Bushwick Brooklyn - NYC Now and Then [Episode 5]

[@marcob.7801]

Salve, Citizen Richard! I literally grew up, in and around that and several adjoining blocks as a boy in the 50's and early 60's! I am assuming, from the automobiles that these photos are from late 1930's to 1940's, yes? I vaguely remember some of those stores and definitely the "Parthenon" theatre on Myrtle and Wyckoff which, after it had closed down, was turned into and remained a bingo parlor for about 25 to 30 years from the mid 70's onward! Those were fairly "mean streets" in the 70's and 80's, BTW! Safe as hell as a young lad though. Now 70+ years later, after the supposed "gentrification" (whenever a Starbucks opens up nearby) it is busy with a new set of immigrants! Bushwick/Ridgewood were always neighborhoods of change. From the German, Irish and Italians that I grew up with to the Puerto Rican, Black, Dominican Albanian, 2nd. wave Poles (after the fall of the Berlin Wall) Mexicans, et. al.. ! What amazes me most is how little "real change" has happened! Same buildings, only different kinds of small businesses. Same dreams and aspirations, only different kinds of ethnicities. This was a sort of quasi-revelation that I've just experienced made possible by viewing your video. Thank you once again, my friend.

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Marco, when I started this channel my goal had been to tell stories from Manhattan, but I quickly realized that telling stories from neighborhoods was far more interesting to the people watching. It makes sense really, while people may live in Manhattan, it's not the same as the neighborhoods that people and their families grow up in. I'm no different, while they are few and far between I also enjoy watching videos from my small hometown. When I moved into the area in the mid 90s, Bushwick was still one of those places where you didn't want to be in the middle of the night. I also understand what you mean, when I grew up in the 1960s/70s we had a shopping center just up the road to me, and if someone shows me a picture nowadays, or even if I think back, I can still remember most of the stores in that shopping center. The entire center was torn down sometime in the last 20 years.

[@mauihowey]

Hey Richard, I really like watching these before and after videos, so amazing to see the changes (and sometimes no changes) over many years!

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Even if these videos don't do well initially, all of them seem to have longevity and people watch them long after they have been posted. The retention rate is also really good, other than the 30 second watchers who are only leaving a comment to plug their own site, lol, they tend to drag the retention rate down. I'll keep putting up one every quarter or so.

[@sunnyskytravel4571]

These are always fun videos to watch, you do such an expert job of matching up the modern footage with the vintage photographs. Even for someone like myself who has never visited NY it's fascinating to see the differences, and even more to see the similarities in some of the buildings which have hardly changed at all even after decades! Also good to see you getting a decent number of views for all your hard work putting this together. Very nice!

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

I try to see it as a viewer would, and I have to be honest that even I would find it interesting if people did this in other cities. As I mentioned elsewhere, I have to search and search for the perfect spots to do these, somewhere where there is 20-30 buildings and mostly each in a different style. It is quite hard to find, but Ridgewood and Bushwick are perfect for them. These videos do well compared to others, but at the same time I don't want to saturate my channel with them. I figure 4 a year should be good. The hardest part is editing the images, but for this video I already had the images prepared back in December :)

[@HerDestiny]

Such a wonderful Then and Now video of Brooklyn Bushwick. 🗽 Have family in Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island city. Enjoyed watching. 👍🏼. 🤗❤️

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Glad you enjoyed it! I try to do one of these every 3 or 4 months or so.

[@nelsonmarin2709]

i moved into buswick (Linden and Irving) in the mid 70s and seeing these pics from back in the day i can see my parents and i walking by all those stores .... thanks for the memories ...

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

It's amazing how much Bushwick has changed, eh? I love putting these 'Then and Now' videos together.

[@setauket2022]

I was born in Bushwick 1949. I remember at the age of 3 riding the L with my grandma and her sister and smelling the brewery making the beer. I still go twice a year.

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

You will be happy to know that I also filmed 6 minutes of footage for another story, and that story will be on the Welz & Zerweck brewery that was on the corner of Myrtle and Palmetto :)

[@QueensNativeNYC]

Very Interesting.. I enjoyed watching..

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

These videos tend to do well in the long run. I mean they don't get massive views, but they get viewed daily and have a good retention rate. Have to try and find time and space for the 15 shorts that I also filmed yesterday, lol.

[@jubalcalif9100]

Kudos, Friend Richard ! I absolutely love these "before and after" photo comparisons. Fascinating to see how much (or how little) things can change in a neighborhood over the years. Loved the gentle soothing music in the background too ! THANK YOU !!

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Jubal, my eventual goal is to do one of these types of videos in every neighborhood in Queens and as much as I can in Brooklyn that is feasible for me to get to. I survive on public transport so it does limit where I can go in my spare time. The music I personally love, and hardly anyone ever mentions it. In fact I only remember one time, and that person said the music sucked, lol. I have 20 different pieces by the same artist that I am allowed to use for free, and each track is done in a similar style to the three that I use in this video.

[@dianarolph1770]

I like these ‘now & then’ videos- & I don’t even know the place! As you say the buildings are still basically the same( some exactly the same) they are just changed superficially - one though was different in that it was just 1 storey- top 2 had been removed!! I heard you being asked what you were doing too!! A lot of people enjoy seeing photos of their past! Not many you’re right from your neck of the woods! Thanks Richard!

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Diana, I really enjoy putting these together because the videos are quite unique, you don't find many in this style on KZbin. It is actually difficult finding areas to film because not every single plot of land was photographed, plus I always look for locations where the buildings are of different shapes and sizes. There are many areas where all of the buildings are symmetrical, so that aren't super interesting, but Bushwick and Ridgewood have a lot of areas that I can film these. I will only do 3 or 4 of them a year, but I really enjoy them myself. I will also keep the music the same for all of them, that way if anyone starts copying the idea then people will know which are mine from the music I add.

[@HomesByT]

Richard Arthur, I came across your videos the other day, specifically the Bushwick HS one. I lived in the bushwick area or close to it on 324 Weirfield St between Irving & Knickerbocker Ave. Went to St Martin of Tours school in the late 60's early 70's. I was supposed to go to Bushwick HS but the summer of 75 right before I was scheduled to go my parents decided to leave NY City. I remember Myrtle ave. and the walks from Weirfield to Myrtle Ave. Madison Ave etc... all of it. We also lived on Halsey st for a year or 2 before leaving NY. Bittersweet, reminincing when I see your videos. Thanks for making these. Brings me back to my childhood. I'm not sure if the Parthenon is where we used to go but I remember when that KFC opened up and the stories about fried rats kids used to tell. There was also a new McDonalds close to that area as well. Those opened while I still lived there. Awesome! Keep these coming. Now that I found your videos, I'll be looking forward to them.

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

The Bushwick HS video happens to be one of my favorite videos. It is all a true story of course, but I had fun presenting it as a tongue in cheek story. You know what is funny, when I started the channel my goal was to walk the streets of Manhattan and tell stories, I had hundreds of them to tell. Very quickly though I found out that nobody was interested in Manhattan, but the local stories in Queens and Brooklyn were much more appreciated. It actually works out better for me because I still live in the area so they are easier to make. To be honest I get it, whenever a video is posted from my Hometown in England I always watch it and reminisce of where I once lived, even though I haven't lived there in over 30 years now. I appreciate you watching and hopefully I will have more stories that you will enjoy in the future.

[@setauket2022]

I lived on Eldert Street near Broadway. Houses now go for over 1 million dollars.

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Yeah, you would be hard pressed to find anything under a million in these areas these days!

[@mick-mykola-dementiuk]

Name changes, paintjobs, nothing else really different, wonder if 100 year old people will come out? Just a thought.... Haha!

[@richardarthur-nycstories]

Even the buildings that look different are actually the same structure, all they have done is changed the exterior curtain. I always look for areas where each building looks different to its neighbor. Here in Maspeth, in the shopping area, all of the buildings are symmetrical, therefore a comparison isn't very exciting.