We visited the Brooklyn Museum last weekend and were struck by a number of photographs on display by George Bradford Brainerd (1847-1887). The image above, which is part of the museum’s permanent collection, shows what a section of 4th Avenue looked like in the mid-to-late 19th century (exact date unknown). Several generations before anyone dreamed of calling the thoroughfare “the next Park Avenue”, it apparently had roadside shanties and a lot of trees. It’s also worth noting that Brainerd photos (like the one on the jump) appear in an exhibit called “Goodbye Coney Island” that documents Coney’s changes over the last 125 years. The exhibit, which is in the incredibly cool visible storage section of the museum, runs through April 6th.
All images courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum.