The hustle and bustle of New York City can take its toll on native New Yorkers and transplants alike. We all seem to invariably find our own reasons that inspire us to stay here to live and raise our families, whether it’s the diversity of the arts, the recreational activities at our parks or simply the multitude of different people with whom we are constantly discovering and interacting.
Many may not know the fascinating history of the Midwood Park neighborhood and its adjacent communities such as Ditmas Park and Fiske Terrace — all of which are commonly referred to as Victorian Flatbush, a reference to the Victorian architecture that dominates our wonderful tree-lined streets.
Beginning around the 1880s, developers came into Brooklyn and began transforming farmland into suburban communities. Two major claims to fame of Midwood Park are that this area was the first in Victorian Flatbush to utilize a construction methodology that allowed for assembly line houses (also know as tract homes) and it was also the first neighborhood to offer underground electricity and wiring (a great advancement that has kept electrical poles off its streets to this day much to the beatification of the area).
As a result, the Landmarks Preservation Commission has awarded the area with historic district designation.
Today, Midwood Park is an excellent place to take a stroll with a significant other as the sun sets behind massive trees, or take your dog for a walk (clean up though!), or even just have a quick jog for yourself with your favorite tunes from your MP3 player acting as your soundtrack.
You’ll find yourself in a peaceful setting where beautiful yards and glorious homes act as a kind of escape from the city, but you will not find the pretense that often comes with suburban (gated) communities. This is a community that is historically Brooklyn and a rich part of the fabric of our city.
I find myself in awe of the atmosphere in Midwood Park, not just for its aesthetic beauty but for its positioning within a diverse population. No matter where you are in the neighborhood, you are always steps away on all sides to the best that Brooklyn offers. I come across all sorts of languages — Spanish, Yiddish, Italian, Indian, etc — and a plethora of intersecting cultures. There is a great feeling of family and a strong sense of pride in all of Victorian Flatbush. I encourage all of you to discover this gem in Brooklyn and take a walk through history. You will definitely find serenity for yourself in Midwood Park.
Rick Pulos is a board member of the Ryan Repertory Company, Brooklyn’s oldest continuously producing resident theater company. His one-man show, “Decades Apart,” is running at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe [236 E. Third St. between avenues A and B in Manhattan, (212) 780-9386] on Mondays at 7:30 pm from April 26-May 24. For info, visit www.ryanrep.org.