1020 Hancock St. CB, PS

Brooklyn, one building at a time.

Name: Semi-detached wood framed house
Address: 1020 Hancock Street
Cross Streets: Broadway and Bushwick Avenue
Neighborhood: Bushwick
Year Built: 1885
Architectural Style: Italianate
Architect: Theobald Engelhardt
Other Buildings by Architect: Row houses, free standing mansions, churches, flats buildings, factories, breweries, warehouses and other buildings in Bushwick, Bedford Stuyvesant and Williamsburg, predominantly.
Landmarked: No

The story: This house was not owned by anyone famous, and nothing newsworthy happened here. No scandals, no murders, no wayward children or horrible tragedies. There were no big weddings here, or parties, and no one who lived here made more than the average contribution to their communities or country. It’s a completely ordinary house on an ordinary block in Bushwick. And that’s why it’s so beautiful.

This house could be on a street in just about any town or city in most parts of the country. It’s a vernacular wood framed Italianate, in this case designed by one of Brooklyn’s most prolific and talented architects. Theobald Engelhardt could design this one in his sleep. He’s on record with similar buildings in what used to be the Eastern District. This house was built for one William Widnall, who was the first owner. I couldn’t find out much about him other than the fact that he was a veteran of the Civil War, and had served with the 47th Regiment, out of Williamsburg. He sold the house to a man named William Funk in 1890, for $4550.00.

The house is a classic of its type. It’s a comfortable, simple, yet elegant clapboard house with a porch that stretches across the front inviting one to stop and relax. The proportions are great, and the house probably feels quite spacious inside. It sits on a 20×100 foot lot, and the house itself is 20×40. It’s the kind of house I would be quite happy to own, and could rattle around by myself in it, with plenty of room for my stuff, as well as room for guests.

This block was a typical late 19th century middle class Bushwick block. It had a mixture of wood framed and masonry row houses. After World War II, many of the houses were altered beyond recognition, with vinyl siding, stone fronts, stucco and asphalt shingles. Some of the original details can be seen here and there, but this house, amazingly enough, is the most preserved house on the block. It wasn’t always the case, the 1980s tax photo shows the house covered in brick red asphalt siding. Kudos to the owner who restored it.

I like the house because I see it here in Troy on multiple streets. I’ve seen it in Gilbertsville, the small upstate town I grew up in, and I’ve seen it in New Haven, the Bronx, and most of the neighborhoods of Brooklyn. It’s a classic. Sometimes you just can’t do better than a classic. GMAP

(Photo: Christopher Bride for Property Shark)

1980s tax photo: NYC Municipal Archives
1980s tax photo: NYC Municipal Archives
Photo: Nicholas Strini for Property Shark
Photo: Nicholas Strini for Property Shark
Photo: Google Maps
Photo: Google Maps

What's Your Take? Leave a Comment