Patrons downed a shot of local history with their spirits when The Gate presented a Battle of Brooklyn celebration, which also doubled as a benefit for the Old Stone House.
Hofstra history professor John Walsh helped deliver the lowdown about the bloodiest clash of the American Revolution during a program of commemoration at the popular watering hole, 321 5th Avenue, which engaged patrons with a talk and a presentation on the battle’s 332nd anniversary.
The Old Stone House, located inside J.J. Byrne Park at 5th Avernue and 3rd Street, played a pivotal role in the battle also known as the Battle of Long Island, which became the first major engagement of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War after the Declaration of Independence.
On August 27, 1776, the house became the artillery base for some 2,000 British and hired Hessian soldiers, who attacked the Americans as they fled from the east to the American forts across the Gowanus Creek.
The commemoration was sponsored by the Brooklyn Brewery.
