Commemorate the Battle of Brooklyn With Old Stone House

The 241st anniversary of the Battle of Brooklyn is being celebrated this week, and there is still time to join in on some of the planned activities.

The battle is considered one of America’s greatest losses during our war for independence, and Old Stone House, at 336 3rd Street in Park Slope, was right in the center of the action. On August 27, 1776, General Charles Cornwallis had about 2,000 British troops around the house battling just several hundred Americans.

The circa 1699 house — originally known as the Vechte-Cortelyou house — survived the war but not the 20th century. Reduced to a pile of stones by 1910, it was reconstructed in the 1930s and is now set in the midst of the busy JJ Byrne Park.

To commemorate the battle, Old Stone House is hosting a walking tour on Friday August 25 at 6 p.m. The Battle of Brooklyn Neighborhood Walk will be led by Hunter College archaeology professor William J. Parry, and participants will travel from Grand Army Plaza through Park Slope. The event is $10 for Old Stone House members and $12 for non-members. You can buy tickets here.

Old Stone House also has a permanent exhibit dedicated to the history of the battle, Old Stone House: Witness to War. The museum is open every Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. and every Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more info on the Old Stone House, click here.

The Old Stone House events are part of a full week of organized activities that kicked off August 17 and run through August 27. In Fort Greene Park, there will be a ceremony honoring the Prison Ship Martyrs on Saturday, August 26 at 10 a.m. at the memorial in the park. The event is coordinated by the Society of Old Brooklynites, the American Merchant Marine Association and the Navy Armed Guard and is free of charge.

Green-Wood Cemetery will also have a bevy of events the weekend of August 26, with an entire day at the cemetery dedicated to the battle. You can check out our write-up on that here.

You can also check out the full slate of Battle of Brooklyn events here.

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