New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-07-09
WAREHOUSE DAY IS 0VEF
Big Factories Now Going Up on
Brooklyn Waterfront.

Modern needs arc. transforming the We
/ terfront Of Brooklyn. TWO blocks of mann
moth warehouses. accounted wonderful in
/ tho time Of the late James :. r. Stranahau.
/ once tho first citizen Of Brooklyn" arc
4 being torn down To- hc replaced los modern
: steel constructed factory buildings
These old warehouses were filled once 20
overlooking with the products n many
countries. especially when the Commercial
/ Dock. between India ard Clinton vHarvos.
/ Was the centre of shipping iu Brooklyn.
other Warehouses which are being ro.
moved arc the four story bri Is structure
/ on the Commercial Wharf. Atlantic Dock.
| between Summit and Pioneer streets, \
/ number Of such buildings also haze boom
demolished 1T the Pierrepont stores and
! have been replaced Icy factories Of steel AMI
concrete
Blocks of warehouses now being raznd uc-
! tween Verona and Brown streets also are TO
he replaced by modern buildings. and tho
! entire Commercial Wharf Is 10 bc rebuilt "
concrete. Most OF these warehouses had 81
( depth Of 10 foot. The new buildings will
/ not be more than a 1alC Of this deuth. the
( rest Of the space being set aside for rail-
road sidings. ON which trains may zoe run
/ up To- the factories
/ The New York Dock Company is cuutCW-
| plating tho making Of alterations iu tu.
| Atlantic Basin itself The Eorth. South
| North Central. East Central South Central
and other piers are To bc replaced. II tho
| plan il carried out. with "a series of piers
running from the Commercial Wharf 20 IN.
| pierhcad line IN tine Buttermilk channel
| This would do away with outside piers and
! the narrow entrance To the basin.
! Mr. Stranahan was the protector Of the
| Atlantic Basin. With William Beard he
developed the waterfront from the Ilamu-
! ton Ferry To- the GOwanus Canal : basin
nearly forty acres ~ area. separated
/ from Buttcrmik Channel by a o-etkwatcr.
| was formed one open pier and three
/ piers with sheds. running east and west
| with gap from the channel and o. water
! way between the outhoard ends OF the
! piers for ships to reach their borths. were
/ constructed
The basin used TO be crowded with ship
! ping thirty years ago. T.. r. Bartlett who
! formed the Empre Warehouse COMPANY
and the Brooklyn Wharf and Warehouse
| Company. purchased all the waterfront
property of the various owners. with the
| exception Oh lHc hdilln stores, JOhn T.
! Martin refusing to go into the deal Bart
| lett had a theory that by consolidating
| all the warehouse interests he would be
| able To decrease the cost Of operation. that
runous competition would end, ana that
| the irrepressblc labor question. so far as
he was concerned, would be satisfactorily
| settled.
Business conditions were changing. how
| ever. Outports were being developed by
the railroads. and when Bartlett dicd. I'm
1901. his affairs were badly tangled The
entire bankrupt property Of the Brooklyn
! Wharf and Warehouse Company was sold
| by the Sheriff Of Kings County. ana a new
| corporation was formed.
! At that time there were score Of clc-
! VatOrs along the waterfront. containing at
times more than twenty million bushels Of
grain. In one year FIVE hundred cargoes or
| grain were loaded. but this trade has drift
| ed to other ports, and little has Jeen done
| in that line in recent years The elcva-
| tors, one after another We're dismaHtlcd
! and the once valuable machinery was sold
! for junk. The buildings were .urned into
| warehouses. but the warehouse business
| owing to cable facilities and the opportunI-
ty for immediate transportation from all
| ports, diminished greatly. and uow steel
| and concrete factories are dispiacIng tho
| old storage buildings