Brooklyn battle commemorative events at Green-Wood Cemetery and Fort Greene Park

Two weekend events marking the 248th anniversary of the Battle of Brooklyn  will take place on Saturday morning, Aug. 24, at the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument in Fort Greene Park, and on Sunday, Aug. 25, at Green-Wood Cemetery. 

The Society of Old Brooklynites will hold a public memorial ceremony at 10 a.m. on the top of the hill in Fort Greene Park where a 149-foot-tall monument was erected in 1908, in memory of the Prison Ship Martyrs from the Revolutionary War, America’s first POWs. Forty feet below this towering monument are the remains of 11,500 sailors, soldiers and privateers interred in a large crypt. 

They are called Prison Ship Martyrs because they were incarcerated aboard decrepit British ships anchored in Brooklyn’s Wallabout Bay, the site of the former Brooklyn Navy shipyard. As a result of horrific conditions aboard these dungeon-like vessels, thousands perished and were tossed overboard or buried in very shallow graves along the sandy dunes of the bay.

The Society’s patriotic proceedings will start with a presentation of the colors by the FDNY ceremonial honor guard accompanied by the FDNY Emerald Society Pipe Band ensemble plus a Colonial-attired uniformed color guard from the Battle of Brooklyn Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution. The national anthem will be sung by a prominent opera singer followed by an Invocation.

Keynote remarks will be delivered by David A. Peters, a Revolutionary War historian and an official with the Brooklyn SAR. The program will also include a maritime piping ceremony, an interpretive dance of mourning by the director of  the  Young Dancers in Repertory, “Taps” and a wreath-laying during a playing of the Navy Hymn, “Eternal Father.”

At Green-Wood Cemetery, the Brooklyn Battle Commemoration and Family Day will commence at 11 a.m. with a parade of marchers carrying Colonial-era flags from the 25th Street entrance area to Battle Hill, the highest natural point in Brooklyn. Among the parade participants will be members of the Daughters of the American Revolution and Sons of the American Revolution. At the top of the hill is the bronze statue of Minerva, the Roman Goddess of Wisdom and War and the Altar to Liberty.  Minerva was positioned to be in the sight line with the Statue of Liberty.

Other activities planned include storytelling, hands-on activities, games, and meetings with Colonial reenactors. In 2006, the cemetery was designated a National Historic Landmark.

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The celebration of National Night Out on Aug. 6, wasn’t a total washout for the NYPD and 68th Precinct Community Council. Originally planned for Shore Road Park at 79th Street from 6 to 9 p.m., due to the forecast of heavy rains the event was moved to the front of the precinct’s station house at 333 65th St. and the hours changed to 3 to 6 p.m.  Despite the almost continual rain they did get a chance to cook some hot dogs and distribute bottles of water.  Among the attendees was the new Fort Hamilton Garrison commander, Col. Misty Canwell, and Command Sgt. Maj. Chris Hill.