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MARYLANDER GREEN: AMERICA’S FIRST BATTLE MEMORIAL

1776

2015 REMEMBER

A COMMUNITY O CE PROPOSAL BY THE BROOKLYN PRESERVATION COUNCIL

A proposal to have a vacant lot at 170 - 8thStreet and 3rd Avenue purchased and designated A Commemorative Ecological Park To preserve America’s First Battle Cemetery and Create a historical greenway trail to celebrate Brooklyn in the American Revolution

Prepared by the Marylander Memorial Committee, Brooklyn Preservation Council

10/21/15

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE MARYLANDER BURIAL SITE On August 27, 1776, a month-and-a-half after America’s Declaration of Independence from Great Britain, troops from the Continental Army, deemed the United States Army after July 4, fought against British forces and Hessian (in the employ of Britain) forces . A major part of the fighting was concentrated along the Gowanus Road near what is now Fifth Avenue between Third and Ninth Streets in Park Slope, Brooklyn, near the Old Stone House Memorial. America lost the Battle of Brooklyn (or Long Island), but Gen. Washington had the strategic foresight to retreat and, with allies, eventually win the war that created the United States of America. A large number of American soldiers died and were buried near the battlefield.

1776,27August-TheContinentalArmyattheBattleofBrooklyn

Painter-DomenickD'Andrea Where is their burial site and how should we remember the U.S. Army’s first soldiers?

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1 1782 SPROULE SURVEY MAP with American fortifications around the Gowanus Marshes of 1776.

1 Marylander Hill Burial Site 2 Old Stone House Battle Site (Thomas1913,Furman2013)

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-2- 2013 Marylander Memorial Park concept by Edward Mazzer

CREATING VISIONS OF THE FUTURE Gowanus by Design, a planning group, and Proteus Gowanus, a cultural arts group, have made design and planning resources available for students and professionals exploring design ideas for the Gowanus watershed. This has resulted in a whole library and archive of innovative thinking about where new community open space amenities should go, and what forms they should take. Masters student Edward Mazzer of the Architectural Instituteof the University of Venice, Italy, did a study of the Hall of the Gowanus resources and proposed logical connections between the Gowanus 1776 Battle of Brooklyn sites. He focused on creating logical flows of water across the landscape and designed “flood parks” that would help reduce the impact of future climate change. The flow of water largely mimics the movements of soldiers in 1776. Whole Foods, a new retailer, now draws hundreds of cars, creating increasing traffic safety issues for walking school children and bicyclists. All these issues require management.1

The pedestrian greenway concepts should open up community debate on a more livable neighborhood. The Marylander Green Community Park would be a step in that direction. WHAT FORM SHOULD THE PARK TAKE ? Mazzer proposes a traditional memorial: an enclosed place of silence and reflection. Regular programming would feature historical education on the Battle of Brooklyn. Others may feel that the space should be one focused on the rich layers of industrial history that have washed over the site. Those with children may want it to be a place of play and life, reshaped to meet community needs.

WHERE IS THE SUSPECTED BURIAL SITE? The site is located between 8th and 9thStreetsand 3rd and 4thAvenues in the Gowanus neighborhood, on the edge of Park Slope in Brooklyn, New York.

It is a former chemical factory and knitting mill and is now covered by a vacant concrete slab stretching between 8th and 9th Streets, adjacent to the Rawley American Legion Post. It is a five minute walk from the 4th Ave/9th Street subway stop served by the F, G and R lines, and also near the B61 and B37 bus lines.

-3- The site is currently for sale. The adjacent Rawley Am er i can Legion Post has plaques and a flagpole commemorating the contribution of the Marylander and Delaware Regiments to the1776BattleofBrooklyn during the War for American Independence.

There is strong evidence that this site may still hold the remains of the first soldiers to die as part of the United States Army.

View of site looking south to Ninth Street toward Sunset Park.

View of site looking north toward 8th Street and the Gowanus Canal.

View of site looking northeast toward Park Slope with adjacent subway line overpass and station.

2012 Aerials via Bing Pictometry

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WHAT SHOULD BE DONE?

A NEW PARK IS PROPOSED.

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A SITE OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE

MARYLANDER MEMORIAL PARK

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Site Under Development We recommend that plans be developed for the following park components: 1 A memorial to the soldiers who were buried there. 2 A commemorative community park and playground reflecting the values that the soldiers fought for.

Future plans include: 1 3Amuseum of archaeological site investigations, and

on the Battle of Brooklyn. SITE UNDER RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT.

A stewardship center including a cultural education center and park maintenance facility for the Gowanus Canal Conservancy, local block associations, and Green Thumb garden and other groups. An urban landscaping greenway incorporating a system of both natural and artificial “streetcreeks” to tie the park to existing American Revolution heritagetrail amenities, reconnecting the natural flow of water to the Gowanus Canal Waterfront Park.

Eighth Street

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WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE THAT THIS IS THE ACTUAL BURIAL SITE? -5-

1869 Plan of the Positions and Movements of the British and American Army on the 26th and 27th of August 1776 TW Field ,Brooklyn Historical Society Map Collection.

This is one of the few maps showing the burial location of the casualties of the Battle of Brooklyn.

1846Brooklyn Eagle Farm Map Highlighted in yellow is the Staats, later Bergen Farm patent as described in Henry Stiles’1869 History of Brooklyn. The 2012 Battle of Brooklyn Old Stone House Walking Guide notes that the Staats and the Bergen families used a hill in the Gowanus marshlands (circled in red) for family and slave burials. Historian T.W. Fields (1869) recorded the site having been used for the 1776 military burials.

WHAT OTHER RESEARCH IS THERE ON THEBURIAL GROUND?

An Overview of Archaeological Studies performed around the Marylander Hill Burial Area -6-

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PROPOSEDPARKSITE Based on the latest historical findings, the proposed Marylander Park and archaeological site will be made up of a for sale lot and two study parcels:

1. The Marylander Green Park Site, 170 8th Street, Brooklyn, Block1003,Lot 11: alternate addresses are197 to 201 9th Street. 13,500 square feet, 75 feet x 180 foot vacant lot. Ownership: Derby Textile Corp/the Fried Family. 41 Var ick Avenue, Brooklyn , N.Y. 11237 718-628-6300 Estimated NYC Dept of Finance assessed valuation: $1,620,000. Estimated market value: $4,750,000. Former Use: Knitting Mill, Chemical Factory. Cemetery Zoning: Residential Vacant Land:R6A,R6B Proposed Use: Memorial Park and playground.

2.Study Area Site 1: Rawley American Legion Post #1636: Parking Lot, 193 - 9th Street, Brooklyn Block 1003 Lot 64. Current Use: Flagpole, Monuments and Parking. Zoning: R6A.

2013 MAP with Marylander Hill site showing selected lots based on archaeological reports and georeferenced historical maps. Discussions have begun for an archaeological study here. Consultant archaeologist for NYC School Construction Authority found indications of burials in parking lot. In 2012 followup via Ground Penetrating Sonar was requested by then Gov. Martin O’Malley of Maryland, who would have supplied staff and equipment. The owner declined permission.

3. Study Area Site 2: 203 - 9thStreet, Brooklyn, Block1003, Lot 59,a one story,4,545 sq.ft. industrial building(50.5x90ft). Ownership: 203 9th Street Associates. SITE SOLD AND UNDER RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT.

2012Over My Dead Body Expedition takes balloon photo-graphs of the NEVER EXCAVATED southern site and performs LIDAR studies showing grave-shaped bumps.

1890s Discovery of thirty bodies by father of Dr. Nicholas Ryan, who was a building contractor.

historical study. Soil borings find no chemical pollution but are inconclusive for burials.

-7- THE NUMBER OF DEAD AT THE OLD STONE HOUSE ENGAGEMENT AND THEIR BURIAL LOCATION The historical evidence for the site is strong, and was originally collected for a 1956 Historical Orientation Report prepared by the U.S. National Parks Service. Dr. Nicholas Ryan, a Brooklyn Heights physician, is quoted on page ten of the report, that in the 1890s his father, a building contractor, found "the bones of some thirty bodies in regular, or military order," in the course of digging cellars for three apartment buildings near the site, at the southeast corner of Seventh Street and Third Avenue. Henry Wildhack, Jr. wrote a letter to Borough Historian James Kelly on February 9, 1957, to the effect that in 1905, his father bought the property at 429 and 431 Third Avenue, in the middle of the block between Seventh and Eighth Streets, for a coal yard, and the Marylanders' burial trenches were then still visible. He drew a site sketch (below) which shows them running diagonally toward the southeast. In fact, as a child he and his friends, whom he named, “used to dig around the marked spot (on the site plan) frequently, and it was nothing new for us to find bones and various shapes and pieces of metal (sic).” This has not been previously reported. This letter is available at the Brooklyn Historical Society. He stated that his father had unsuccessfully lobbied to get the government of newly consolidated Greater New York, to commemorate the site and purchase it. Eventually he gave up and covered the trenches with landfill to bring his property up to street grade. In the 1930s the Wildhack coalyard was sold to the maker of Red Devil Paints, who installed underground paint storage vats, further obscuring the site. Borough Historian James Kelly calculated, based on the Wildhack information, that there had been seventeen burial trenches. He also reported that he was told that around 1955, that Peter Bacenet of 427 Third Avenue (on the traditional site), found bones in his backyard but threw them away. This is the third eyewitness testimonial to finding bodies on the site, but also suggests they were destroyed. According to a 1906 New York Herald article, quoted in the Historical Orientation Report, the grading and opening of Third Avenue circa 1855 “obliterated a part of the burial trenches which still showed plainly in the interior of the lots abutting upon the east line of the thoroughfare.”

1766 RATZER MAP showing Marylander Hill area, an “island” surrounded by marshy streams that was used as a neighborhood burial site and 1776 Battle of Brooklyn cemetery as described by historians.

Ratzer Map local area with modern construction superimposed.

These trenches may have continued to the southeast into the site of interest to accommodate all of the burials. During the 1980s industrial buildings built on top of the site of interest were abandoned and demolished, leaving behind a concrete slab covering a third of an acre. This accidental mortuary slab raised the possibility that a portion of the graves could have remained undisturbed, if the buildings never had excavated basements. In 1952 Congressman John J. Rooney introduced legislation to build a Marylander Memorial Park at Seventh Street and Third Avenue. We believe the National Park Service required proof that the site contained their remains, so the bill was rewritten to call for a study and archaeological dig. The consequent Historical Orientation Report cited the evidence here, but the dig, in 1957, found no remains.

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"On the shore of Gowanus Bay sleep the remains of this noble band. Out upon the broad surface of the level marsh rose a little island with trees and under- growth. Around this mound, scarcely an acre in ex-tent, clustered a few of the survivors of the fatal field and of the remorseless swamp, and here the heroic dead were brought, and laid beneath its sod, after the storm of battle had swept by. Tradition says that all of the dead of the Maryland and Delaware battalions, who fell at the Stone House engagement were buried in this miniature island, which promised at that day the seclusion and sacred quiet which befit the resting place of the heroic dead. Third Avenue intersects the westerly end of the mound;and Seventh and Eighth Streets indicate two of its sides".

Fields,1869,as quoted in Hunter Research Draf t2012 Gowanus Canal Archaeology Report, referring to Marylander burial site.

1780 Sproule Map showing Marylander Hill surrounded by streams.Gowanus Creek being brackish, colonial farmhouses were built next to freshwater springs that fed marsh streams.

This proposal includes detailed updated research as to sections of the hill where the graves may have survived. We also envision site promotion and coordination for all of the American Revolution-related sites in the area. These include Prospect Park Battle Pass, Green-Wood Cemetery Altar to Liberty, the Old Stone House Interpretive Center, Ft. Greene Park Prison Ship Martyrs Monument, and the Fulton Ferry Landing Evacuation Site.

2012 MARYLANDER HILL LIDAR MODEL Light Imaging Data and Ranging (LIDAR)study of the “flat” concrete slab covering the 8th Street site. The site was identified as a possible surviving remnant of the Marylander Burial Ground. LIDAR looks for terrain anomalies. The 2010 laser beam generated topographic data, accurate to within a quarter of an inch capable of detecting minor fluctuations in the ground, giving invaluable clues to potential buried archeologicalsites such as lost graveyards.

2010DEM(DigitalElevationModel) image by Jarlath O’Neil-Dunne and Eymund Diegel

2012,March,The reconstructed Old Stone, or Vechte-Cortelyou House, marking the Marylanders last stand. Photographer: Sean Hanley

In1933the Old Stone House Memorial Committee took the leadership in commemorating Battle of Brooklyn history by advocating for the reconstruction in 1935 of an altered version of the original farmhouse at JJByrne (now Washington) Park by the NYC Department of Parks.

With the repopulation of the Gowanus basin after decades of industrial decline, the Old Stone House has helped promote area resurgence of “Battle of Brooklyn” themed activities by local historical and cultural groups, and growing interest in the neighborhood’s history.

May2012 Old Stone House Battle of Brooklyn reenactments with former Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Julius Spiegel and current Brooklyn Commissioner Kevin Jeffrey. Photographer-Malcolm Pinckney

"Aye, this is the ground, My blind eyes even as I speak behold it re-peopled from graves,The years recede, pavements and stately houses disappear, Rude forts appear again, the old hoop’d guns are mounted, I see the lines of rais’d earth stretching from river to bay, I mark the vista of waters, I mark the uplands and slopes; Here we lay encamp’d, it was this time in summer also."

(An imagined conversation by Walt Whitman between a Revolutionary War veteran and a young

Union Army volunteer in the first year of the Civil War. Soldiers drill on a bright day in Fort Greene Park, and the veteran suddenly remembers the real fighting he took part in eighty-five years earlier on the same hills overlooking the Gowanus marshes.)

by Walt Whitman, Brooklyn poet, from Leaves of Grass, as quoted in Barnet Schecter's The Battle for New York, 2002.

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-10- 2010, Battle of Brooklyn, a 6 day street art event by General Howe/Jaime Rojo.

2001,The Brave Man, by Joseph McCarthy, reenactment of the Battle of Brooklyn using red and blue cos-tumed actors to show troop movements.

2012, Liberty Pole Smith and Bergen Street,

Sasha Chavchavadze, Proteus Gowanus.

2008, Marylander Street Art, Peter Manzari

2013,Robert Sullivan’s My American Revolution describes how alive history can be, right under our noses.

The Battle of Brooklyn has become a cultural touchstone, an opportunity for creating a “Revolutionary War Museum without Walls,” and an o p e n i n g t o c o n t i n u e developing the borough as a cultural

destination.

-11- Further research by cartographer Eymund Diegel showed that “Marylander Hill” was still at roughly the same elevation in 2012 as it in1776,(sloping from 16 to 24 feet), with its surrounding valleys having been filled in during Gowanus marshes street construction in the1850s,while the hilltop remained largely intact. In 2012, encouraged by this evidence, citizen researchers from Proteus Gowanus continued community research efforts using high resolution balloon photography.

Using innovative aerial photography equipment borrowed from the Gowanus Low Altitude Mapping (GLAM) Program, independent researchers from Proteus Gowanus uncovered new evidence of the potential survival of a mass grave of Revolutionary War soldiers on the vacant lot, now in imminent danger of redevelopment. Although findings were inconclusive, the unusual pattern of cracks and cemetery-like bumps clearly raised the need for more thorough archaeological investigations.

"My father (a building contractor) found…the bones of some thirty bodies in regular, or military order in the course of digging cellars for apartment buildings on the site.” Dr. Nicholas Ryan, a Brooklyn Heights physician, as quoted in the Historical Orientation Report for Archaeological Investigation, Marylanders’ BurialSite, Brooklyn, New York, 1956, U.S. National Parks Service.

1850 Stoddard Topographic Survey of Third Avenue showing Marylander Hill at 21feet in1850,roughly the same as 2013. The adjacent 24 foot elevation portion of the hill was never excavated, meaning some graves could have survived. (Bob Furman archives)

GRAVES COULD HAVE SURVIVED LANDSCAPE CHANGES

2013 Current Site Conditions of the Marylander Site, showing survival of portions of the original 24 foot high Marylander Hill(compared to surveyed heights in the 1835 USGS Renard Survey and the1850 Road Grading Survey by J.S. Stoddard and Willard Day).The estimated space burial trenches would take is overlaid based on the Wildhack sketch and the north/south Christian burial axis. It ignores any curvature in the hill slope. Overlaid on the map is an estimate of the space that would be occupied by 143 to 256 bodies, based on a sketch (see following page) by Henry Wildhack, Jr., a local resident interviewed in the1956 National Parks Service Historical Orientation Survey. The Maryland State Archives is performing a major study of the number of battle dead based on their archival records, and embraces the 256 figure. NEWRESEARCH Portions of the original hilltop cemetery have survived the ravages of urbanization, and state of the art digital aerial photography and LIDAR topographic modeling show cracks and de- pressions in the now paved site consistent with rows of graves.

The theory that the balloon mappers explored in 2012 was that the different soil compaction from digging graves or covering grave mounds with cobblestones would have caused cracks to appear on the concrete slabs covering the trenches as trucks drove over them.

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“The burial trenches used to run in this direction. I think there were 6 of them.”

1956 Henry Wildhack Jr, Trench sketch from the Historical Orientation Report (Annotated by Robert Furman). From Brooklyn

College Library Special Collections.

2010 Aerial view showing Trench area, Moses Plan and New Park.

MOSES ORIGINAL MARYLANDERPARKSITE

HenryWildhackJr,then aged 11, in a 1905 Newspaper photo of the1897Marylander Plaque that was on the sidewalk of Third Avenue near 8th Street.

WILDHACK TRENCH AREA

In 1947,Parks Commissioner Robert Moses had a rough sketch proposal drawn for a Memorial Park at the southeast corner of Seventh Street and Third Avenue at the request of Mayor William O’Dwyer to honor a national American Legion convention held in New York City(shown in red overlay on this 2010 aerial view). It was not built.

PROPOSEDNEWMARYLANDERGREEN SITE

Robert Moses, Park Planner

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Brooklyn Citizen Science at work: 7July 2012–Grassroots Mapping aerial view of the 170-8thStreet “New Park” Site showing an unusual crack pattern; a Grassroots Mapper is simulating space a buried body would occupy.

The Public Lab “Over My Dead Body” Balloon Aerial Photography Mapping Team was a citizen-led effort by local community groups to find out more about vacant sites in the Gowanus Watershed that would be suitable for new open spaces. High resolution balloon photography allows for previously unnoticed details to prompt further questions.“Grassroots Mapping” aims to find meaningful data that can help contribute to civic discourse.

The Over My Dead Body Team:Liz Barry, Gena Wirth, Leif Percifield, Eymund Diegel, (Sara Dabbs photographer).

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WHAT OTHER ARGUMENTS ARE THERE FOR COMMEMORATING THE SITE AS A PARK?-15-

FOURTH AVE REZONING: MORE PEOPLE

GOWANUSREZONING 1400new housing units by2020

2010Population Density within a half mile of Marylander site showing lack of open space Amount of Open Space per Resident that CEQR City Guidelines call for: 100 square feet per person

What residents currently have access to: 10 square feet per person.

CURRENT NEED FOR NEW OPEN SPACE FOR EXISTING AND PROJECTED RESIDENTS

This site is a unique opportunity for government authorities to honor casualties of America’s War of Independence, and at the same time meet the open space and environmental needs of the growing Park Slope, Sunset Park and Gowanus neighborhoods. Per the 2010 Census, 8965 people lived within 1000 feet of the Marylander site.

New York City Planning Standards outlined in the 2010 City Environmental Quality Review Tech- nical Manual encourage a standard of 2.5 acres of open space within a half mile for every1000 resi- dents.

In 2010,30,476 people lived within a half mile of the Marylander site, including around 4600 public school students.

City standards call for them to have 76 acres of open space. As of 2012,those residents only had access to 6.57acres.

MORE PEOPLE WILL LIVE HERE The city has upzoned the density of Fourth Avenue within a half mile radius of the Marylander sites, with many apartment buildings consequently under construction. The Gowanus Canal waterfront has1400 new residential units planned. With new hotel rezonings, Gowanus is now a tourism destination, which can be enhanced by developing the area’s historical assets.

Because of the residential upzoning, the City needs to provide more open space for new residents.

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THE NEW PARK WOULD BE PART OF THE BROADER REVITALIZATION OF THE WATERSHED

EXISTING OPEN SPACE PROPOSALS

In August 2013 the first phase of the Gowanus CanalConservancy’splanforanetworkofgreenspacestoprotectthewaterqualityofthe Canal was approved. Two Sponge Park Plans for two locations, one bydland studio, and another by the Gowanus Canal Conservancy, are under development, and are part of a broader vision for the watershed. Growing sustainable open space practices can enhance the neighborhood’s livability.

The Old Stone House’s pioneering work in pro- moting a walking guide to the watershed’s historical assets would be reinforced by a coherent watershed plan designing the city’s history into an integrated stormwater and recreational greenway system.

This Revolutionary Greenway Heritage Trail would tie the past to its promising future. Marylander Green would be a prototype for establishing New York City as a center for American Revolution studies and tourism as well as a prototype for innovative practices to meet growing environmental challenges. 2013– Former Mayor Bloomberg at the unveiling of new Gowanus Canal Flushing Tunnel infrastructure.

Marylanders Burial Ground

IT COULD HELP CITY MEET FEDERALLY MANDATED POLLUTION REDUCTION GOALS-17- 2012-AteAtemaArchitects“StreetCreeks”Concept-a sustainable technique for reducing Gowanus sewer overflows and improving livability of New York City streets by integrating street landscapes and water-sensitive urban design newparks.

The Gowanus Canal Conservancy has been spearheading watershed planning efforts to explore ideas for improving the Brooklyn waterfront’s environmental health. This includes understanding techniques for divert- ing rainwater out of the streets’ overloaded sewer systems, and back to more “natural” water sensitive urban designs, such as play pump parks and “streetcreeks.”

KidsMerry-go- roundspump storedrainwater

MARYLANDER WATERSHED

The proposed Marylander Park would be a flagship site for integrating such innovative techniques for improving our neighborhoods.

Play PumpWaterPlan

As part of the 2013 Gowanus Watershed Plan (under development) rainwater flows that cause Sewage pollution are being modeled. Because many of the city’s playgrounds were built on damp land and buried streams, there is an opportunity to install rainwater catchment cisterns under city parks and playgrounds. Children playing on merry-go-round pumps would bring the water back out to Green Streets after storms. Although potentially restricted by burial sites, the proposed Marylander Park site has an excellent watershed catchment area. Cheaper rain tanks would avoid more expensive federally mandated sewer tanks in the Gowanus flood zone.

1776“Tobacco”currencyusedtopayContinentalArmySoldiers 2012“Available” Signfor1708thStreet from the From Georgia Fraser’s 1909 “The Old Stone House”“Over My Dead Body” Expedition. HOW MUCH WILL IT COST? PRELIMINARY ESTIMATE:$6.9MILLION A detailed cost estimate will be prepared by qualified landscape architects, park planners and property assessors, once further federal, state and city support for the Memorial Park has been developed. A feasibility study may be required. Approximate budget figures given here are for general discussion only.

MEMORIALPARKSCENARIO: Acquisition of the vacant 170- 8thStreet 13,500 sq.ft. vacant lot,the site with the most archaeological and commemorative potential. The discovery of any onsite burials will require a different approach. The project is envisioned as a joint NY City-State effort by the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (for park development) and by the NYC Departments of Transportation and Design and Construction, for street creek construction. Participation by the State of Maryland is also envisioned, LANDACQUISITION At $350 per sq.ft, the 170 - 8th Street lot’s land acquisition costs are estimated at around $4.75million. SITE INVESTIGATIONS To establish the archeological value of the site, it will be necessary to clear it of its cement covering. This will cost around $50,000 for concrete removal. As the site’s eventual park plan would conform to LEED sustainability development standards, this cost would be lower as removed concrete slabs would be stored on site for eventual reuse in park construction. This would also protect the archaeological site during incremental investigation. Final costs will be a function of contractor bids. Archaeological investigations: Preliminary site survey estimate:$50,000. This would include hiring a professional team of archaeologists to do a preliminary excavation survey. Expanded archaeological costs and further studies would be a function of the preliminary survey findings. If no military relics are found, for example, if graves have been relocated, or if the cemetery is a colonial one of early farmers and slaves, then the site would become a Battle of Brooklyn park on a purely commemorative basis. The Memorial Park scenario, including new park construction, is estimated to cost around $7million. We believe that the park is required even if archaeological investigations fail to locate human remains since the Marylanders are known to have been buried nearby, on the east side of Third Avenue between Seventh and Eighth Street. PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT BUDGET: MARYLANDER MEMORIAL PARK

Costs Projected Funding Source 1 Land Acquisition (13,500 Sq. ft., 170 – Eighth Street [191-201 Ninth Street], based on prevailing area rates of $350/sq.ft)1…...…………..……………………………………………………………………………….………………… $4,750,000 NYC/NYS/Fed/MD/NGO 2. Archaeological Study2 ………………………………………………………………………………………..………...…. 47,400 NYS/NYC 3. Concrete Removal …………………………………………………………………………………………….……………. 50,000 NYS/NYC 4. Construction Costs3 ………………………………………………………………………………………….…………. 675,000 NYS/NYC/NGO 5. Overhead Charge @ 100/sq.ft4. …..……………………….………………………………………..………… 1,350,000 NYS/NYC Total ………..……….……………………………………………………………………………………….…...…… $6,872,400 Footnotes 1. Additional property may be added. 2. Preliminary examination. Courtesy of Chrysalis Archaeology. Discovery of human remains will require an additional complex study along with decisions about disposition and possible relocation. 3. Estimated at $50.00/sq.ft. per SusannahDrake of Dland Studios. Addl funding for Bioswales from NYC DEP is expected.4. Estimated at $100.00/sq.ft. per Susannah Drake of Dland.

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-19- COMPETING USES FOR THE SITE. In 2013 the NYC School Construction Authority (SCA) considered the site for a school for Park Slope’s growing student population. It retained TRC Senior Project Manager Charles Guder to do soil borings on the site and Elizabeth Meade of AKRF. Archaeological Consultants affirmed the historical significance of the site. Members of the Rawley Post report that the archaeological consultants told them that they believe there are burials in their backyard. The AKRF study utilized shallow test borings to test for soil pollution. Their report, released in September, 2013, reported, based on this archaeologically flawed methodology, no burials at the site of interest. SCA may have lost interest in the site since they acquired the nearby former St. Thomas Aquinas School on Fourth Avenue and Eighth Street, now PS 118. Because of its proximity to the desirable Park Slope neighborhood, and its strategic location between the becoming denser Fourth Avenue residential corridor and the emerging Gowanus Third Avenue entertainment and restaurant district, the site is a prime candidate for high-density residential development.

FUNDING SOURCES If an archeological investigation finds the site to hold remains of Battle of Brooklyn soldiers, it might become a federal military cemetery.

American Missing Soldiers Fund The Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) is responsible for recovering and preserving the remains of America’s soldiers. Although focused on more recent wars,it has dealt with both Civil War and Revolutionary War remains. As America’s first U.S. Army cemetery, the site would warrant special consideration.

American Battlefield Protection Program This National Park Service program supports projects that protect battlefields and sites associated with battlefields, but does not fund land acquisition or capital improvement projects. In2011,Senator Charles E. Schumer sponsored Senate billS.916to promote the purchase of threatened Revolutionary War sites in New York State.

Maryland Historic Trust As most of the soldiers interred at the proposed park site are from the Maryland Regiment, former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley wrote a letter to then mayor Michael Bloomberg offering support for proper commemoration of the Marylanders’ role in the American Revolution (attached below). Then ongoing School Construction proposals resulted in inaction.

New York State Council for the Arts Supports the Old Stone House commemoration programs and the expansion of their cultural activities.

New York City Department of Environmental Protection –Green Infrastructure Plan Under the Environmental Protection Agency’s Gowanus Canal Superfund Cleanup Program, the City of New York is being asked to provide $78 million in necessary sewer tank infrastructure improvements to prevent toxic overflows into the Canal. The city is challenging that decision. The city’s Green Infrastructure Plan is being presented as a more sustainable opportunity, opening the possibility of integrating Marylander Park with a lower cost system of better stormwater management for the upslope sections of the Gowanus Watershed. New York City Department of Parks and Recreation /City Parks Foundation Partners New York City has teamed up with community organizations to improve open space for New Yorkers. Both the Trust for Public Land and the New York Restoration Project have funded open space improvements in the Gowanus Watershed. New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Is the largest cultural funding agency in the nation, and supports Battle of Brooklyn commemoration events and programs. Brooklyn Arts Council Supports arts and media-related historical studies and cultural outreach. Private and Corporate Donors A number of private and community groups have stepped forward to support open space and commemorative projects in the watershed. Brooklyn Community Foundation Green Communities-Fund has funded the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative. Powerhouse Environmental Arts Foundation recently acquired the Denton’s Mill site, another suspected Revolutionary War soldier burial ground, or historically significant site, adjacent to the First Street Gowanus Canal Basin. Other groups and individuals may step forward as Brooklyn’s Revolutionary park system takes shape.

STAKEHOLDERS & COMMUNITY DIRECTORY Below are people and organizations that would be directly affected by park development, who have worked on Marylander Park research, or have contributed to our discussion of Brooklyn cultural arts and open space issues. Their names here in no way imply support of this proposal and are purely contacts for people seeking further comment and research discussion. This list is not complete, and is being continuously expanded as part of the Marylander Memorial Committee’s outreach efforts. You can contact Bob Furman at bobfurman1@juno.com. Others are to be added to this outreach directory and will be notified of plan developments. ARCHAEOLOGISTS ChrysalisArchaeology-www.chrysalisarchaeology.com ChrisRicciardi-cricciardi@chrysalisarchaeology.com AlyssaLooryaaloorya@chrysalisarchaeology.com didMarylanderResearchforFROGGin2012 AKRFCulturalResources-www.akrf.comElizabethMeade-emeade@akrf.com MarylanderResearchforSchoolConstructionAuthorityin2013 Hunter Research-www.hunterresearch.com PatrickHarshbarger-pharshbarger@hunterresearch.com Did Marylander Research for the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2012. Brooklyn College–Department of Anthropology & Archaeology Dr. Arthur Bankoff–abankoff@brooklyn.cuny.edu Did Marylander Research on 8th Street site area in1998. New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission Meenakshi Srinivasan, Commissioner Amanda Sutphin, Director of Archaeology asutphin@lpc.nyc.gov Reviews and promotes historical and archeological research on Gowanus watershed development projects. Hunter College Anthropology Department William J Parry - wparry@hunter.cuny.edu Does Battle of Brooklyn research with the Old Stone House. Brooklyn Borough Historian

Ron Schweiger-bklynremembered@aol.com HISTORICAL RESEARCH GROUPS Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont Street, 11201 Maintains archival resources and organizes events on Brooklyn history: Deborah Schwartz, President. dschwartz@brooklynhistory.org Jacob Nadal-jnadal@brooklynhistory.org Society of Old Brooklynites, c/o Spinner Industries, 4018 Third Avenue, 11232. Sobs1880@yahoo.com, 718-789-1993 Ronald Schweiger, President, Bklynremembered@aol.com (Support letter attached).

Global Gazeteer of the American Revolution http://gaz.jrshelby.com/md-mass-grave.htm. -collects and archives research material pertaining to the Battle of Brooklyn and the American Revolution John Robertson-rwmapper@gmail.com

Battleofbrooklyn@wordpress.com. Blog discussing commemoration issues by Robert Furman.

VETERANS GROUPS Red Hook Memorial Post #5195 (endorsement letter attached) Veterans of Foreign Wars 249 Van Brunt Street, 11231

COMMUNITY GROUPS Michael Chirieleson 347-2042287 American Legion Michael Rawley Post No. 1636 (endorsement letter attached). Veterans organization adjacent to the Marylander Burial Ground,

193 N i n t h S t r eet , Br ook l yn , N. Y. 1121 5 , (718)788-3499. Michael Gandia, Post Commander Prisco de Angelis, priscopete@live.com Brooklyn Preservation Council Promotes Brooklyn historical commemoration and preservation. Buddy Scotto, Board Chair-salvatorejscotto@gmail.com

Bob Furman, President – bobfurman1@juno.com Eymund Diegel, Marylander Comm. Chair,eymund@gmail.com Holly Fuchs, fuchsh@hotmail.com Kathryn Krase, Secretary/Treasurer, Katkrase@aol.com. The Old Stone House www.theoldstonehouse.org 336 Third Street, 11215 718-768-3195 Organizes events related to the Battle of Brooklyn. Kim Maier, Executive Director: oldstonehouse@verizon.net. ProteusGowanus http://proteusgowanus.org/ Organizes Battle of Brooklyn themed art events. SashaChavchavadze-sashachav@gmail.com AngelaKramer-krangela64@gmail.com TamaraPittman-tamarappittman@gmail.com EymundDiegel-eymund@gmail.com

Hall of the Gowanus,a community digital historical resource archive info@proteusgowanus.org. Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus (FROGG) http://froggbrooklyn.org/ Works to protect its industrial heritage and support sits innovative and creative future. Recently completed a major industrial and historical values study of the Gowanus. MarleneDonnelly-studio460@msn.com LindaMariano-joeandlinda393@aol.com Gowanus Canal Conservancy 94 Ninth Street, 4th Floor, Ste. 27, 718-541-4378, Brooklyn, N.Y. www.gowanuscanalconservancy.org The Conservancy seeks to improve the environmental health of the Gowanus Canal and its watershed by serving as a resource and guiding the vision and transformation of the watershed. HansHesselein, Executive Director-hans@gowanuscanalconservancy.org Andy Simons-andy@gowanuscanalconservancy.org Gowanus Canal Community Development Corp. (endorsement letter attached). 104 First Place, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11231, 718-858-0557 – Executive Director Vacant Joseph Messineo – Board Chairman Gowanus By Design www.gowanusbydesign.com Gowanus by Design is a community-based non-profit urban de- sign advocacy, It works with the area’s stakeholders and organizes design competitions to visualize the area’s potential. David Briggs-dbriggs@gowanusbydesign.com Anthony Deen - Adeen@gowanusbydesign.com Park Slope Civic Council – Overall civic organization for Park Slope. Mail@parkslopeciviccouncil.org. Park Slope Neighbors www.parkslopeneighbors.org -A neighborhood organization committed to the protection and

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enhancement of quality of life In Park Slope, Brooklyn. EricMcClure-eric@parkslopeneighbors.org 8th Street Block Association

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Association of residents and merchants on Eighth Street betweenThird and Second Avenue. Kathryn Krase, President Gowanus Eighth Street Block Association Association of residents and merchants on Eighth Street between Second and Third Avenue MEDIA THAT COVER GOWANUS HISTORY ISSUES Gary Buiso-GBuiso@nypost.com NY Post writer on Marylanders News12 Brooklyn, 2558 East 18th Street, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11235, 718-648-2579 NY Daily News, 16 Court Street, Rm. 503, 718-875-4455. Bureau Chief B’klynHuntforSpiritof1776Soldiers-2012 Justin Burke-jburke@sorosny.org. NY Times writer and Gowanus resident covering Battle of Brooklyn events Seeking Brooklyn’s Lost Mass Grave- 2012 Philip Shane-drhundertwasser@mac.com Madeline Gordon-mrgordon88@gmail.com Doing documentary on Marylanders and community efforts to find them. Matt Koed-bdkpictures@yahoo.com Documentary filmmaker interested in doing Marylander Archaeology documentary as dig develops. Katia Kelly-pardonmeinbrooklyn@gmail.com Pardon Me For Asking blog which covers neighborhood history issues. BenjaminAufill-GowanusYourFaceOff@gmail.com Gowanus Your Face Off blog, which has covered Marylander Burial Ground developments. POLITICALSTAKEHOLDERS New York City Bill de Blasio, Mayor Mitchell Silver, Commissioner, NYC Department of Parks & Recreation, Kevin Jeffrey, Brooklyn Parks Commissioner kevin.jeffrey@parks.nyc.gov Carter Strickland, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Commissioner cstrickland@dep.nyc.gov Dr. Loree Sutton, Commissioner, Office of Veterans Affairs, 346 Broadway, NY,NY 10013, 212-442-4171, LSutton@cityhall.nyc.gov Melissa Mark-Viverito, NYC Council Speaker MViverito@council.nyc.gov Brooklyn Eric Adams, Borough President (Support Letter Attached) Craig Hammerman*,District Manager, Brooklyn Community Board 6 districtmanager@brooklyncb6.org Jerry Armer, CB6 contact on Archaeology issues at Superfund Community Advisory Group-jjarmer@yahoo.com. Sara M. Gonzáles*(until 12/31/13), District 38 Councilmember (Support letter attached). Brad Lander* District 39 Councilmember 456 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11215, 718-499-1090 CLander@council.nyc.gov Catherine Zinnel, Community Liaison Czinnel@council.nyc.gov.

NEW YORK STATE Andrew Cuomo, Governor Executive Chamber, Albany, N.Y. 12227 Empire State Development Corp. 633 Third Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017 Rose Harvey, Commissioner, NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Empire State Plaza, Agency Bldg. 1, 20th Fl, Albany, NY 12238, 518-474-0463, Rose.Harvey@oprhp.state.ny.us. Ruth L. Pierpont, Deputy Commissioner for Historic Preservation, Peebles Island, Delaware Avenue, Cohoes, NY 12047, 518-237-8643, x-269, Ruth.Pierpont@oprhp.state.ny.us. Merrill Hesch, Regional Headquarters, 163 West 125th Street, 17th Fl, New York, NY 10027, 212-866-2599, Merrill.Hesch@oprhp.state.ny.us. PhilipA.Perazio,New York State Div. for Historic Preservation Philip.Perazio@oprhp.state.ny.us Gary Kline, NYSDEC, Water, NYC Municipal Compliance gekline@gw.dec.state.ny.us Christina B. Rieth,New York State Museum crieth@mail.nysed.gov Jo Anne Simon *Assemblymember (52nd AD), 341 Smith St., Bklyn, N.Y.11231, 718-246-4889. JoAnneSimon52ndAD@gmail.com (Support Letter attached) Jesse Hamilton*, NYS Senator (20th SD), 1669 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11235, 718-284-4700 (Support Letter Attached). Marty Golden,New York State Senator (22nd SD) 7403 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11209, 718-238-6044, m golden@nysenate.gov(Support Letter Attached) Anthony Testaverde Testaver@nyssenate.gov Velmanette Montgomery, New York State Senator (25th SD) 30 Third Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11217, 718-643-6140 Oscar Jonas, Community Liaison, ojonas@nysenate.gov (Support Letter Attached) State of Maryland Larry Hogan, Governor, State of Maryland (Support l e t t e r f r om ex - G ov er n or M ar t i n O ’ M a l l ey a t t a c h ed) S t a t e H ou s e , A nn a po l i s , M D 21 4 01 http://www.governor.maryland.gov/mail/ Owen Lourie, State Historian, 401-260-6485. Owen.Lourie@Maryland.gov. Maryland State Archives, 350 Rome Blvd., Annapolis, MD 21501. Researching Maryland Regiment in Battle of Brooklyn. Federal Agencies United States Environmental Protection Agency Christos Tsiamis,Gowanus Canal Superfund Site tsiamis.christos@epa.gov National Parks Service, Archaeology Program DCA@nps.gov American Battlefield Protection Program 1201 I Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 David Sheehan 202-354-2036. LeeTucker.Joint POW/ MIA Accounting Command Pao_mail@jpac.pacom.mil US Senate ChuckSchumer,780 Third Avenue, Ste. 2301, New York, N.Y. 10017, 718-486-4430. Nicholas Martin, Intergovernmental Affairs Nicholas_Martin@schumer.senate.gov

-22- Kirsten Gillibrand 780 Third Avenue, Ste. 2601, New York, N.Y. 10017 Sam Cooper sam_cooper@Gillibrand.senate.gov, 212-688-6262 US House of Representatives Nydia Margarita Velázquez* Nydia.Velazquez@mail.house.gov 16 Court Street, Ste. 1006, 718-222-5819. Support Lttr Attached Dan Wiley, Community Coordinator Daniel.Wiley@mail.house.gov. *The site is in these districts. REFERENCES- ARCHIVES Brooklyn Historical Society Battle of Long Island, Maryland soldiers memorial collection,1869–1957.

Marylander Mass Grave Archive 2013: John Robertson http:gaz.jrshelby.com/md-mass-grave.htm. BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS Historical Orientation Report for Archaeological Investigation, Marylanders’ Burial Site, Brooklyn, New York, by the U.S. National ParksService,1956 (Brooklyn College Special Collections). The Maryland 400 at the Cortelyou House, Brooklyn; The Action and Burial Site, US National Park Service Report to Congress,21 May 1957. The Maryland 400 In The Battle Of LongIsland,1776 By Linda Davis Reno, McFarland Publishers, 2008. The Battle of Brooklyn,1776 By John J. Gallagher, DaCapoPress,1995. The Battle of Brooklyn, August 27-29, 1776 A Walking Guide to Sites and Monuments By The Old Stone House and Washington Park, 2012. Forgotten Patriots: the Untold Story of American Prisoners during the Revolutionary War by Edwin G. Burrows,(2008).

The Wallabout Prison-Ships,1776-1783

by Eugene Armbruster(1920). Guide Book to the Noted Places on Long Island, Historical and otherwise, by Eugene Armbruster (1925). Col. Atlee’s Journal of the Battle of Long Island, August 26,1776 by Samuel John Atlee in the Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, pp.509-516.1879. Brooklyn’s Neglected Battle Ground

By Charles M. Higgins,1910. The Campaign of 1776 Around New York and Brooklyn, Johnston, Henry P, Brooklyn,1878. Life at the Old Stone House: A History of a Farm and its Occupants, by Dr. William Parry, Brooklyn, 1999. The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution by Barnet Schecter,2002. A History of the City of Brooklyn by Henry R. Stiles,1867, available in facsimile. The Social History of Flatbush: Manners and Customs of the Dutch Settlers in Kings County by Gertrude Lefferts

Vanderbilt,1881. The Battle of Long Island, with Connected Preceding Events, and the Subsequent American Retreat [Memoirs of the Long Island Historical Society, Vol. II], Brooklyn: Long Island Historical Society, 1869, Thomas W. Field. Archaeological Sensitivity Study - Gowanus Canal USEPA/Hunter Research, James Lee, Patrick Harshbarger, Richard Hunter,2012. The Marylander Burial Ground by Robert Furman, 2012. The Old Stone House

By Georgia Fraser, 1909.

NEWSPAPER & WEB ARTICLES The Battle of Brooklyn: The Most Forlorn Military Gravesite in the Nation, Baltimore Sun, Frank D.Roylance,1996

Brooklyn's Unknown Soldiers: The Long, Uncertain Search for the Maryland Dead, The Phoenix, Robert E.Murphy,1998

1776 Graves Site Elusive In B'klyn New York Daily News, Robert Fisk, 1998

Fire Sparks Focus On Rebel War Graves, New York Daily News, Bob Liff, 1998.

Washington Fought Here; Who Knew?;On 225th Anniversary-Battle of Brooklyn’s Little-Known Chapter, New York Times,ElliottRebhun,2001

Urban Environmentalist NYC: Slope-Gowanus Burial Ground Revealed, Bob gusskind.com Ruth Edebohls,2008

Two Groups To Help Lay Historic Trail, Daily News, Bill Farrell,2012

A Precious Hour in American History-The Maryland 400 at Long Island, Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs, Tom Milmore, 2 0 1 2

The British Invasion…Again: The Mystery Of The Missing-Marylanders' Grave

The Awl, Robert Sullivan 2012 Ausgegraben-Neuesausder Archäologie.

The New York Times, August 26, 2012, Looking For Brooklyn’s Lost Marylander Grave Der Spiegel, Angelika Franz, 2012 (inGerman) La Bataille de Long Island

Battle of Long Island Toy soldier simulation by the Bourgen Bresse Youth History Games Club(in French and English) Gli Inglesi Stanno Arrivando! (The British are Coming) Battle of Long Island war game simulation (InItalian and English). LIDAR and Archaeological Mapping LIDAR Technology: with Flyovers, a Solar Map of New York New York Times, Mireya Navarro, 2012 Revolutionizing Archaeology: Flying Lasers Reveal Buried Historical Structures Der Spiegel, Markus Becker, 2012 Grassroots Mapping techniques for finding Marylander Gowanus Grave Sites, Eymund Diegel, GEONYC Additional research provided by Proteus Gowanus.

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October 30, 2013 Hon. Andrew Cuomo State of New York Executive Chamber Albany, New York 12227 Dear Governor Cuomo: The Gowanus Canal Community Development Corporation (GCCDC) being on the forefront of local economic development since 1978 fully supports the efforts of the Brooklyn Preservation Council to develop a commemorative ecological park on vacant land between Eight and Ninth Streets bounded by Third and Fourth Avenues in Brooklyn to rightfully honor the Marylanders who died saving the American Revolution during the Battle of Brooklyn on August 27, 1776. It is possible that remains of Marylanders who perished on that eventful day still lie there and under neighboring properties. The GCCDC also supports the efforts of the Council to locate any such remains which would then be properly interred and honored. The addition of parkland in this newly developing area is a necessary amenity for its many new residents, and an appropriate mix of park and commemoration needs to be worked out as the facts on the ground develop. Thank you for joining us in your support for this long awaited commemoration. Sincerely, /s/ Bill Appel Executive Director cc: Hon Velmanette Montgomery Hon Bill de Blasio Hon Joan Millman Hon Brad Lander

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Directs the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation to take a parcel of land by the eminent domain procedure for a state park commemorating Marylander Green, America's first battle memorial Directs the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation to take a parcel of land by the eminent domain procedure for a state park commemorating Marylander Green, America's first battle memorial. Details Versions S5212-2015/A07906-2015 Sponsor: HAMILTON Committee: JUDICIARY Law Section: Kings County Actions May 7, 2015: REFERRED TO JUDICIARY Memo BILL NUMBER: S5212 TITLE OF BILL: An act requiring the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation to take a parcel of land through the eminent domain procedure for a state park commemorating Marylander Green, America's first battle memorialPURPOSE: This bill would require the State Commissioner of Park, Recreation and Historic Preservation to acquire the 170 Eighth Street in Brooklyn by eminent domain for the purpose of creating a state park commemorating Maryland Heroes from the Battle of Brooklyn (Long Island) in the American Revolution., America's first battle memorial SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1: Legislative findings, Location of site Section 2: Effective Date EXISTING LAW: No current law dealing with Marylander Park JUSTIFICATION: The subject property, 170 - 8 Street, Lot 11 on Block 1003 in the Borough of Brooklyn, has long been recognized as part of the area where the 256 Maryland Heroes were buried who died covering the retreat of the Continental Army on August 27, 1776. The Gowanus/Park Slope area, where the site is located, has undergone drastic changes in the last 15 years. Deindustrialization, coupled with a striking increase in property values, have led to the demolition of many older buildings in the neighborhood that were part of the first wave of commercial and tenement construction after 1890, and which were cited in the historical evidence as overlying the Marylanders' graves, making locating any human remains more difficult. Many have already been replaced by luxury housing.The subject property, the only vacant land that is part of the Marylander Burial Site, is for sale and is likely to be redeveloped as luxury housing absent any public action, leading to obscuring the burials forever.There is no onsite recognition of the Maryland Heroes, who have been the subject of memorialization efforts by both the states of New York and Maryland, the federal government, and local citizens, since at least 1900. The sacrifice of the Maryland Heroes saved the American Revolution, and remains a subject of historical research by the state of Maryland. Substantial assistance from Maryland, the federal government and other jurisdictions is anticipated. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New Legislation FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: Fiscal Impact to the State to be determined by land acquisition cost as well as there will be future costs to operate and maintain the newly created park. LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.

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STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ S.5212 2015-2016 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 7, 2015 ___________ Introduced by Sen. HAMILTON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary AN ACT requiring the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation to take a parcel of land through the eminent domain procedure for a state park commemorating Marylander Green, America's first battle memorial THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. The legislature hereby finds that it is necessary for a public purpose to procure certain property within the city of New York. To that extent, the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic pres- ervation is hereby directed to take, through the use of the eminent domain procedure as established under the eminent domain procedure law, the parcel in the borough of Brooklyn known as 170 Eighth Street, Brook- lyn, Block 1003 Lot 11, for a state park commemorating Marylander Green, America's first battle memorial. S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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