Welcome to 400+ years of Red Hook history! Here are many forgotten stories from our evocative neighborhood, and NYC’s maritime story in microcosm. Explore:
- A digital museum about our waterfront past and present
- Red Hook retail, arts, non-profits, schools, recreation
- Resiliency and flood prep info
It’s a resource for locals, tourists, history buffs, urban-planners, educators, investors, flaneurs. Explore via menus, the search window or the interactive map. On the map, click the colored, numbered dots to zoom in to multiple items in that location. Then click on a pin to explore that item. Anchor icons mean sites of major importance.
Click empty spot on map to activate it
Featured Item
![Nautical Chart No. 369, New York Bay and Harbor, 1845 [cropped]](https://redhookwaterstories.org/files/square_thumbnails/0686e8f1bb0c03684d9191f84bad79a2.jpg "Nautical Chart No. 369, New York Bay and Harbor, 1845 [cropped]")
Historic Nautical Charts
Historic nautical charts provide interesting details on the evolution of Red Hook.
From NOAA Office of Coast Survey:
Today's Office of Coast Survey traces its charting efforts back to 1807, when…
Public Baths, Foot of Conover
Beginning at the end of the 1800s, New York City docked floating pools, known as baths, along the Brooklyn water front to provide relief from the summer heat. Bath No. 4 was docked at the foot of…
Jim Ebersole's artwork: Mary A. Whalen in the Red Hook Container Port, 2015-2016
From the artist:
In the spring of 2015 artist Jim Ebersole was invited by Portside NewYork to paint and draw the Mary A. Whalen and her surroundings during the last weeks of her time inside the Red…
Random Items
New York Harbor Observing and Prediction System (NYHOPS) Red Hook Recording Station
Wondering about Red Hook water conditions like currents, tide height, salinity? And how those relate to storms?Red Hook is home to a high-tech water monitoring device overseen by the Davidson…
Chiclet, PortSide Ship Cat, thoughts on preparing for a flood
Hi, I’m PortSide’s ship cat, Chiclet. Listen up. I have experience with this resiliency thing, and my celebrity status can help get the word out. I was listed in Time Out Magazine’s top NYC…
Alf Dyrland, Captain of the MARY A. WHALEN, 1958-1978
Alf Dyrland was Captain of the MARY A. WHALEN from her rechristening in 1958 until 1978 when he retired. He was her first captain; she was his last boat.
Alf loved the MARY deeply. As he lay…
Birds eye view of Red Hook just prior to the construction of the Red Hook ball fields: 1935
The area at the left of the composite photo with just a few scattered houses in an uneven field will become the Red Hook Ball Fields and recreational area soon after this photo is taken. That same…