GREENSTREET

Originally known as Gravesend Avenue, the avenue through which these malls run is named for John R. McDonald (1871-1932), chief clerk at the Brooklyn Surrogate’s Court.

In 1893, John McDonald began his career as an attendant in the Surrogate’s Court. He rose steadily through the ranks, serving as deputy chief in 1930 and later as chief clerk. In early March, McDonald swallowed a small piece of chicken bone, which punctured one of his intestines. He underwent surgery and seemed to be recovering, but took a turn for the worst and died two days later. Soon after McDonald’s death, the West Flatbush Civic League motivated local Alderman Gustav Hartung, a member of the thoroughfares committee, to propose the re-naming of Gravesend Avenue in McDonald’s honor. On March 14, 1933, the Board of Aldermen (predecessor of the City Council) passed a resolution renaming the street McDonald Avenue.

The resolution did not pass without opposition. The Gravesend Chamber of Commerce believed renaming Gravesend Avenue erased an important link to Brooklyn’s past. Lady Deborah Moody, the first woman granted a land patent in the new colonies, had formed the colony of Gravesend in 1645. Designing the town after Kent, England, she founded its town hall government, started its first school, and established its first Church. Lady Moody died in 1659, and her grave is located on Gravesend Neck Road between Van Sicklen Street and McDonald Avenue. Gravesend had a proud history and was the last town in Kings County to join the City of Brooklyn. For more than 200 years, Gravesend Avenue was a key route though the county, connecting the City of Brooklyn, and all towns on its way, to Gravesend.

These malls run through the center of McDonald Avenue, from Avenue X to Shore Parkway. The concrete curbstones and wide median strip provide a safety barrier between the opposing lanes of traffic, while also protecting the steel I-beams supporting the nearby elevated train.