Bedford Playground

Bedford Ave. bet. S. 9 St. and Division Ave.

Brooklyn, 11211

This text is part of Parks’ Historical Signs Project and can be found posted within the park.

Located on the southeast corner of Bedford Avenue and South 9th Street, this playground takes its name from the avenue running along its west side. The term Bedford has three possible origins. English settlers may have used the name in tribute to the Duke of Bedford, or for Bedfordshire County in England. Since the area was first settled by the Dutch in 1662, the word Bedford might also be an Anglicized form of the Dutch word Bestevaar, a Dutch translation of a Native American word meaning “old men,” or “place where old men meet.”