In 1827, long before it became home to hipsters and Hasidic Jews, Williamsburg was established as the Village of Williamsburgh (note the old-school “h”).
In 1851, its independent streak surfaced. A charter was passed, and it became the City of Williamsburgh—an urban enclave home to shipbuilders, sugar companies, breweries, and other industries.
But Williamsburgh’s time as a city didn’t last long.
By 1855, to escape financial woes, it let itself be annexed to the city of Brooklyn.
Not only did the neighborhood lose its independence, Williamsburg also lost the “h” at the end of its name.
Tags: City of Williamsburgh, hipsters in Williamsburg, industry in Williamsburgh, original towns of Brooklyn, town of Bushwick, Williamsburgh
May 30, 2010 at 6:43 pm |
Maybe Detroit should do the same: annex itself to its suburbs to escape its financial woes. The suburbs desperately want the city to die, but now that it’s so small and broke maybe it will be worth a small bailout to obtain the city’s massive infrastructure assets. Of course, city government would have to go.
June 1, 2010 at 5:35 pm |
[...] one point in time, Williamsburg was its own city. It was founded in 1827, but was annexed three decades later thanks to financial woes [Ephemeral [...]