3. McCarren Park’s Original Names

1906 map. Image via New York Public Library Maps Collection

McCarren Park has had several names since it was conceived in 1903. It was originally called Williamsburg Park and in 1906, the Board of Aldermen changed the name to “Greenpoint Park,” and in 1909 to “McCarren Park.” This is recorded in the Proceedings of the Board of Aldermen and also reflected in historic maps.

1910 Map. Image via New York Public Library Maps Collection

It is labeled as Williamsburg Park in this map from 1906 (and another one from the year before, when the park was in the construction and planning stages). But into 1910 the park remained unmapped and/or colored in green on top of streets in maps. This 1910 map merely calls the spot “Park.” Finally, also in 1910, a Field Map to the Parks and Parkways of Brooklyn and Queens Boroughs issued by the City of New York labeled it “McCarren Park.”