Flatbush Town Hall
Why it's listed
Flatbush Town Hall, at 35 Snyder Avenue in Brooklyn, was built in 1874-75 as the municipal seat of the town of Flatbush. A Board of Improvement oversaw construction, and the town provided $40,000 for the site and building. John Y. Culyer designed it and William Vause built it. The two-story red brick building has a three-story tower, bands of stone, pointed arches and a steep mansard roof, all typical of the polychrome Gothic Revival style of the 1870s. Inside, it held offices for village officials and police, served as a polling place, and had a second-floor hall used for public assemblies and balls. After Flatbush joined the City of Brooklyn in 1894, it served as a magistrate's court, police station and community center. The building stood vacant from 1924 to 1926, then was renovated for $50,000 and reopened as a police station. Its significance rests on its architecture and on its role as a reminder of Flatbush as a distinct nineteenth-century village.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents it as a surviving example of the polychrome High Victorian Gothic Revival style used for civic buildings of the 1870s. It also recalls the period when Flatbush was a green, self-governing village. The building housed village offices, police, a polling place and a public assembly hall.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 72000851, listed July 24, 1972. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 35 Snyder Ave., New York |
|---|---|
| County | Brooklyn |
| Listed | July 24, 1972 |
| Reference number | 72000851 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1874-75 |
| Architect / builder | John Y. Culyer, architect; William Vause, builder |
| Architectural style | Ruskinian (polychrome) Gothic Revival / High Victorian Gothic |
| Areas of significance | Politics/Government, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied and in good condition at the time of nomination. It housed the 67th Police Precinct, which was about to move to new quarters. |
| Coordinates | 40.64897, -73.95676 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 72000851.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5457876
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.