When I heard the news that the Brooklyn Flea was moving on over to Hanson Place … I didn’t think anything of it. A new location for the winter market? Seemed like a cool idea, easy way to generate press, and hopefully attract some newbies to the Flea.
But then I realized exactly WHAT this “Hanson Place” was. Well, to put it lightly … it’s the most beautiful building in Brooklyn. Honestly. [fight me on the comment boards if you disagree].
It’s called the “Williamsburg Savings Bank.” “Savings? In BROOKLYN?!” You may be asking.
Yes. People save all over the country, no matter the locale. And way back in the day – we’re talking like 1927, when the building was first erected at the intersection of Atlantic & Flatbush Avenues – people liked to put their money in physical places. Well, they had to. ING Direct and all that jazz [NOTE: I’m a bias customer of ING] didn’t exist.
So this building, which remains the tallest in Brooklyn at 37 stories and “features a gilded cooper dome, carved lions, turtles and birds on the exterior; and a marble banking hall on the ground floor with 63-foot vaulted ceilings, 40-foot windows and elaborate mosaics; and two abandoned public observation decks with signage describing the Battle of Brooklyn,”* is now the home of the winter Brooklyn Flea market now through the weekend of March 27-28.
With more vendors, more food & a new location … it’s worth me checking out [and maybe selling at?] sometime in the near future.
*stolen from Wikipedia, along with picture below
