in

Brooklyn in the 1970s: Fascinating Vintage Photos show Street Scenes and Everyday Life

In the 1970s Brooklyn was ruled by mobsters and gangsters, the crime rates were high. Yet the borough remained the favorite place for immigrants from Russia, China, and Puerto Rico, intermingled with traditional Brooklyn populations of African-Americans, Italians, and Jews. There were only a few tall buildings and a lot of pop shops. The streets were empty and most of the houses were raw, you could easily find parking spots almost everywhere.

During the 1940s and 1950s, Brooklyn was home to manufacturing and industry that kept its economy thriving, however, in the mid-70s it was shifted to a service-based economy. Take a look at these stunning nostalgic photos that will take you back to 1970s Brooklyn.

#1 Militant display, window, Bushwick, Brooklyn, 1970.

#2 Turn of the century brownstone apartments being gentrified, Brooklyn, July 1974.

#3 Boys playing baseball in a Vacant Lot on 20th Street, 1974.

#5 Crowd gathered at the Schaefer Bandstand in Central Park to hear singer Judy Collins with a dramatic view of the towers of midtown Manhattan in June of 1973.

#9 View of Brownsville from the Sutter Ave. stop on the L line, Brooklyn, 1978.

#10 View SW from the foot of the Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn, 1971.

#12 Children on a break from Pentecostal Church Services, on 7th Avenue, 1979.

#15 Across from Lynch Park, near the Brooklyn Navy Yard, 1970s.

#17 Boarded-up buildings and the Bedford Avenue façade of the Smith Building, 123 South 8th Street, 1970s.

#18 Williamsburg, looking east on Broadway from Bedford Avenue and South 6th Street, 1970s.

#19 View from the roof of Falcone Funeral Home, 325 Smith Street in Carroll Gardens, July 13, 1978.

#20 Home of Thompson Faulkner, 1472 Atlantic Avenue on May 2, 1978.

#21 Old Fulton Street in what is now Dumbo, January 21, 1978.

#22 Gowanus Canal and the Smith Street and 9th Street station, January 21, 1978.

#23 View from the 26th floor of the Williamsburgh Savings Bank in Fort Greene, July, 1978.

#32 Hanging out, relaxing in front of my porch steps in Brooklyn 1977.

#34 The 1975 Demolition of the Boro Park Theater 1975.

#40 Three young girls on Bond Street, Brooklyn, July 1974.

#41 Children play in front of “A Train” graffiti in Brooklyn’s Lynch Park, in June of 1974.

#42 Children at the beach in Reis Park, Brooklyn, July 1974.

#43 Elevated train tracks at Bushwick Avenue in Brooklyn, 1974.

#45 Pier with old subway cars in South Brooklyn, 1970.

#47 Manhattan Bridge tower in Brooklyn, New York City, framed through nearby buildings, in June of 1974.

#48 The RKO Bushwick Theater, at the Bushwick/Bed-Stuy border, 1974.

#49 July 4th Holiday at the Kosciusko Swimming Pool in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant District, July 1974.

#51 West Indian parade, Eastern Parkway. Brooklyn, September 1978.

#52 Latin Youths at Lynch Park in Brooklyn, in June of 1974.

#53 Children at Riis Park, a public beach in Brooklyn, July 1974.

#55 Block of brownstone residences in Park Slope of Brooklyn, June 1974.

Avatar of Benjamin Grayson

Written by Benjamin Grayson

Former Bouquet seller now making a go with blogging and graphic designing. I love creating & composing history articles and lists.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

5 Comments