Brooklyn Public Library--Red Hook Branch
Brooklyn Public Library - Red Hook Branch
7 Wolcott Street, Brooklyn 11231
https://www.bklynlibrary.org/locations/red-hook
Currently closed for major resiliency upgrades until sometime in 2025. During this project, pop-up programs are being held in several nonprofits in Red Hook and in the warm months, mobile library services are in a van across the street or Coffey Park. Info on those programs here.
The renovation done after Sandy fixed the storm damage but did not make the building resilient. The BPL is taking advantage of the resiliency work to make other improvements to the building, a redesign that will make it more welcoming with windows, gardens with seating around the side, and more community space. From the BPL webpage about this project:
The reconfigured interior space will feature:
- More public space; a 14% increase
- Flood mitigation and protection
- Floor-to-ceiling windows
- A space just for teens
- A dedicated children’s room for storytimes and programs
- A community room
- Two reservable meeting rooms
- Brand new furniture and upgraded technology, including laptop loans
- Outdoor public seating
- Outdoor reading and activity areas
- An entrance for after-hours garden events
- Landscaped native plants, with a focus on evergreens for year-round appeal
Phone: 718.935.0203
Sandra Sutton, Managing Librarian
ssutton@bklynlibrary.org
Nurys Pimentel
npimentel@bklynlibrary.org
Donna Longobard
dlongobardi@bklynlibrary.org
Friends of Red Hook Library
friends@bklynlibrary.org
The original Red Hook Library, opened on April 22, 1915, was the only of Brooklyn’s Carnegie libraries to be built in the Mediterranean Revival style. There were three other Carnegie libraries built. All those remain, you can see photos of them and the original Red Hook Libary in this BKLYNER article which has the following bleak description of Red Hook back then: "As historian Margaret B. Freeman noted, the branch was generally empty except for “howling groups gathered at the entrance of the library” and “residents of ‘Hoover City,’ weary veterans, down-and-outers…who live in make-shift huts on the nearby waterfront and occasionally wander into the library.” After years of poor upkeep, the Red Hook Library was demolished in the 1940s." This is possibly from her book "The Brooklyn Public Library: A History Volume II by Margaret B. Freeman."
This architectural gem was forced to close in August 1946 after suffering extensive damage from a fire, and was demolished soon after. The branch operated out of several different locations in the subsequent decades before finding a permanent home at 7 Wolcott Street. The library is a beloved gathering space for the community it serves.
