One way to get to know a neighborhood is by exploring its buildings. So we did that. This story is part of a series in The Brooklyn Ink on some of the structures in the borough, and what they tell us about the life in and around them.
The stately edifice at 425 Nostrand Avenue is home to a branch of the Brooklyn Adult Learning Center, but it has a long and storied past. The building has been a prominent presence in New York City’s educational infrastructure. Dating back to the mid 19th century, it is the oldest public high school building still standing in New York.
It was once home to a girl’s high school. Designed and built in 1886 by the Superintendent of Buildings for the Board of Education of the City of Brooklyn, James W. Naughton, the school became a highly sought after institution. According to The New York Times, on April 7, 1895, it was, “the ambition of every Brooklyn girl… to enter the Girls’ High School where she may enjoy the advantages of an advanced education and be prepared for college.” Designed in the Gothic Revival style, the school became a beacon of learning in preparing girls in courses from Latin and Greek to History and Economics.
The school became a model within the growing movement to educate young women at the turn of the 19th century. School officials at the time had intended the building to house both the boys and girls high schools collectively, but enrollment soon swelled. It was decided that only the girls would be educated there.
Prominent students have included Shirley Chisholm, who entered in the fall of 1939. She would later become the first black woman to be elected to Congress. Lena Horne, the singer, also attended. At the time, almost half the school consisted of white students, while the surrounding neighborhood was predominantly black. The school officially closed in 1968 and spent several years as a vacant structure.
The building was made a registered historic landmark by the New York City Landmark Preservation Commission in 1983. Both for the history and the architecture of the structure, the commission unanimously found that, “the girls high school is an outstanding example of 19th century school architecture…and it also represents an important step in the development of a comprehensive publicly supported education system.” The commission also stated that, “it is an important link with Brooklyn’s past and it is a symbol of the concern for quality education shown by the people of Brooklyn since its earliest settlement.” According to the bylaws of the commission, a building must be thirty years or older to be considered. The purpose of the commission is to grant significant buildings such a status if they are deemed historically, culturally, or aesthetically prominent. The commission then protects the building thereafter.
These days the Brooklyn Adult Learning Center operates out of the building. According to its website, the skills center is home to a number of services including course offerings in college test prep, homeschooling, academic tutoring, and helping students with disabilities—educating the neighborhood as always.
Leave a Reply