The funding will support free educational programs, exhibitions, walking tours, reenactments and community events highlighting Brooklyn\u2019s pivotal role in the Revolutionary War. It will also fund the creation of a collectible \u201cthen-and-now\u201d pamphlet and map showcasing Revolutionary-era sites across the borough.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re here because this year is the 250th commemoration of the Battle of Brooklyn, which took place in August of 1776, the first battle that our nation fought under the name of the United States of America,\u201d Gounardes said. \u201cIt has been said that the revolution was signed in Philadelphia, but was was signed in blood here in Brooklyn.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/IMG_2498.jpg\")
Green-Wood Cemetery\u2019s historic Battle Hill.Photo by Olivia Seaman<\/p>\n
Gounardes noted that the Battle of Brooklyn was the largest battle of the Revolutionary War and said the new funding will help local institutions tell both well-known and overlooked stories from the conflict.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith this initiative, we\u2019re going to have the opportunity to talk not only about the iconic stories that we know, but the stories that we also overlook, from the Maryland 400 we\u2019re all very familiar with, to the contributions of Black Americans of the era,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Carroll said the anniversary offers an opportunity to highlight Brooklyn\u2019s often-overlooked place in American history.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Battle of Brooklyn, which is often mischaracterized as the Battle of Long Island \u2014 Brooklyn is very different than Long Island,\u201d Carroll said. \u201cWe may share an island, but we are very different people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis battle has for too long been forgotten,\u201d he added.\n<\/p>\n
The funding will be administered through Green-Wood Cemetery<\/a> and shared among participating organizations, including the Prospect Park Alliance, Fort Greene Park Conservancy, Center for Brooklyn History and Old Stone House.<\/p>\n Meera Joshi, president of Green-Wood Cemetery, thanked the lawmakers for securing the funding and said it will allow institutions to reach wider audiences through public programming.<\/p>\n \u201cYour funding is funding that will allow us to showcase in ways we wouldn\u2019t otherwise be able to the importance of Brooklyn at this moment of history,\u201d Joshi said.<\/p>\n Joshi highlighted several upcoming events, including Revolutionary War programming around Independence Day, trolley tours and an Aug. 23 Battle of Brooklyn commemoration.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re really using the surroundings and the ability to understand and touch the field to see, but learn the lessons of liberty, freedom, and independence,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s why Brooklyn is the heart of the American Revolution.\u201d<\/p>\n At the Center for Brooklyn History, Executive Director Lexi Myers said the institution\u2019s exhibition, \u201cThe Battle of Brooklyn: Fought and Remembered,\u201d explores both the battle itself and how generations of Brooklynites have interpreted its legacy.<\/p>\n \u201cAs you all know, the Battle of Brooklyn was an extraordinary moment on the road to independence,\u201d Myers said. \u201cEvery single person living in Brooklyn today, all 2.7 million, inherit that legacy.\u201d<\/p>\n The exhibition is free and open to the public, with additional tours and programming planned throughout the summer.\n<\/p>\n Dylan Yeats, director of the historic Lefferts House at Prospect Park<\/a>, said the anniversary offers an opportunity to tell a broader story of the Revolutionary era.<\/p>\n \u201cOur work to reimagine Lefferts is rooted in telling fuller and more honest history,\u201d Yeats said.\n<\/p>\n This summer, Prospect Park will feature an outdoor exhibit exploring the roles Black Americans played during the Revolutionary War, along with a reconstructed Revolutionary War redoubt and guided tours.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re very proud to be part of Brooklyn250 because this commemoration is not only about looking back,\u201d Yeats said. \u201cIt\u2019s also about helping today\u2019s Brooklynites, especially the young, gain a better understanding of their past and how that past has shaped their present, so they can forge a better future.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/IMG_2510.jpg\")
State Sen. Gounardes and Assembly Members Robert Carroll and Jo Anne Simon sponsored the efforts.Photo by Olivia Seaman<\/p>\n