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Architectural History of the Brooklyn Warehouse
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Architectural History of the Brooklyn Warehouse
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" Now bill when most people look at a building that's as dilapidated as this one. They think tear down as an architectural historian you're looking at a tapestry that's telling you the story of where this building's been. I'm looking at a story with a number of chapters that probably stretch over a 160 -- 170 years in from the time this building started. As a three story residence. To it's gradual change. To warehouse and commercial and manufacturing use but not -- not my story really -- tell us about. What it looked like when it was a residence in maybe 1830 or forty went it was a residence may be about 1840. It was three stories high. It had these wonderful. Federal period cast iron lintels that you see on the second and so the decorative elements above the windows are are a tip off that it was residential and that it was -- that -- yes they -- do you know that it was added onto with an additional floor up top if you look at that top floor. And look at two things look at the brickwork -- look at the lintels that wonderful. Decorative character of the lintels on the second and third floor changes to those very simple flat brick lintels -- and the quality of the brickwork changes. The brick itself on the top floor becomes a big Krueger. Of the joints the mortar joints become wider and and and less regular than they are on the second and third floors. It's just a different character and quality construction what about at the street level let's go a little bit closer and look at what's there. Now is this brownstone. This is brownstone. Probably worried in Connecticut tip off to a date of probably about 1840 yourself for the -- And what happened here it was there's a set of steps are subject. It's possible that there were set of steps when this was a house it would have had steps -- may be on this on this day meeting on the other day."
" So I'm not sure where to begin because everything is exposed it what do you see here for example. What I see here is. An original party wall brick party wall here. Where they would nailer typical of the period that would have been used for furring strips and later eleven western meant to accept the framing of -- leader lath and plaster wall okay. But what about this look at look at asked what I what I also see is evidence of they of the -- earlier period. Remember that when this building was built the earliest thing surviving on the block. And there was not a building next door -- it so there was an exposed wall which. Had the window you had views of the East River from here that's right fabulous what about that side. Here again we have we have an original brick party wall we have much more extensive. Length of these wood nailers in place you can see there's also one of the bottom which was meant to accept a baseboard. More evidence that this. Had at least a partially residential character original and the way the structure of the wooden aspects of her marriage to the mainstream throughout its its pretty sophisticated is quite sophisticated and it's also very strong this from the very beginning was meant to bear a lot of weight. So. It's not necessarily a frame for a residence but it that's right our suspicion. Is that there was a kind of mixed function here remember the person who built this house mr. Burke deck. Also owned and operated. An iron foundry right next door. So this may well have served only a quasi resident. And shall function and there may have been offices counting house so yeah some of those documentary research on the property. Through archives you know who built it and so what we've done some we need to do more of them we'll put the pieces of the puzzle of the physical evidence together with the documentary evidence and see if we have a complete story. Look at the mental in this former window opening. From the side does it look like it's an old hand hewn piece of timber and it actually looks like it's. A combination of hand hewn. But also song. Sawn within with a relatively early saw though rather than a mechanical up. Circular saw right. What we're also seeing here is further evidence that. This building was open into the light on this side as well. We're seeing evidence that that was in filled with that it was in filled at a pretty early date because we have. We have mortar here that I can scratch out with my finger it's lime mortar -- so this was in filled fairly early we have another chapter on top of this though or rather below this because if you look here. You can see that there is an earlier generation of in filled window. I wish I had a nice tidy conclusion for this but at some point I at this point I don't. And sometimes the fascination of this is just the mystery the detective work to absolutely thanks for."
