Fort Greene is listed on the New York State Registry and on the National Register of Historic Places, and is a New York City-designated Historic District. It is located in northwest Brooklyn, just across from Lower Manhattan and west of Prospect Park. Fort Greene is bounded by Flushing Avenue to the north, Flatbush Avenue to the west, Vanderbilt Avenue to the east and Atlantic Avenue to the south. Its main arteries are Fulton Street, Lafayette Avenue and DeKalb Avenue.
Fort Greene's history is rife with important names - General Nathaniel Greene, Walt Whitman, Frederick Law Olmsted, Calvert Vaux, William Howard Taft, and McKim, Mead and White, to name a few.
The neighborhood, built up mostly around the Civil War, is architecture heaven. Fort Greene contains many examples of mid-19th century Italianate and Eastlake architecture. There are beautiful churches like St. Michael and St. Edward, a twin-towered beauty that looks like a medieval French castle. Fort Greene is known for its many tree-lined streets and retains more than its share of stunningly intact brownstone blocks. Many include houses rich in embellishments and detail, supported by a pride in ownership that remains steadfast even as brownstones change hands.
Fort Greene is one of the most revered brownstone districts in Brooklyn.
The blocks that end at Fort Greene Park especially South Oxford Street and South Portland Avenue often dominate best-block lists, and are usually surpassed in price only by those on Washington Park, a street that runs along the park. Interspersed among its brownstone blocks, the neighborhood supports four main drags, each with a distinct character -DeKalb, Myrtle Avenue, Lafayette Avenue, and Fulton Street. At its southern and northern ends, Fort Greene is without the protection of its two historic districts, as occasionally revealed by glass-and-steel condominium projects. The Avalon on Flatbush Avenue near Tillary Street and closer to what is considered Fort Greene proper, both the Forté and One Hanson Place (a residential conversion of the historic Williamsburgh Savings Bank) are popular places to live. A favorite of the Brooklyn luxury rental buildings is the 36 story DKLB BKLY located at 80 DeKalb Avenue.
In the center of it all is Fort Greene Park, the oldest park in Brooklyn. Fort Greene Park was the original site of forts built for the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. The community surrounding the land started using it as public space shortly after the threat of the War of 1812 passed. By 1847, it was designated a park, and twenty years later, famed landscape architects Olmsted and Vaux (designers of Central Park and Prospect Park) began its new layout. In 1897, the park, formerly known as Washington Park, received its name. Now, a basketball court, playgrounds, tennis courts, joggers and dog people all share this spot of greenery with sloping hills and majestic trees.
Fort Greene is an incredibly hip area in Brooklyn that attracts hipsters, artists and foodies. Fort Greene is one of Brooklyn’s latest culinary meccas. It is also a celebration of African-American pride and culture, a historic home to a vibrant community. Also present are single professionals, young married couples, media types, artists and musicians. Fort Greene is home to the cultural centers - Brooklyn Academy of Music, (aka BAM), the Brooklyn Music School, The Paul Robeson Theater, The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts, BRIC Arts|Media|Bklyn, UrbanGlass, 651 Arts performing center for African-American presenters, The Irondale Center for Theater, Education, and Outreach, the Mark Morris Dance Center and Lafayette Church. In addition to the dance performances, films, plays, art exhibitions and concerts on offer at BAM, locals also enjoy the Brooklyn Flea, a teeming collection of eclectic vendors.
The neighborhood is served by the Subway at DeKalb Avenue (B D N Q R trains), Atlantic Avenue – Barclays Center (2 3 4 5 B D N Q R trains), Lafayette Avenue (A C trains), Fulton Street (G train) and the LIRR's Atlantic Terminal.
Nearby: Boerum Hill, Clinton Hill, Downtown Brooklyn
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