Borough Hall

Borough Hall may refer to:

See also

Court Street – Borough Hall (New York City Subway)

Court Street – Borough Hall is an underground New York City Subway station complex shared by the BMT Fourth Avenue Line, the IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line and the IRT Eastern Parkway Line. The station is named Borough Hall on the IRT lines and Court Street on the BMT. Located at the intersection of Court, Joralemon and Montague Streets at the border of Downtown Brooklyn and Brooklyn Heights, it is served by the:

IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line platforms

Borough Hall on the IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line, opened on April 15, 1919, has two levels. Each level has one track with a side platform on the south side. Manhattan-bound trains use the upper level while southbound trains use the lower one.

Both platforms have their original IRT trim line and name tablets reading "BOROUGH HALL" in a serif lettering style. Tablets showing images of Borough Hall run at regular intervals on the trim line. Dark blue I-beam columns run along both platforms at regular intervals with alternating ones having the standard black station name plate in white lettering.

Brooklyn Borough Hall

Brooklyn Borough Hall was designed by architects Calvin Pollard and Gamaliel King in the Greek Revival style, and constructed of Tuckahoe marble under the supervision of superintendent Stephen Haynes. It was completed in 1848 to be used as the City Hall of the former City of Brooklyn. In January 1898 the independent City of Brooklyn merged with the City of New York, and Kings County became the Borough of Brooklyn, at which time the building became Brooklyn Borough Hall.

History

In 1834, the year Brooklyn was granted its city charter, the land for Brooklyn's city hall was donated by the Remsen and Pierrepont families, whose names are commemorated in the names of Brooklyn's Remsen and Pierrepont Streets. The following year, New York architect Calvin Pollard won the commission to design the building in a contest held by the city. The foundations were dug and the cornerstone laid for this structure in 1836. Unfortunately, financial hardship halted construction entirely.

When funds again became available in 1845 construction resumed, this time of a structure designed by Gamaliel King, who had come in second to Pollard in the city's design competition, with instructions from the city that the new building must fit inside the already laid foundation. King preserved many elements of Pollard's original design and intent, including its Greek Revival style, although the project was scaled down in size somewhat. Construction was completed in 1848.