Bedford-Stuyvesant

Bedford-Stuyvesant, also called Bed-Stuy, has a rich history and a vibrant, diverse culture. It is the birthplace and hometown of some of the most celebrated figures in literature, sports, entertainment and politics, such as Norman Mailer, Jackie Robinson, Lena Horne, Shirley Chisholm, Eubie Blake, Norah Jones, Mos Def and Chris Rock.

On Fulton Street, you’ll find the beloved Billie Holiday Theatre inside of Restoration Plaza, also home to the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, the oldest community development corporation in the country and a central artery of this vibrant and growing community. Restoration also houses The Skylight Art Gallery, The Rite Job Development Center; Royal Blue Music Recording Studios; The Restoration Youth Arts Academy and several other community development programs focused on asset management and green development.

Bedford-Stuyvesant is known as “The neighborhood of churches,” with more than 500 churches, mosques and synagogues within a two-mile square block radius. It also has been nicknamed “Brownstone Brooklyn,” claiming the highest concentration of pre-war Brownstones in all of New York City.

“Bedford-Stuyvesant I call the antiques road show, but only with houses,” said Morgan Munsey, architectural historian and researcher for the Bedford-Stuyvesant Society for Historical Preservation. “It’s like having a Van Gogh in your attic and not know about it.”

In the 1600s and 1700s, Bedford-Stuyvesant was a little Dutch village, a rural area with just a few country houses. But by the early 1800s, after the completion of the Brooklyn Bridge, homes began to populate the area. And by the mid 1800s, housing construction in Bed-Stuy was booming.

According to Munsey, the list of famous architects that have influenced Bedford-Stuyvesant’s housing development and architecture could fill a book. But the most notable ones include Amzi Hill who designed in the Neo Grec style; Isaac D. Reynolds who also designed Neo Grec and then later evolved into the Romanesque Revival style; the architectural team of Frederick B Langston and Magnus Dahlander most noted for his Queen Anne style of architecture; and Montrose Morris whose multi-unit apartment buildings designed only for the upper class not only combined all previous styles, but broke the mold.

Many of the buildings within the Stuyvesant Heights area of Bed-Stuy currently are landmarked. And as another wave of development sweeps through Bed-Stuy, the move to landmark other areas has been revitalized, including Bedford Corners, The Stuyvesant Heights Extension, Stuyvesant East, and Stuyvesant North, encompassing more than 60 blocks.

Description provided by Patch.com

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