roughly of what was the 3rd District of the Village of Williamsburgh and what is now called the East Williamsburg In-Place Industrial Park (EWIPIP), bounded by the neighborhoods of Northside and Southside Williamsburg to the west, Greenpoint to the north, Bushwick to the south and southeast, and both Maspeth and Ridgewood in
Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...
to the east. Much of this area is still referred to as either Bushwick, Williamsburg, or Greenpoint with the term East Williamsburg falling out of use since the 1990s.


History

In the 18th century, Bushwick was already an established town, and the waterfront area that provided ferry service to the island of Manhattan was simply known as Bushwick Shore.* * The land of scrub bush that stood between Bushwick Shore and the town of Bushwick was known as Cripplebush. During the Revolutionary War occupation of the area by the British, the land was cleared, with the wood of the thickets being used for fuel. In 1800, Richard M. Woodhull purchased the waterfront property and laid out a settlement, naming it Williamsburgh after his friend and surveyor Colonel Jonathan Williams. Williamsburgh was incorporated as a village in 1827 (as a part of the town of Bushwick), and included 26 streets running East to West and 12 streets east of the shore line running North to South."Map of the village of Williamsburgh, Kings County; As laid out by the Commissioners, appointed by the Legislature in 1827, reduced from the Large Map in possession of the Trustees of the Village", H. McDowell, New York, 1833. On April 18, 1835, the village of Williamsburg was extended eastward to Bushwick Avenue and to Flushing Avenue on the Southeast (then known as Newtown Road). The region that is now circumscribed on the west by Union Ave, on the south by Broadway, then along Flushing Avenue to Bushwick Avenue on the east and on the north (approximately) by the
Newtown Creek Newtown Creek, a long tributary of the East River, is an estuary that forms part of the border between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, in New York City. River engineering#Channelization, Channelization made it one of the most heavily-use ...
was designated as the Third District of the Village of Williamsburg in 1835."A Map of Williamsburgh", Isaac Vieth, Brooklyn, 1845. "The Village is divided into three districts, numbered one two and three. All west of the centre of Union Ave and south of the centre of Grand Street composes the first district; all west of Union Avenue and to the north of Grand Street composes the Second District; and all east of Union Avenue, the Third District." At this time, the three districts of Williamsburg were more commonly known as the North Side, South Side, and the New Village. The names "North Side" and "South Side" remain in common usage today, but the name for the Third District has changed often. The New Village became populated by Germans and for a time was known by the sobriquet of "Dutchtown". In 1844, Williamsburg separated from the Town of Bushwick and became the Town and Village of Williamsburg. Parts of the Third District were known as "Irish Town" and "The Green" during the latter half of the 19th century. In 1854, Williamsburg was incorporated into the City of Brooklyn, which was one of the original six Dutch Townships of western Long Island. Upon consolidation with Brooklyn in 1854, Districts one (North Side) and two (South Side) became, respectively, Wards 14 and 13 of the City of Brooklyn. The third District was split and became Wards 15 and 16 of the City of Brooklyn. Ward 15 was the section north of Ten Eyck Street, between Union Avenue and Bushwick Avenue, with the addition of the portion of Ainslie, Grand, Hope, and South Second Streets between west of Union Avenue and east of Rodney Street. Ward 16 was the section south of Ten Eyck Street, bounded by Broadway, Flushing Avenue, and Bushwick Avenue.


Demographics

Based on data from the 2010 United States census, the population of East Williamsburg was 34,158, an increase of 2,280 (7.2%) from the 31,878 counted in
2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
. Covering an area of , the neighborhood had a population density of .Table PL-P5 NTA: Total Population and Persons Per Acre – New York City Neighborhood Tabulation Areas*, 2010
Population Division –
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
Department of City Planning, February 2012. Accessed June 16, 2016.
The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 43.1% (14,706)
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 9.3% (3,189)
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.1% (40) Native American, 12.7% (4,354) Asian, 0.1% (21)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.3% (115) from other races, and 1.6% (561) from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 32.7% (11,172) of the population.Table PL-P3A NTA: Total Population by Mutually Exclusive Race and Hispanic Origin – New York City Neighborhood Tabulation Areas*, 2010
Population Division –
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
Department of City Planning, March 29, 2011. Accessed June 14, 2016.
As according to the 2020 census data from
New York City Department of City Planning The Department of City Planning (DCP) is the department of the government of New York City responsible for setting the framework of city's physical and socioeconomic planning. The department is responsible for land use and environmental review, p ...
, there were between 20,000 and 29,999 White residents and 10,000 to 19,999 Hispanic residents; however, Black and Asian residents were each between 5,000 and 9,999 residents.


Transportation

East Williamsburg is well served by the
New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...
. It is mainly served by the Grand Street, Montrose Avenue, and Morgan Avenue stops of the BMT Canarsie Line (). On the border with Bedford-Stuyvesant is the Flushing Avenue stop of the BMT Jamaica Line () and the Flushing Avenue stop of the
IND Crosstown Line The IND Crosstown Line or Brooklyn–Queens Crosstown Line is a rapid transit line of the B Division (New York City Subway), B Division of the New York City Subway in Brooklyn and Queens, New York City. It provides crosstown service between wes ...
(). East Williamsburg is also served by the B24 bus on Kingsland and Meeker Avenues, the B57 on Flushing Avenue, the B60 on Montrose, Johnson and Morgan Avenues, the Q54 on Metropolitan Avenue and Grand Street, and the Q59 on Grand Street. The Kosciuszko Bridge (carrying Interstate 278) and the Grand Street Bridge across the
Newtown Creek Newtown Creek, a long tributary of the East River, is an estuary that forms part of the border between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, in New York City. River engineering#Channelization, Channelization made it one of the most heavily-use ...
connect East Williamsburg with
Maspeth, Queens Maspeth is a residential and commercial community in the Borough (New York City), borough of Queens in New York City. It was founded in the early 17th century by Dutch and English settlers. Neighborhoods sharing borders with Maspeth are Woodside ...
.


Boundaries

East Williamsburg is in Brooklyn Community Board 1New York: A City of Neighborhoods
at nyc.gov
and is bounded by the East River, Kent Avenue, Flushing Avenue, and the
Newtown Creek Newtown Creek, a long tributary of the East River, is an estuary that forms part of the border between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, in New York City. River engineering#Channelization, Channelization made it one of the most heavily-use ...
. However, various parts of the East Williamsburg are served by different post offices. The neighborhood includes the zip codes 11211, served by the Williamsburg Post Office at 263 S. 4th Street; 11206, served by the Metropolitan-Bushwick Post Office at 47 Debevoise Street; 11222, served by the Greenpoint Post Office at 66 Meserole Avenue; and 11237, served by the Wyckoff Heights-Bushwick Post Office at 86 Wyckoff Avenue.A zipcode maps is available at http://www.unhp.org/pdf/maps/zip_bk.pdf There are several
public housing Public housing, also known as social housing, refers to Subsidized housing, subsidized or affordable housing provided in buildings that are usually owned and managed by local government, central government, nonprofit organizations or a ...
projects in East Williamsburg, including the Williamsburg Houses, Borinquen Plaza Houses, Cooper Park Houses, John Francis Hylan Houses, and the Bushwick Houses. Greenspaces include Cooper Park.


Subsections


East Williamsburg Industrial Park

The eastern half of East Williamsburg, roughly bounded by the Newtown Creek on the east and by I-278 and Flushing Avenue on the north and south, respectively, is mostly zoned for industry with some residential housing mixed among the warehouses and factories. The section is currently referred to by the city as the East Williamsburg Industrial Park (EWIP), or formally the East Williamsburg In-Place Industrial Park (EWIPIP).East Williamsburg Industrial Park

Greenpoint-Williamsburg Planning Framework – Decline in Industrial Activity (APPROVED)
The western boundary runs approximately along Kinsgland Ave, then Morgan Avenue and then just east of Bushwick Avenue. The EWIP is one of eight In-Place Industrial Parks in New York City and is managed by the East Williamsburg Valley Industrial Development Corporation (EWVIDCO), a company founded in 1982 with the goal of revitalizing East Williamsburg by attracting new businesses, providing business assistance to existing firms and grow overall job opportunities in the neighborhood.
Greenpoint-Williamsburg Rezoning Final Environmental Impact Statement, CEQR #04DCP003K
, City Planning Commission, City of New York, 4 March 2005, page 2–42.
Historically, this neighborhood was not part of the Village of Williamsburgh. In the late 19th century the region east of the present-day Humboldt Street, west of the
Newtown Creek Newtown Creek, a long tributary of the East River, is an estuary that forms part of the border between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, in New York City. River engineering#Channelization, Channelization made it one of the most heavily-use ...
, south of Meeker Avenue, and north of Metropolitan Avenue was the 18th ward of the City of Brooklyn.The boundaries are defined in the 1865 New York state census as foun
here
/ref> The north part of the EWIP is served by the Greenpoint Post Office and is considered by some to be part of Greenpoint. The portion of the EWIP to the south of Metropolitan Avenue was historically part of Bushwick and is still referred by many as being in Bushwick. For many years a well-known landmark in East Williamsburg was a pair of cylindrical natural gas holders located on Maspeth Avenue, built in 1927 and 1948 by Brooklyn Union Gas, and demolished in 2001.


East of Bushwick Avenue

The section of Brooklyn that lies east of Bushwick Avenue, bordered by Metropolitan Avenue and Flushing Avenue on the North and South, is referred to some as being part of East Williamsburg since the region is part of EWIP. Factories and warehouses are being decommissioned due to heavy and light industry leaving the area. An example of this can be seen in the adjacent picture which shows the two loft buildings on McKibbin St., 255 McKibbin and 248 McKibbin. At present it lies within the boundaries of Community Board 1, the Brooklyn Community Board for Greenpoint and Williamsburg.


Library

The
Brooklyn Public Library The Brooklyn Public Library is the public library system of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is the sixteenth largest public library system in the United States by holding and the seventh by number of visitors. Like the two Brooklyn Publ ...
(BPL)'s Bushwick branch is located at 340 Bushwick Avenue near Seigel Street. The Bushwick branch was founded in 1903 and its current building opened in 1908.


Culture

There are several communities and neighborhoods within East Williamsburg. Since the late 19th century, most of the immigrants to this section have come from Italy or from Puerto Rico and other Latin American countries. Graham Avenue (also known as Avenue of Puerto Rico to the south of Grand Street, and Via Vespucci to the north), Grand Street, and Metropolitan Avenue are the main shopping districts. The Moore Street Market, often referred to as La Marqueta de Williamsburg, is located at 110 Moore Street. The first wave of Italian immigration to East Williamsburg occurred in the second half of the 19th century. By the late 1880s, the neighborhood along Graham Avenue was inhabited by many Italian immigrants, as evidenced by The Our Lady of the Snow Society at 410 Graham Avenue, established in 1888. Italians also attended St. Cecilia's Catholic Church at 84 Herbert Street, which was established in 1871 and run mainly by Irish. Other Italian societies in the neighborhood include Sabino Society on Withers St., the San Cono Society on Ainslie St. A second wave of Italian immigration occurred from World War II until the 1970s. While the neighborhood has changed significantly, the established Italian community still thrives along the north end of Graham avenue, also referred to as "Via Vespucci". The neighborhood also was home to The Motion Lounge, the former nightclub at 420 Graham Avenue owned by Bonanno crime family
caporegime A ''caporegime'' or ''capodecina'', usually shortened to ''capo'' or informally referred to as "captain", "skipper" or "lieutenant", is a leadership position in the Mafia (both the Sicilian Mafia and Italian-American Mafia). A ''capo'' is a "made m ...
Dominick Napolitano. There are also many Puerto Rican residents. The south end of Graham Avenue (also known as "Avenue of Puerto Rico") has been the center of a Latin American immigrant neighborhood since the 1950s. Since the 1990s, the area has seen a great influx of young
artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating the work of art. The most common usage (in both everyday speech and academic discourse) refers to a practitioner in the visual arts o ...
s, professionals, students and " hipsters", mainly due to its close proximity to
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
and major universities (e.g.
Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...
,
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
,
School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by Silas ...
,
Fashion Institute of Technology The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public college under the State University of New York, in New York City. It focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. It was founded in ...
,
The New School The New School is a Private university, private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for p ...
) and the relatively inexpensive rent. The rent is rising however, and the influx of said students has made housing more competitive pushing out those who cannot afford the rising cost of living in the north.


References

{{Authority control Neighborhoods in Brooklyn Williamsburg, Brooklyn Puerto Rican culture in New York City Italian-American culture in New York City