Brooklyn Landmarks-Fulton Ferry

The architecture of this district illustrates its rise from a village, as seen in early 19th-century Federal homes, to a commercial and industrial center starting in the 1830’s. Possibly the oldest surviving office building in the city, the 1834 Long Island Insurance Company building, is in this district. The Greek-revival Franklin House, a dining saloon and hotel built in 1835, welcomed ferry travelers for over sixty years. The 1869 Long Island Safe Deposit Company building features a handsome Italianate cast-iron façade. The Empire Stores, built the same year, replaced earlier warehouses storing raw products like sugar and coffee for nearby refineries. The opening of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883 and the eventual end to ferry service turned the neighborhood into a backwater, the upside being the well preserved character of this 19th-century village. Designated June 28, 1977.