Spanning just 40 blocks, Carroll Gardens was originally considered part of Red Hook until real estate developers renamed the area in the 1960s. Today the neighborhood retains much of its character from its days as a refuge for Italian and Norwegian immigrants, while growing deep roots as a community for French expats. On this tour with Zack Rhodes, we’ll visit important sites that are emblematic of the neighborhood’s character, from wide gardens and Hobbit doors, to the social clubs and bakeries that tell the story of its residents. We’ll even visit a famed mobster’s wedding venue.

Tickets available at: https://www.mas.org/events/carroll-gardens-3/

The East Side Manhattan neighborhoods of Murray Hill and Kips Bay have played a unique role in the history of New York. With a collection of unique architectural wonders such as the brutalist Kips Bay Towers or the Renaissance style Morgan Library, both neighborhoods have their gems. On this in-person walking tour with Zack Rhodes, we will discover the last unpaved street in Manhattan, the home of the most ardent students of philately, and one of the smallest historic districts in the entire city. Last but not least, we will find out why some New Yorkers affectionately call one of the neighborhoods “Curry Hill”, and why the other has always been a hotbed for medical progress.

El Barrio, Spanish Harlem, East Harlem, Italian Harlem. There are many names used to describe the neighborhood taking up space from 96th Street to 125th Street on Manhattan’s eastern side. This tour will ‘begin’ in the late 19th century when an influx of Sicilian, Jewish, and German immigrants moved to the area. We’ll see sites famous for their history as Manhattan’s first Little Italy and sites known for their relationship to the Genovese crime family. Then, we’ll walk south to visit and view sites significant to the Spanish-speaking community and other recent immigrant groups. Along the way we will stop to admire many of the beautiful and unique murals that dot the neighborhood.

From a rural village to a flourishing, diverse neighborhood, Flatbush is both centrally located in Brooklyn and is central to the borough’s culture. On this tour with Zack Rhodes, we’ll see why this once pastoral area quickly became a real estate developer’s dream. This tour will follow the neighborhood’s history beginning with the first settlers and their role in the Revolutionary War and ending with the Parade Grounds. We’ll also visit some of the neighborhood’s most famous landmarks including Kings Theatre, the Albemarle-Kenmore Terraces, and the area’s first public school where many starlets and star athletes were educated.

If walls could talk, the buildings along the West 130s would tell the stories of Harlem’s rise as a major cultural center for Black Americans in the 20th century. On this tour with Zack Rhodes, we will primarily focus on the leading Black politicians, entertainers, sports figures, and leaders in the medical community who lived in Strivers’ Row, and fought against red-lining to be able to call this community their home. We will visit their former homes, the oldest Black Christian congregation in NYC, and a park named after the patron saint of Amsterdam, whose image adorned the hulls of the first ships which brought Dutch settlers to the New World. We will end the tour visiting the original home and grounds of one of America’s Founding Fathers.

Despite its humble beginnings as Brooklyn’s northernmost village, Williamsburg is now known for its vibrant food, music, and art scene. On this tour with Zack Rhodes we’ll explore South Williamsburg, formerly known as the First Ward, to learn about its impact on the cultural fabric of New York City and the many ethnic and religious immigrant groups who call this area home, and we’ll visit famous sites including the Fillmore Historic District, Peter Luger Steakhouse, and the Williamsburg Trust building.