History
The Brooklyn Historical Society, then called the Long Island Historical Society, was established by Henry Pierrepont in 1863. The New England Historical Society in Boston had granted the Long Island Historical Society a charter at the time of its founding. In 1985, the organization changed its name to the "Brooklyn Historical Society" to better represent the neighborhood. Since then, the museum and library have served the community by providing acute representations of the area’s history through the ages.
Brooklyn Historical Society is a pioneer in the area of oral history exhibits. The 2007 collection titled "In Our Own Words: Portraits of Brooklyn’s Vietnam Veterans," featuring oral narrations, documents, artifacts, and visually stimulating photographs, was well received by audiences.
The Brooklyn Historical Society and the Brooklyn Public Library agreed to merge in 2020, in an effort to better reach their intended goals and audiences. Now known as the Center for Brooklyn History, it has been operating as a part of the Brooklyn Public Library since October 2020.
