Brownstone History GOLD MINE!

@ElleHouse digitized maps can be of great help as some (Sanborns, Bromleys etc.) indicate the construction material – wood frame, stone, brick etc. The collection at NYPL is a great starting point as they have Brooklyn maps from 1855 to 1920 https://www.nypl.org/collections/nypl-recommendations/guides/fire-topo-property-maps As @cate noted, disregard the DOB dates as they are usually inaccurate for anything pre 1920s. Depending on your neighborhood, streets may also have been renumbered – so for instance in Brooklyn Heights you need to search the address it had pre 1870s when doing newspaper hunting. BHS occasionally holds Brooklyn house research workshops if you are looking for a good overview.

Jasperrose11

in General Discussion 5 years and 7 months ago

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cate | 5 years and 7 months ago

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OP, it sounds like the address of your house may have changed over the years OR the brownstone was razed and a wood frame built in its place (extremely unlikely). Disregard the dates at the DOB. They are incorrect.

Guest User | 5 years and 7 months ago

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string(6) "198551"

Hi @Cate – I agree in the abstract that it would be crazy to replace a brownstone with a wood frame, except that literally *every* other house on our side of the block (every.single.one) is a brownstone, and we are sandwiched between two huge brownstones. Something out of the ordinary must have happened along the way. Our house looks so charmingly out of place, like a little flower girl dressed in white that accidentally ended up at the grown-ups table.