Nicholas Naquan Heyward Jr. Park

Wyckoff St. between Hoyt St. and Bond St.

Brooklyn

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

Bounded by Hoyt, Wyckoff, and Bond streets, this playground takes its name from the surrounding Brooklyn community of Gowanus. The word “Gowanus” comes from the name of a Native American, Gowane, who was either a member of the Mohawks, or a sachem, or chief, of the Canarsee tribe. Native Americans inhabited the area for centuries before Dutch farmers settled here in the 1640s. During the Revolutionary War (1775-1783), this site was part of the Battle of Brooklyn, one of the war’s earliest and most brutal conflicts. In the battle, the British killed 256 American soldiers and wounded or captured another hundred. Only a brilliant retreat to Manhattan, masterminded by General George Washington (1732-1799), managed to save the fledgling Continental Army from certain destruction.

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Nicholas Naquan Heyward Jr. Park

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Highlights

Gowanus Playground