Crown Heights Brooklyn Walking Tour

Walk the steps of America’s First Peoples, Dutch colonists, American Revolutionaries, British Redcoats, Hasidic Jews, and West Indian immigrants as we explore one of New York’s most consequential neighborhoods. We’ll focus on two of Crown Heights’ defining communities: the Lubavitch Hasidic Jews and the West Indian immigrants who brought vibrant Caribbean culture to Brooklyn. These two communities have rich histories in Crown Heights, and have influenced broader American culture. In 1991, all eyes were on this neighborhood as these two groups clashed in the most significant riots in New York City since the days of the Civil Rights Movement. Today’s neighborhood has seen great change with the recent hyper-gentrification but, along with this recent investment, tensions still simmer below the surface.

Trinidad Golden Bakery: where West Indian cuisine blends African, Indian, and Chinese influences into a unique culinary experience. Studebaker Showroom: the historic Studebaker Showroom, part of 'Automobile Row,' once a symbol of the American dream. Eastern Parkway: the first boulevard of its kind in the U.S., that once witnessed one of the largest battles of the Revolutionary War. Talmudical Seminary Oholei Torah: once hosted Albert Einstein, Mark Rothko, and Joan Rivers, before it became the seminary for aspiring Chabad rabbis. 770 Eastern Parkway: Arguably the most famous synagogue in the world, this site was the home of Lubavitcher Rebbe and remains the spiritual heart of the Chabad movement. Kingston Avenue: the main drag of the Hasidic neighborhood, a window into the daily life of this unique world. The Carlos Lezama Archives and Caribbean Cultural Center: the former home of the first African American woman to run for President and the birthplace of the vibrant West Indian Day Parade