While Bay Ridge is a neighborhood continually changing and evolving in almost every aspect, there are many relics of time long gone that still remain.
From an almost-forgotten cemetery, to the once grand estate now a park, to mafia murders, murders of old spinsters, to the many attractive old homes that still dot the area, it’s time to hit the streets and explore northern Bay Ridge’s rich history with sights, sounds, and storytelling.
Led by James Scully — NYC historian, tour guide, podcaster, and director / co-creator of the award-winning historical audio fiction soap opera, Burning Gotham — our unique experience will focus on 18th, 19th, and early 20th century Bay Ridge and include:
- An overview of notable early Bay Ridge history, from the Ice Age to the days of the early United States and why this area was so advantageous for permanent settlement in the 17th Century, while we tell stories about the many different cultures and people who have called Bay Ridge their home.
- Trips to, and the history of notable places of religion, worship, and mourning like The Barkaloo Cemetery, while we talk about the historical significance of these places.
- Stories from inside and outside The Crescent Athletic Club, and The Gingerbread House.
- Stories of murder and mayhem, from the death of an old spinster, to a Shore Road Potato Sack mafia murder, to the heroic actions of the Van Brunt family, we’ll find out the many motives for crime and how Bay Ridge was the perfect setting for these unfortunate events.
- The backstory on the rise of Bay Ridge’s prominent architecture, its citizens and their homes, like The Bliss Estate and the Howard E and Jessie Jones (Gingerbread) house.
- Stories of how the rise of Bay Ridge as a resort area tied into the rapid development of Brooklyn amidst 19th Century Manhattan’s explosive growth.
See you there!
* Please bring water and comfortable shoes as we’ll be doing a lot of walking. This tour will happen rain or shine, unless there is torrential rain or a blizzard, which then a makeup date will be announced.
** Runtime for this tour is roughly 90-120 minutes.
*** This tour begins in front of The Gingerbread House at 29 83rd St, Brooklyn, NY 11209.
About James
James Scully is an outgoing native New Yorker who grew up in a home with four generations of family. He had close relationships with both his grandparents and great-grandparents. This exposed him to an invaluable amount of local history and culture, helping him to become a passionate historian, writer, and director.
He’s a graduate of Xavier High School in Manhattan, Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and spent over a decade working as an art director and copywriter for media companies such as Condé Nast and Hearst before becoming a writer, director, and historian. His history focus is both New York City history and US radio history.
James produces and hosts Breaking Walls, the docu-podcast on the history of US network radio broadcasting (https://www.thewallbreakers.com/breaking-walls). He has developed historical audio fiction productions, like the 2022 official Tribeca audio selection Burning Gotham, set in 1835 New York City (http://burninggotham.com), the Frank Sinatra biopic musical And Then I Sing (https://www.andthenising.com), and the western adventure series Frontier Gentleman (https://www.frontiergentleman.com/).
James is a member of the Salmagundi Club, has given numerous talks and webinars on various history subjects, and is a New York City sightseeing/tour guide.
Testimonials
"Learning of incredible stories I'd never heard before." -Mary
"Guide was engaging, info was interesting" -Christine
"I liked all the historic information on or near the sites where events occurred and/ the people sited lived." -James
"The content was amazing, but even more amazing than the Content was our guide Mr. Scully. Thank you" -Debbie
"I liked James. He is friendly, extremely knowledgeable, speaks well and at the correct volume. He cares about getting the facts right." -Lawrence
"James Scully is the best guide we've ever had. Very informative, entertaining and passionate." -Carol
