Waterbridge 47

47 Bridge Street, Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Is it pungent? Acidic? Steep? Altitudinous? No to all of the above — Vinegar Hill is but a small neighborhood on the East River waterfront at the edge of the Navy Yard, found east of DUMBO and north of Downtown Brooklyn. Neither rich in vinegar nor set upon a hill, the neighborhood’s name comes from the 1798 Battle of Vinegar Hill in Ireland. All of six or so blocks today, Vinegar Hill used to be much larger — extending all the way down to Tillary Street and present-day Downtown Brooklyn. However, a series of construction projects — the Manhattan Bridge, the Farragut Houses, and the BQE — drastically ate away at its boundaries. But, a few short blocks are all Vinegar Hill needs to retain its distinct sense of place within the greater city. This atmosphere is seen in pre-Civil War Greek Revival rowhouses that predominantly line the blocks. A series of unpaved Belgian block streets only heightens that feeling.