Fulton Street, Brooklyn
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Fulton Street is a long east–west street in northern
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 ...
. This street begins at the intersection of Adams Street and Joralemon Street in
Brooklyn Heights Brooklyn Heights is a residential neighborhood within the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Old Fulton Street near the Brooklyn Bridge on the north, Cadman Plaza West on the east, Atlantic Avenue on the south ...
, and runs eastward to
East New York East New York is a residential neighborhood in the eastern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are roughly the Cemetery Belt and the Queens borough line to the north; ...
and Cypress Hills. At the border with
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 ...
, Fulton Street becomes 91st Avenue, which ends at 84th Street in Woodhaven.


History

The street is named after
Robert Fulton Robert Fulton (November 14, 1765 – February 24, 1815) was an American engineer and inventor who is widely credited with developing the world's first commercially successful steamboat, the (also known as ''Clermont''). In 1807, that steamboat ...
; a street of the same name in
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 ...
was linked to this street by Fulton with his steam ferries. For a hundred years before the Fulton Ferry monopoly, Fulton Street was the Ferry Road through
Jamaica Pass East New York is a residential neighborhood in the eastern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are roughly the Cemetery Belt and the Queens borough line to the north; ...
and, in the centuries before any ferry service, Indian path to the
Hempstead Plains The Hempstead Plains is a region of central Long Island, in what is now Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, in New York State. It was once an open expanse of native grassland estimated to once extend to about . It was separated from the Nort ...
. It began at the Fulton Ferry Landing and climbed south through Brooklyn Heights past
Brooklyn Borough Hall Brooklyn Borough Hall is a building in Downtown Brooklyn, New York City. It was designed by architects Calvin Pollard and Gamaliel King in the Greek Revival style, and constructed of Tuckahoe marble under the supervision of superintendent ...
to where it now begins at Adams Street. Part of the original Fulton Street survives as Old Fulton Street in Brooklyn Heights and
Dumbo ''Dumbo'' is a 1941 American Animated film, animated Musical film, musical Fantasy film, fantasy Comedy drama, comedy-drama film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios, Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The film i ...
, and as Cadman Plaza West in Downtown Brooklyn. The segment of Fulton Street that traveled past Borough Hall has been turned into a pedestrian esplanade.


Route

The initial segment of Fulton Street as it exists today is the Fulton Mall between Adams Street and
Flatbush Avenue Flatbush Avenue is a major avenue in the New York City Borough (New York City), Borough of Brooklyn. It runs from the Manhattan Bridge south-southeastward to Jamaica Bay, where it joins the Marine Parkway–Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, which ...
. East of Flatbush Avenue, Fulton Street becomes a major artery of
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third-largest central business district in New York City (after Midtown Manhattan, Midtown and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighb ...
,
Fort Greene Fort Greene is a neighborhood in the northwestern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Flushing Avenue and the Brooklyn Navy Yard to the north, Flatbush Avenue Extension and Downtown Brooklyn to the w ...
and Clinton Hill. At Franklin Avenue, Fulton Street then becomes the signature street of Bedford–Stuyvesant. At Broadway Junction in
East New York East New York is a residential neighborhood in the eastern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are roughly the Cemetery Belt and the Queens borough line to the north; ...
, the street is interrupted by the intersection of
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
and
Jamaica Avenue Jamaica Avenue is a major avenue in the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, New York, in the United States. Jamaica Avenue's western end is at Fulton Street and Broadway, as a continuation of East New York Avenue, in Brooklyn's ...
, but continues on the other side as a one-way residential street through East New York and Cypress Hills until Norwood Avenue, once again as a two-way street reaching the Queens border at Elderts Lane in Woodhaven,
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 ...
. There it becomes 91st Avenue, which continues until 84th Street in Queens. On March 10, 2005, Fulton Street was co-named Harriet Ross Tubman Avenue along most of its length from Rockaway Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant to Elm Place in
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third-largest central business district in New York City (after Midtown Manhattan, Midtown and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighb ...
, on the anniversary of the death of the ex-slave and abolitionist, which has been designated "
Harriet Tubman Day Harriet Tubman Day is an American holiday in honor of abolitionist Harriet Tubman, observed on March 10, and in the U.S. state of New York. Observances also occur locally around the U.S. state of Maryland. History The holiday was approved as Pu ...
of Commemoration" in New York State.


Transportation

Fulton Street is served by the following subway lines: * The
elevated An elevated railway or elevated train (also known as an el train or el for short) is a railway with the Track (rail transport), tracks above street level on a viaduct or other elevated structure (usually constructed from steel, cast iron, concre ...
BMT Fulton Street Line The Fulton Street Line, also called the Fulton Street Elevated or Kings County Line, was an elevated rail line mostly in Brooklyn, New York City, United States. It ran above Fulton Street (Brooklyn), Fulton Street from Fulton Ferry, Brooklyn, in ...
used to run over Fulton Street. 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 ...
's IND Fulton Street subway line () has replaced it east of Washington Avenue. * The
BMT Jamaica Line The BMT Jamaica Line, formerly known as the Broadway (Brooklyn) Line, is an elevated rapid transit line of the B Division of the New York City Subway in Brooklyn and Queens. It runs from the Williamsburg Bridge southeast over Broadway to East ...
() runs above Fulton Street between Broadway Junction and Crescent Street. These bus routes serve the corridor: * The runs on Fulton west of Alabama Avenue. Alabama-bound service is provided via East New York Avenue. * From Adams Street, the corridor’s western end, the heads to Greene Avenue, the runs to Classon Avenue (Ridgewood Terminal) or from Grand Avenue (Downtown Brooklyn), and the goes to Lafayette Avenue (Catalpa/Metro), or from DeKalb Avenue (Downtown Brooklyn). * Fulton Street-bound service runs from Bedford Avenue to Franklin Avenue, then heads south to terminate at Lefferts Place. * Northbound locals run from New York Avenue to Bedford Avenue. All other B44 buses cross Fulton. * The Lefferts Gardens-bound runs from Tompkins Avenue to Brooklyn Avenue, and Greenpoint-bound service runs from Kingston Avenue to Throop Avenue. * The JFK Airport-bound runs from Marcus Garvey Boulevard to Albany Avenue. * The northbound and westbound run from Broadway to Eastern Parkway. From Van Sinderen Avenue, the eastbound Q24 goes to East New York Avenue, and the southbound B20 continues via the avenue to the other side of Fulton Street, until Pennsylvania Avenue.


Fulton Mall

Fulton Mall is a
pedestrian street Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town restricted to use by people on foot or ...
and
transit mall A transit mall is a street, or set of streets, in a city or town along which automobile traffic is prohibited or greatly restricted and only public transit vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians, and emergency services are permitted. Transit malls ...
in
Downtown Brooklyn Downtown Brooklyn is the third-largest central business district in New York City (after Midtown Manhattan, Midtown and Lower Manhattan), and is located in the northwestern section of the borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. The neighb ...
that runs on Fulton Street between
Flatbush Avenue Flatbush Avenue is a major avenue in the New York City Borough (New York City), Borough of Brooklyn. It runs from the Manhattan Bridge south-southeastward to Jamaica Bay, where it joins the Marine Parkway–Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, which ...
and Adams Street. It contains 230 stores and dedicated bus lanes. For the mall's length, only buses, commercial vehicles, local truck deliveries, and emergency vehicles are allowed to use the street. The center of the mall is an open public space known as Albee Square.


History

Fulton Street's first period of great vigor occurred before the era of enclosed shopping malls, the era when huge department stores like
Abraham & Straus Abraham & Straus, commonly shortened to A&S, was a major New York City department store, based in Brooklyn. Founded in 1865, it became part of Federated Department Stores in 1929. Shortly after Federated's 1994 acquisition of R.H. Macy & Compan ...
, Frederick Loeser & Co. and A. I. Namm & Son reigned on the street. The current era dates from the 1970s, when through the persistent efforts of the street’s merchants, the city agreed to a revitalization program through which it would narrow the roadway, widen the sidewalk, and create, with the exception of buses, a traffic-free shopping area. Architect Lee Harris Pomeroy redesigned the mall in the early 1980s: he designed street furniture and equipment for the project including large, free-standing canopies, vendors’ kiosks, directory and telephone kiosks, and high mast lighting. The graphics program he also designed for the project consists of informational, directional and street signage. Pomeroy's renovation was completed in 1984 for $24 million and received an Albert S. Bard Award from the City Club of New York. Nonetheless, the mall initially failed to attract tenants. In 2024, the city began renovating Fulton Mall again for $8 million, adding benches and trees. Subway stations at , , , , and and bus lines service the Fulton Mall area. The area is New York City's third-largest commercial center after
Herald Square Herald Square is a major commercial intersection in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, formed by the intersection of Broadway, Sixth Avenue (officially Avenue of the Americas), and 34th Street. Named for the now-defunct ''New ...
and a stretch of
Madison Avenue Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Stree ...
. The mall has attracted major investments from prominent Brooklyn retail real estate developers such as Stanley Chera, Albert Laboz, Joseph Jemal, and Eli Gindi.


Developments

Fulton Mall includes major retailers such as
Macy's Macy's is an American department store chain founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. The first store was located in Manhattan on Sixth Avenue between 13th and 14th Streets, south of the present-day flagship store at Herald Square on West 34 ...
, H&M, Gap,
GameStop GameStop Corp. is an American video game, consumer electronics, and gaming merchandise retailer, headquartered in Grapevine, Texas (a suburb of Dallas). The brand is the largest video game retailer worldwide. , the company operated 3,203 stor ...
,
Foot Locker Foot Locker, Inc. is an American multinational retailer of footwear, sportswear, urban youth apparel and accessories headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, and operating in over 40 countries. Although established in 1974, and ...
,
Modell's Sporting Goods Modell's Sporting Goods Online, Inc. is an American online sporting goods and related apparel retailer. Modell's began with operating retail stores between the late 1880s and the late 2010s. In 2020, Modell's became a brand owned by the private ...
, and Finish Line. The Fulton Mall Improvement Association is the local
business improvement district A business improvement district (BID) is a defined area within whichever businesses elect to pay an additional fee (or assessment) in order to fund projects within the district's boundaries. A BID is not a tax, as taxes fund the government. BID f ...
. According to the Improvement Association, in 2003 the Fulton Mall area saw between 100,000 and 125,000 visitors a day. The mall has spurred additional commercial development in its immediate vicinity, such as the
City Point City Point of CityPoint may refer to: United Kingdom * CityPoint, an office tower in London, England United States * City Point (New Haven), a neighborhood in New Haven, Connecticut * City Point, a section of the South Boston area in Boston, Massa ...
development, and has become the most expensive place to do business in downtown Brooklyn. Fulton Street's retail space was $301 per square foot in 2016 and $326 per square foot in 2017. The Macy's store at 422 Fulton Street was originally
Abraham & Straus Abraham & Straus, commonly shortened to A&S, was a major New York City department store, based in Brooklyn. Founded in 1865, it became part of Federated Department Stores in 1929. Shortly after Federated's 1994 acquisition of R.H. Macy & Compan ...
's flagship store. The building was designed in
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
style by Starrett & Van Vleck and built in 1933. It was formerly the showroom for the W.C. Vosburgh Mfg. Co. As of 2017, the building is undergoing a $194 million renovation by
Tishman Speyer Tishman Speyer is an American multinational corporation based at 45 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan. The conglomerate invests in high-profile real estate properties, has developed multiple buildings around the world, and has owned famou ...
. Its new portion will have 10 floors dedicated to Class A office space. Macy's is also renovating its part of the building. The Offerman Building on Fulton Mall was built in 1893 by Henry Offerman, a businessman in the sugar industry. It was designed in the Romanesque Revival architectural style and originally hosted retail on the ground floor. The Offerman Building was designated a New York City Historic Landmark in 2005,Postal, Matthew.
Offerman Building
.”
Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and c ...
, 2005.
and by 2017 had been converted into a 121-unit residential complex. Across the street is another designated city landmark, the A. I. Namm & Son Department Store.


See also

* Smith & Gray Company Building


References


External links


Map of Fulton Mall

MetroTech BID


* Co-naming: *

*
City Comptroller William Thompson's speech of dedication
*
An argument for full renaming and context on other Brooklyn street name changes
{{New York City Malls Downtown Brooklyn Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Clinton Hill, Brooklyn Fort Greene, Brooklyn East New York, Brooklyn Streets in Brooklyn