July 2: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
ON THIS DAY IN 1901, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported, “The hottest July 2 ever recorded before in New York was in 1872 and in 1876, when a temperature of 94 degrees was registered. This record was smashed at 10 o’clock this morning, at which hour the official thermometer registered 95. By 11 o’clock another degree had been clipped off, and at this time street thermometers showed even much higher temperatures. The average temperature in New York on July 2 for the last thirty years is 72 degrees. The lowest yesterday was 80. The hot spell has caused a general desire on the part of the people to get out of the city and the exodus to the country resorts is great. Crowds flocked to the parks and piers this morning in a mad desire to get a breath of fresh air and early in the day the movement toward Coney Island and Manhattan [Beach] and the Jersey beach cities began … Insanity that is sudden and violent is one of the features of the present heated term. There have been thirteen persons taken to the Kings County Hospital since Saturday last.”
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ON THIS DAY IN 1926, the Eagle reported, “Lock the front door and don’t forget to find a home for the cat. The summer travel rush is on. Those who believe the motorcar has supplanted other means of travel are advised to try to reach a ticket agent today or tomorrow. All records are broken. Surging tides are migrating to seashores and mountains in huge numbers, the password of the moment being, ‘Gimme a ticket.’ Traffic experts estimate that, before the rush from the city ends tomorrow night, between 1,500,000 and 2,000,000 persons will be off for beaches and countryside. Some, of course, will return to their desks on Tuesday morning; others will remain away for two weeks’ vacation and still others will be away for two months. The above estimate does not include motor tourists. Brooklyn shows an increase of 35 percent in the number of travelers this year over last, as registered at the consolidated ticket offices, where all railroads and boats combine at Fulton St., off Court St. The staff, augmented to summer strength, has its hands full. It is working far into the night, sometimes not being able to get things in shape for the next day’s rush until nearly midnight.”
Brooklyn Boro
View MoreNew York City’s most populous borough, Brooklyn, is home to nearly 2.6 million residents. If Brooklyn were an independent city it would be the fourth largest city in the United States. While Brooklyn has become the epitome of ‘cool and hip’ in recent years, for those that were born here, raised families here and improved communities over the years, Brooklyn has never been ‘uncool’.