Brooklyn's First Public School Building

In the early 1800s while Brooklyn was rapidly expanding, the one thing not keeping up was the public school system. As a result many students found themselves taking classes in church basements, meeting halls, and back rooms of grocery stores. In 1843, the Brooklyn Board of Education was founded with a top priority of finding a permanent location for a public school. In 1846 they purchased land in Brooklyn Heights and built the first public school building on Middagh St.