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It's no wonder that the riot that started the worldwide gay revolution started in Hudson Park's neighborhood.

By 1969, the Village had long been a mecca for artist types -- writers, painters, actors and performers -- and for gays and lesbians. These were people who's worth was defined by their talent and creativity, not by who they found sexual attractive. They had pride, and pride is the key.

Pride is what calls people to demand dignity. Pride demands respect. Pride has led directly to the marriage equity fights of today. And pride said no to police harrassment 40 years ago.

And, really, who can live without pride? To do so is to have a miserable existence.

So a Literary Pride March is in order -- around the Village visiting the sites of the homes of gay and lesbian writers. This March includes a great beginning and ending (Jefferson Market and Hudson Park), a stroll through Washington Square, a swing by the location of the Stonewall Inn, and some of the prettiest streets in the Village (West Fourth, Bleecker, Grove, Bedford, and, of course, St. Luke's Place).

It includes some heartbreak too. Check the map for that.

And be sure to check out a book by your favorite LGBT writer at either end of your journey!

Many Brooklynites today may not realize that their borough was the scene of the first major battle of the American Revolution in August 1776. The British had gathered a major fleet with over 25,000 men and marshaled their forces on nearby Staten Island. Washington unwisely split his army of almost 20,000 between defending New York City, located in what is today Battery Park area, and Brooklyn. The Heights of Guan, known today as Prospect Heights were considered key to defending New York. In John Gallagher’s Battle for Brooklyn, 1776 published by Castle Books, we get a pretty clear picture of the situation. The Battle of Brooklyn, sometimes known as Battle of Long Island as well, was going to be the first major battle of the war. After collecting their forces all summer, the British finally made their move by crossing from Staten Island and landing at Gravesend Bay, Brooklyn. They advanced slowly to what is today Flatbush, and halted.

The main American line was on Brooklyn Heights, with a series of entrenchments and fortifications. In front of this was the heavily wooded area of the Heights of Guan, corresponding roughly to Prospect Park area today. Here the Americans had placed an outer line of defenses under the loose command of Maj-Gen John Sullivan. Sullivan Street is today named after him in New York’s Greenwich Village. He was assisted by Israel Putnam, brave, but over his head in commanding anything more than a regiment or two. Alexander Stirling, self styled as Lord Stirling because the British crown had rejected his claim for an earldom, commanded the American Right near the Harbor and the Gowanus swamp. The intent was to slow the British advance, forcing them to fight through rough, wooded terrain, well suited to the tactics of the rebel militia and inexperienced Continental regular soldiers. The problem was that the British were not willing to cooperate in this regard.  read more »

People are surprised that the Hudson Park Library is not landmarked nor is it in a historic district.

The line of townhouses just across the street are most definitely landmarked. Afterall, one of New York's most famous mayors lived there.

But, no, Hudson Park has not been so designated.

True, the building is 103 years old and was designed by Carrere and Hastings, the architects of the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building (aka the library with the Lions out front). It is a Carnegie Library, one of dozens in the city, so called because it was funded by Andrew Carnegie. Shouldn't it be landmarked? Or, at least, in a historic district?

Well, now, progress is being made in designating Hudson Park's neighborhood a historic district -- The South Village Historic District. Check out this map and send in your comments. Do you ever use "South Village" as a name for this neighborhood? What do you call it? I've heard West Soho.

View South Village Historic District in a larger map
(Personally, I say that Hudson Park is in the Village or the West Village but this historic district goes well south of the West Village.)

Who are these people?

From Adela Lintelmann paintings

The work of Adela Smith Lintelmann (1902 - 1996) is currently on display in the Hudson Park Reference Room Gallery. Adela Smith Lintelmann's art career spanned nearly seventy years and she was a role model for both artists and feminists.

In her native British Columbia, she established herself as a mathematician and then, on attending a lecture by an established Canadian artist, she was inspired to paint. With her characteristic adventurous spirit and armed with only her degree, a teaching certificate and a course in typing, she left Vancouver for New York and the Art Students League. To support her dream she worked her way up at the New York Stock Exchange to become one of the first women stock brokers on Wall Street.

During her art career 'Linty', as she became known, studied with such luminaries as Kimon Nicolaides, Robert Brackman, Robert Phillip, Robert Beverly Hale, Xavier Gonzales, Daniel Dickerson and IIona Royce-Smithkin. She became a trustee of the American Fine Arts Society, a member of Artists Equity, Artists Fellowship, National Arts Club, American Artists Professional League, Salmagundi Club and the Pen and Brush.

Linty specialized in floral and still life arrangements but on display at Hudson Park are some fine portraits. Unfortunately the subjects of the paintings are not identified, so if you are a long-time Village resident or if you knew Linty, perhaps you can help us out. Come by and identify the subjects of our portraits.

After 165 years things are bound to change, even in the Village. Maps are a great way to see that change, and fortunately The New York Public Library has one of the world's great map collections.

Here's a map of lower Manhattan when Edgar Allen Poe roamed the Village:

For fun, compare it to my Google map:

For a nice stroll around the Village, visit the locations of each of Poe's homes.

I suggest that you start at Waverly and Sixth, go down to W. 3rd Street, over to Carmine and end up at James J. Walker Park where there is just one stone monument left from when this area was St. John's Burial Ground. Poe would wander among the tombstones for a little R & R, but you can play bocce instead, and, of course, stop by and visit us.