Bay Ridge

Southwesternmost section of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City. The area was home to many of the Scandinavian immigrants, especially from Norway, who arrived in the city from the late 19th century onwards. The imposing Verrazano Narrows Bridge was constructed between Bay Ridge and Staten Island in 1964.

Geologically, Bay Ridge is part of the terminal moraine that forms much of Brooklyn. Fort Hamilton (which is still used as a military installation) was established in 1825 in the south of the district, on the site of the 1776 Battle of Long Island. The area was rural until the 1890s, when it became a seaside home for Manhattan businessmen. The arrival of the subway here in 1915 stimulated a property boom. Today Bay Ridge is a mixed, largely middle-class community.