Articles by

benjamin waldman

Benjamin Waldman, content editor: Benjamin is an attorney, tour guide, and freelance writer who has been living in New York City since college. An American History major, Benjamin is interested in all things New York and spends his free time wandering around the City. In his free time, he works as a tour guide for the Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy. He has written articles for The New York Times, The Columbia Magazine, and Curbed.

 
Newsstand
Food & Drink
05/17/13 2:00pm

Smorgasburg’s Culinary Delights

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Brought to you by the same people who run Brooklyn Flea, Smorgasburg, is a gastronomic delight. Smorgasburg is open, rain or shine, from 11:00AM to 6:00PM on Saturdays, in East River State Park (Kent Ave. and N. 7 St. on the Williamsburg waterfront), and on Sundays it is located in the Tobacco Warehouse in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The vendors feature packaged and prepared foods, beverages, and more from purveyors from New York City and across the region, for a total of 75-100 vendors. We recently interviewed Jonathan Butler and Eric Demby, the creative minds behind Smorgasburg.

Below are a sample of the artisinal (and hipster) culinary delights that await you at Smorgasburg:  (more…)

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Architecture
05/15/13 1:00pm

Untapped Mailbag: the Commandant’s House in Brooklyn

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This week in the Untapped Cities mailbag, an Untapped reader asked, via Twitter, after reading Ben Huff’s post The Brooklyn Navy Yard & Commandant’s House: Who lived in the Commandant’s House?

The Commandant’s House, or Quarters A as it was formally known, is the oldest surviving structure in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. it is possible that John Thorn, the first officer in charge of the Brooklyn Navy Yard lived there, but there is litle concrete evidence of who its earliest inhabitants were. According to Brownstoner, beginning with Comodore Matthew Perry, who was fundamental in opening up Japan to trade with the West, the Commandant’s House was occupied by all subsequent Commandant’s of the Navy Yard. In, 1964 when the house was sold to a private individual (though who that person is remains a mystery) and was landmarked shorly thereafter.

Commandant's House, 1935. Credit: Brooklyn Public Library.

Commandant’s House, 1935. Credit: Brooklyn Public Library.

Have a burning question about cities? Want us to track down an obscure piece of history? Or just want to share something awesome about your city? Write to us at info@untappedcities.com or through our contact page.

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Arts & Culture
05/14/13 1:00pm

Watertower II in Brooklyn Bridge Park

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In case you missed it, this weekend was likely the only time visitors to Brooklyn Bridge Park were treated to the sight of two Watertower works by Tom Fruin. The first is Watertower, which is located on the roof of 20 Jay Street. It was erected in June 2012 and will remain there through next month. Those who can’t get to New York City can have a look through this Live Cam. (more…)

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Arts & Culture
05/14/13 9:30am

Bluth’s Banana Stand from Arrested Development in NYC until Thursday

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Fans of the television show Arrested Development are intimately familiar with the Bluth family’s original frozen banana stand. For those New Yorkers who have (*gasp*) never seen an episode of Arrested Development, just know, the money is in the banana stand. The traveling banana stand, which turned up at Radio City yesterday, was sponsored by Netflix to promote the upcoming season of Arrested Development, which will be exclusively on Netflix starting May 26th.

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Arts & Culture
05/13/13 2:35pm

Red, Yellow and Blue at Madison Square Park

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From May 2, through September 8, Orly Genger‘s monumental Red, Yellow and Blue, will be exhibited in Madison Square Park. Intricately hand-knotted nautical ropes covered in paint brighten the landscape of the park. Genger created an interactive work that appears to rise out of the ground and then flow seamlessly back into it. The work consists of 1.4 million feet of rope—the total length equating to nearly 20 times the length of Manhattan—covered in over 3,000 gallons of paint, and weighing over an astounding 100,000 pounds. (more…)

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Architecture
05/10/13 3:00pm

The New York City that Never Was: The National Memorial to the American Indian

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(Lewis) Rodman Wanamaker was the son of John Wanamaker, the founder of Wanamaker’s Department Store. In addition to being a patron of the arts, and donating works to the likes of Princeton, Valley Forge, Madison Square Park, and even Westminster Abbey, Wanamaker was fascinated by American Indians. Fearing their imminent extinction, Wanamaker set out to document and memorialize this vanishing people. Between 1908 and 1914, he organized photographic expeditions to documents the tribes and their way of life. Additionally, he dreamt up the colossal National Memorial to the American Indian, which was to be placed on Staten Island.

drawing of american indian memorial

Source: NW History Course

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