In Prospect Heights, have you ever wondered why some buildings are built on a 45-degree angle from the rest of the grid?
The diagonal angles of the property lines are a remnant from a different street grid dating from the early 1800s. And building at a 45-degree angle is just what you do when you build a rectangular house on a diagonal plot.
In 1833, real estate speculators, including Charles Hoyt and James E. Underhill, began to sell lots in Prospect Heights measuring 25 feet by 100 feet that were part of a street plan laid out at about a 45-degree angle to the present street grid. This earlier grid was oriented towards what was then called Flatbush Turnpike or Old Flatbush Road.
Flatbush Turnpike was originally a Lenape Indian path that was widened by the Dutch settlers to make room for wagons. This road was to the east of the present day Flatbush Avenue and more of a meandering path that went up and over Prospect Hill, the second highest elevation in Brooklyn, next to the Brooklyn Museum.
This is really interesting. I've always wondered about those houses on Underhill.
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