CLINTON HILL
Geographic Setting
Bounded by Vanderbilt Avenue to the west, Classon Avenue to the east, Flushing Avenue to the north, and Atlantic Avenue to the south, Clinton Hill occupies a gentle rise of land just east of Fort Greene and north of Prospect Heights. This elevated terrain—the “hill” from which it takes its name—overlooks the industrial flats of the old Brooklyn Navy Yard and forms one of the borough’s most architecturally rich residential enclaves. Within these boundaries lies a striking mosaic of brownstones, Italianate mansions, Gothic churches, and collegiate quadrangles, interspersed with leafy streets and small parks that give Clinton Hill its unique equilibrium between grandeur and neighborhood intimacy.
Myrtle Avenue, once nicknamed “the Avenue of the Elms,” serves as the northern commercial corridor, connecting the Hill to the Navy Yard below. DeKalb and Greene Avenues, lined with stately brownstones and grand old trees, reveal the neighborhood’s late-19th-century prosperity, while Waverly, Clermont, and Washington Avenues display a variety of architectural expressions—Greek Revival, Romanesque, Queen Anne, and early Art Deco. Today, Clinton Hill forms part of the continuum of “Brownstone Brooklyn,” yet retains a character distinctly its own—quieter than Fort Greene, greener than Bedford-Stuyvesant, and deeply rooted in the educational and artistic life of the borough.
Etymology and Origins
The neighborhood’s name honors DeWitt Clinton (1769–1828), New York governor, U.S. senator, and visionary behind the Erie Canal, whose advocacy of public works and education reflected the very ideals that would shape the area’s future. “The Hill” refers to the natural rise in elevation south of the Navy Yard—one of the highest points in northern Brooklyn.
In the early 19th century, the area was largely farmland owned by Dutch families such as the Lefferts, Vanderbilts, and Ryersons. Its transformation began in the 1840s, when Brooklyn’s burgeoning merchant class sought refuge from the crowded waterfront districts. The nearby Navy Yard provided both employment and prestige, while the development of Myrtle Avenue as a trolley and carriage route offered access to downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan ferries. By the 1850s, Clinton Hill had begun its evolution from rural estate to suburban enclave, a process that would define its next half century.
The Neighborhood
19th Century: The Rise of a Suburban Haven
The 1840s–1870s marked Clinton Hill’s first great period of expansion. Wealthy merchants, shipbuilders, and professionals purchased plots along Clermont, Washington, and Waverly Avenues, building grand villas and freestanding mansions in styles ranging from Italianate to Gothic Revival. The most famous resident was industrialist Charles Pratt, founder of the Pratt Oil Works (later part of Standard Oil), who settled on Clinton Avenue in 1875 and built a cluster of family mansions—today known as the Pratt Mansions—between Willoughby and DeKalb Avenues. Pratt’s influence extended beyond architecture: in 1887, he established Pratt Institute, one of the nation’s first colleges dedicated to art, architecture, and engineering, which continues to define the neighborhood’s intellectual and creative life.
Surrounding Pratt’s estate, rows of brownstones and brick townhouses rose rapidly, catering to middle-class families who valued the area’s tranquility and proximity to transit. DeKalb Avenue, Lafayette Avenue, and Greene Avenue became showcases of 19th-century urban domestic architecture, with bay-fronted Italianate houses and later Neo-Grec and Romanesque Revival styles displaying ornamental ironwork, brownstone stoops, and decorative cornices.
By the 1890s, Clinton Hill had matured into one of Brooklyn’s most fashionable addresses—a district of tree-lined streets, private schools, and genteel society, rivaling nearby Fort Greene in cultural stature.
Early–Mid 20th Century: Stability, Transition, and the Arts
The early 20th century preserved much of Clinton Hill’s physical charm but brought gradual demographic change. Many of the grand mansions were subdivided into apartments as descendants of the original families moved to suburban Long Island. The BMT and IND subway lines increased accessibility, and with them came an influx of new residents—Irish, Italian, and later African American families—who found affordable housing in the spacious brownstones and small apartment buildings.
Despite these transitions, the neighborhood retained a strong cultural core anchored by Pratt Institute, which continued to attract artists, architects, and designers. The institute’s campus, designed with landscaped quadrangles and Romanesque buildings by architect William Tubby, gave the area an academic calm that balanced its urban energy.
By the 1940s–1950s, as Brooklyn’s waterfront industry declined, Clinton Hill’s proximity to the Navy Yard tied its fortunes to the changing tides of labor and war. World War II revitalized local employment, but postwar deindustrialization brought economic strain. The construction of the Brooklyn–Queens Expressway (BQE) just west of Vanderbilt Avenue in the 1950s physically separated Clinton Hill from the harbor and altered its northern edge, but the core of the neighborhood—its graceful residential streets—remained intact.
During the 1960s–1970s, Clinton Hill became part of a broader story of urban struggle and renewal. As middle-class families departed, African American and Caribbean residents moved in, joined by artists and students drawn to the affordability and character of the housing stock. Brownstones were rehabilitated, block associations formed, and the neighborhood developed a reputation as a haven for both creativity and activism.
Neighborhood Video Coming Soon!
Late 20th Century: Preservation and Renaissance
The 1970s–1990s marked a turning point. Artists, writers, and professionals rediscovered Clinton Hill’s architectural splendor, restoring brownstones and reestablishing the neighborhood’s historic identity. The Clinton Hill Historic District, designated in 1981, protected nearly 1,100 buildings—one of New York City’s largest contiguous landmarked areas.
During this period, Clinton Hill forged its identity as a diverse, middle-class enclave with deep roots in both African American culture and the arts. The neighborhood’s community life revolved around Pratt Institute, local churches, and an emerging restaurant and café scene along DeKalb and Myrtle Avenues. Murals and street festivals reflected a pride of place that transcended economic challenges.
By the late 1990s, Clinton Hill had begun to attract a new generation of residents seeking Brooklyn’s historic architecture and village-like atmosphere. The area’s mixture of long-established families and new arrivals created a layered social fabric that continues to define it today.
21st Century: Heritage, Creativity, and Change
In the 21st century, Clinton Hill has become both a symbol of Brooklyn’s cultural ascendancy and a battleground for questions of preservation and affordability. Historic brownstones and carriage houses now command high prices, while new apartment buildings rise along Myrtle Avenue, blending old and new in an uneasy harmony. Yet the neighborhood has retained its essential character—green, walkable, and deeply civic.
Fort Greene Park, just beyond its western boundary, and the Pratt Sculpture Garden provide open-air sanctuaries for art and recreation. The local dining and retail corridors have evolved into vibrant hubs that balance long-standing businesses with contemporary tastes. St. Joseph’s College, Pratt Institute, and a growing number of creative studios ensure that education and artistry remain central to the neighborhood’s identity.
At the same time, local organizations—like the Clinton Hill Society and Myrtle Avenue Partnership—work to maintain the neighborhood’s architectural integrity and social inclusivity. The tree-lined streets still carry echoes of the 19th century, their stoops adorned with flower boxes and bicycles, their brownstones glowing warm in the afternoon sun.
Spirit and Legacy
Clinton Hill’s legacy is one of cultivated balance—between history and progress, art and architecture, tradition and reinvention. It has served as a home to industrialists and idealists, to immigrants, artists, and students, all drawn to its mixture of elegance and openness. Its streets tell the story of Brooklyn’s ascent: from mercantile wealth to modern creativity, from private estate to public inspiration.
New York City
Use this custom Google map to explore where every neighborhood in all five boroughs of New York City is located.
The Five Boroughs
One of New York City’s unique qualities is its organization in to 5 boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, and Staten Island. These boroughs are part pragmatic administrative districts, and part vestiges of the region’s past. Each borough is an entire county in New York State - in fact, Brooklyn is, officially, Kings County, while Staten Island is, officially Richmond County. But that’s not the whole story …
Initially, New York City was located on the southern tip of Manhattan (now the Financial District) that was once the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam. Across the East River, another city was rising: Brooklyn. In time, the city planners realized that unification between the rapidly rising cities would create commercial and industrial opportunities - through streamlined administration of the region.
So powerful was the pull of unification between New York and Brooklyn that three more counties were pulled into the unification: The Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island. And on January 1, 1898, the City of New York unified two cities and three counties into one Greater City of New York - containing the five boroughs we know today.
But because each borough developed differently and distinctly until unification, their neighborhoods likewise uniquely developed. Today, there are nearly 390 neighborhoods, each with their own histories, cultures, cuisines, and personalities - and each with residents who are fiercely proud of their corner of The Big Apple.
