Before the last of the breweries closed its doors in 1976, Bushwick was known as the “beer capital of the Northeast.” The collapse of the beer industry eroded the neighborhood’s economic base, leaving a wealth of abandoned buildings. Click through the gallery tabs above to check it out some scouting shots.
I caught up with a local friend, Amy Rollo, who lived in “Little Dominicana,” for 3 years and had her fair share of fried plantains in that time.
“Currently labeled as “hip Williamsburg’s industrial neighbor to the east,’ this area of northern Brooklyn is changing before our eyes. The local mix is a population of Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, South Americans, Hasidic Jews, and a growing swarm of hipsters the diversity factor high.
The ‘Wick still feels empty in many places, but a lively community of creative types are being pushed further east and this is where they are landing. The warehouses are becoming lofts and studios.
At night during the warmer months, the abandoned warehouses transform into a venue for DJs to blast their beats. Listen for the music — it will lead you to the party. It’s hard to imagine that the old factories will someday be renovated into trendy shops and restaurants.
But this is how gentrification works and these building have fabulous potential.”
Take advantage while this Brooklyn ‘hood remains in beautiful disrepair.
Many of these photos are of East Williamsburg, not Bushwick. Bushwick proper is not really industrial; it is a residential area comprised mostly of rent-stabilized, 2-4 story tenement buildings, with a little bit of public housing and ugly new construction mixed in. Plus TONS of places to get an empanada, taco, or $.99 housewares. While you might see the occasional burnt-out car or “R.I.P.” mural, Bushwick is just a low-income, family-dense NYC neighborhood that happens to be on the media’s watch-list now that a relatively small population of artists has moved to the vicinity. Don’t come here looking for “ruin porn” or gritty shots of poverty. If you want to take photos of street art and post-industry desolation (yeah, like the ones in the above slideshow), stick to the faux-Bushwick area north of Flushing Ave, around the Morgan L train stop. Bushwick (the Jefferson L to Wilson L stops, roughly) is great for street photography and for interesting people with good stories. Be open and respectful and you’ll likely get some great people-shots. Knowing some Spanish will open many doors for you, figuratively *and* literally. Stick to daytime excursions if you’re not familiar with the ‘hood. Lots of people do get mugged here, but mostly at night, and mostly to the drunk or clueless.
I love this post! I had no idea the “city” looked that way…
This is one of the most interesting posts, I hope you can do a country wise series.
in 2011, there were 18 Murders, 25 Rapes, 493 Robberies, 411 Felonious Assaults, 461 Burglaries, 501 Grand Larcenies, and 136 GLAs in Bushwick. Not bad for less than 2 square miles of Brooklyn.
The Best camera is the one that doesn’t get robbed.
No thank you.
As a 5′ foot nothing petite white girl, I never had a problem living in this neighborhood for several years. Just sayin’.
That was very uninteresting. Coney Island is much more interesting than Bushwick. You have the people, the places, and the sights on the Coney Island boardwalk.
suck a dick.