Gerritsen Beach, Brooklyn

Gerritsen Beach is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, located near Marine Park and Sheepshead Bay. The area is served by Brooklyn Community Board 15. [ [http://www.nyc.gov/html/cau/html/cb/cb_brooklyn.shtml Brooklyn Community Boards] , New York City. Accessed December 31, 2007.]

Geography

Gerritsen Beach is in Southeastern Brooklyn, lying on a peninsula near Marine Park, bounded to the north by Avenue U, to the east by Gerritsen Avenue, to the south by Plumb Beach Channel, and to the west by Shell Bank Creek and Knapp Street; it is bisected from west to east by Gotham Avenue Canal. The area north of the canal, known as the "New Section" by local residents, is lined with stores, brick houses, sidewalks, and the elementary school, [http://schools.nyc.gov/SchoolPortals/22/K277/default.htm?searchType=school P.S. 277 ("The Gerritsen Beach School")] , while the area south of the canal (the "Old Section") retains the character of a small fishing village and is a popular station for party boats.

History

The neighborhood is named for Wolfert Gerritsen, a Dutchman, who in the early seventeenth century built a house and mill on Gerritsen Creek (now part of Marine Park).Cohen, Joyce. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E1D81231F930A35750C0A9649C8B63 "If You're Thinking of Living In/Gerritsen Beach; Secluded Peninsula in South Brooklyn"] , "The New York Times", March 3, 2002. Accessed November 11, 2007. "The area, named for Wolfert Gerritsen, a 17th-century settler, was mostly marshland until around 1920, when a company called Realty Associates began building summer homes."] . The mill was destroyed by fire about 1931.

Until the early twentieth century, the area remained undeveloped except for a few squatters’ bungalows at the foot of Gerritsen Avenue. The firm of Realty Associates began building a middle-class summer resort there in 1920, and the southwest corner of Gerritsen’s Meadow was soon covered by one-story bungalows with peaked roofs and no backyards, typically on 40-by-45-foot lots. The popularity of this first venture spurred further growth. Some bungalows were made suitable for year-round habitation, two-story houses with backyards were built, and within a decade there were fifteen hundred houses. With its narrow streets and close-set homes, some sitting on the water, this neighborhood in far south Brooklyn is often likened to a New England fishing village.

Demography

Mixed ethnic residency, though there is a large Irish Catholic presence within the community. A few senior Irish-descent residents sometimes refer to the community as being 'Cois Farraige', which is a Gaelic term meaning "By The Sea."

Education

Resurrection Roman Catholic Elementary School operated until the end of the 2005 school year when it was closed by the diocese. Currently, the Brooklyn Blue Feather School for special-needs children operates in the former Resurrection school building. There is also the(NYCDOE)P.S. 277 Elementary School (known simply as "The Gerritsen Beach School").

Recreation

There are the Gerritsen Ballfields located on the Eastside Of Gerritsen Avenue. Three baseball fields, two athletic fields for soccer and football and one Little League field. This site underwent a $192,000 renovation sponsored by Council Member Herbert E. Berman in 1993. The park area also supports a mini airport for model planes located at Seba Street and Gerritsen Avenue. Recreational Fishing Is Very Popular within the community. Anglers can be found fishing the Shoreline at the Southern tip of Gerritsen Avenue, and along the adjacent shoreline of the Gerritsen Creek/Marine Park 'Salt Marsh'. That Gerritsen Creek/'Salt Marsh' waterway is also a major spawning ground for various species of marine fish.

Transportation

The community is serviced by the NYC Transit B31, and the BM4 express bus.

Worship

Resurrection Roman Catholic Church, and St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church both serve the community.

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thumb|right|200px|such_pure-nature_landscapes_are_available_at_the_end_of_Gerristen_Avenue,_called_The_Point]_

Legislative representatives

New York City Council
*Lewis Fidler [ [http://www.nyccouncil.info/constituent/member_details.cfm?con_id=73 District: 46 Lewis Fidler Member Details Page] at NYC Council Website ] New York State Senate
*Carl Kruger [ [http://www.nyssenate27.com/ 27th NY State Senate District Page] ]
*Martin Golden [ [http://www.senatorgolden.com/ Senator Golden's Website] ] House of Representatives
*Anthony D. Weiner [ [http://www.house.gov/weiner/ Website of Representative Anthony Weiner] ] New York Senators
*Hillary Clinton [ [http://clinton.senate.gov/ Hillary Clinton's Senate Website] ]
*Charles Schumer [ [http://schumer.senate.gov/ Charles Schumer's Senate Website] ]

The Gerrittsen Beach Volunteer Fire Department

The Gerrittsen Beach Volunteer Fire Department, aka the vollies which is the last remaining volunteer fire department in Brooklyn, was organized in 1922, when Gerrittsen Beach was a small, predominantly summer community. In 1921 a damaging fire on Abbey Court showed the community that the city’s regular fire apparatus could not reach the Beach in time to put out the fire. A mass meeting was called by the residents that resulted in the organization of the only volunteer fire department in Brooklyn.

Before the city added water mains to Gerrittsen Beach streets, the Volunteers had to handle fires at least three times a week. The urgency of need was due to the great danger for the residents because most families had oil stoves or kerosene lamps, and the water had to be pumped from wells. The city did not build Engine Company 321’s firehouse at Gerritsen Avenue and Avenue U until October 4, 1930.

Members of the department are currently known as the Vollies, and had earlier had the nickname "the Vamps." Members are not only trained to fight fires, but can also rescue people who are drowning, and assist in other medical emergencies. According to the Vollies 1976 anniversary booklet, in 1974 the Vollies were approved by the New York State Department of Health as an Emergency Services Training Center.

Even though it is now served by Engine Company 321, there remains strong community support for the firehouse at 52 Seba Avenue.

Significant events
*The Vollies responded with medical aid to the 1960 jet airliner crash on 7th Avenue and Sterling Place, on December 16, 1960.
*Just three days following the New York air disaster, the Vollies responded to the city’s call for the aircraft carrier USS Constitution fire at the Brooklyn Navy Yard on December 19, 1960.
*During heavy fog the Mack searchlight, with its powerful lights, was used at Kennedy Airport when needed.
*When there was a major oil fire in Mill Basin in 1962, the Vollies responded with foam to help put it out.

The Fleet

Gerritsen Beach VFD - 1 engine, 1 ambulance, 1 rescue
* [http://www.fdnytrucks.com/files/html/specialunits/gb.htm Vollies]

Other Neighborhood Organizations

* [http://www.gbcares.org Gerritsen Beach Cares]
* Veterans of Foreign Wars - Argonne Marine Park Post #107
* [http://www.brooklynirish.com/ Kings County AOH Div. 4]

Footnote: In past years members of AOH Div. 4 Chapter were active in the Founding and Operation of the Annual 'Great NY Irish Fair', held each September, now at Keyspan Park In "CONEY IRELAND."

Movies Filmed In Gerritsen Beach

*"City Across the River" [ [http://us.imdb.com/List?locations=Gerritsen+Beach,+Brooklyn,+New+York+City,+New+York,+USA&&tv=on IMDB Locations Search for Gerritsen Beach] ]
*"Moscow on the Hudson" [ [http://us.imdb.com/List?locations=Bartlett+Place,+Gerritsen+Beach,+Brooklyn,+New+York+City,+New+York,+USA&&tv=on IMDB Locations Search for Bartlett Place, Gerritsen Beach] ]
*"The Departed" [ [http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/locations/sets_the_departed.shtml NYC.gov - Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre & Broadcasting - Sets in the City ] ]
*Shaft (2000) [ [http://imdb.com/title/tt0162650/ Shaft (2000) ] ]
*She's the One (1996) [ [http://imdb.com/title/tt0117628/locations She's the One (1996) - Filming locations ] ]

References

External links

* [http://www.GerritsenMemories.com GerritsenMemories.com] - Marret Kauffner started the site in 1998 as a place for her family memories. Since there was no other outlet for Ex-"Gerritsen Beachers" to express their sentiment for Gerritsen Beach. People started to leave messages about the beach. She quickly learned that there was much more interest with other people then in her family. It hosts a message board, pictures and stories.
* [http://www.gerritsenbeach.net GerritsenBeach.net] - Offering Current News, Links & Reviews not Memories

* [http://www.lutheransonline.com/saintjameschurch St. James]
* [http://www.fdnytrucks.com/files/html/specialunits/gb.htm The Vollies]
* [http://www.gerritsenmemories.com/ Gerritsen Memories]
* [http://www.dgmaestro.com/GerritsenIce/index.htm Fairy-Tale like views of ICE-Plated Gerritsen Bay]
* [http://www.house.gov/weiner/neighborhoods/hoods_gerritsenbeach.htm Neighborhood description] from the website of Congressman, Anthony Weiner
* [http://www.gerritsenbeach.net/ Gerritsenbeach.net Current News]