Splendor and Scandal in Brooklyn Heights: A Self Guided Tour

Is Brooklyn Heights the most charming neighborhood in New York City? A remarkable number of celebrity residents seem to think so. No wonder this elegant brownstone wonderland was the first district in the city to be awarded historic landmark status. The leafy enclave where Gilded Age bankers and merchants built handsome townhouses has also been called ”America’s First Suburb”. On this self-guided walking tour, you’ll hear about the poets, preachers, abolitionists, suffragists and free love advocates who made the Heights a hotbed of progressive thought. The tour starts outside Plymouth Church, the “Grand Central Depot of the Underground Railroad”. From there, you’ll hear about Reverend Henry Ward Beecher – “the most famous man in America” – and how he profoundly transformed religion, helped Abe Lincoln win the Civil War, did a little gun running, and slept with the wives of his best friends.

1. 1

   Brooklyn Heights Promenade

   Pass by

   There is no better view of Manhattan than from the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. But while other just look, you hear it's story brought to life, and stand in the spot where Washington Roebling supervised construction of the Brooklyn Bridge by telescope from his bed after becoming paralyzed on the job.

2. 2

   Plymouth Church

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   Known as "The Grand Central Depot of the Underground Railroad." It was in here that Reverend Henry Ward Beecher -- "The Most Famous Man in America" -- held a live slave auction, raising money set a young woman free. This tour follows Beecher's story including his trial for adultery that gripped America.

3. 3

   Brooklyn Cat Cafe

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   All-volunteer woman-run nonprofit that helps homeless cats find furr-ever friends cats. For a small admission fee you can hang out with the feline residents

4. 4

   St. Ann & The Holy Trinity Episcopal Church

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   Designed by Minard Leferve, this gothic masterpiece contains stained glass windows so extraordinary that one is now displayed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. You'll hear the church's dramatic backstory, from abandoned wreck in the 70's to incubator of a leading arts program and New York's finest prep school.

5. 5

   Montague Street

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   Brooklyn Height's main shopping street, home to the original Haagen Dazs, the Cat Cafe and the historic Heights Casino, with America's first indoor tennis courts.

6. 6

   Stop 6

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   This charming street of elegant brownstones will take us by the homes of Henry Ward Beecher, Truman Capote and Arthur Miller, plus the finest examples of the Queen Anne Style in NYC.

7. 7

   Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Catholic

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   The first Romanesque church in America with bronze doors salvaged from the SS Normandie which sank dramatically in New York Harbor.

8. 8

   Stop 8

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   The first Haagen Dazs ice cream shop, opened by the immigrant family that invented the first super-premium ice cream.

9. 9

   Brooklyn Historical Society

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   Now called the Center for Brooklyn History, this handsome Romanesque revival library was designed by George Post, "Father of the Tall Building."

• Wheelchair accessible
• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
• All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.