Once hardly anything like the trendy and bustling neighborhood it is today, the community was aptly named “Green Point” by the Dutch to reflect its abundance of appealing nature, including white sand beaches, highlands, and “tidal meadows” reminiscent of the Everglades in Florida.
Greenpoint managed to exist as relatively low-key home to a few farmers and millers until after the War of 1812. After that war, businessmen and merchants began to look to Greenpoint (and its connective Newtown Creek) as a fortifier of NYC trade and commerce. Waves of European immigrants throughout the 1800s fed the booming shipbuilding, manufacturing, and oil industries thriving on Greenpoint’s water’s edge.
A mix of Polish, Russian and Italian immigrants moved into the area from 1880s and thereafter, soon shaping Greenpoint into what is now known today as, “Little Poland”. Today, more than 80% of Greenpoint is White, people of Polish descent making up for a large part of that percentage, and nearly a quarter Latino, with smatterings of Black and Asian.
Photos by Rishi Bandopadhay of NYULocal
New York City’s “Little Poland” has had to make room for other incoming groups, most notably the “hipsters” leaking in from Williamsburg, but the Polish people still form the backbone of the community. One can hear it, see it, smell it, and taste it in the Polish tones floating down the street, Polish writing displayed on store awnings, in the wafts of yeast and sugar outside of Polish bakeries, and in Polish restaurants perched on every block.
Fun Fact
As one treads along the streets of Greenpoint, absorbing the many sights and sounds of the community, one may be able to catch the unique Brooklyn accent that pronounces ‘Greenpoint’ as ‘Greenpernt’.
Information Source: http://brooklyn.about.com/od/historicbrooklyn/a/A-Short-History-Of-Greenpoint-Brooklyn.htm
