If separated from New York City today, Brooklyn would stand as the 4th largest city in the nation. The consolidation of New York City in 1898 combined the 4 boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island with Manhattan to create Greater New York, but prior to that, Brooklyn was a thriving independent city. A twin city of old New York, Brooklyn’s secrets are many and reveal the amazing story of New York State’s first municipality, named “Breukelen” by the first Dutch settlers of the region.
