Greene Playground

What was here before?

Much of this area was owned by the Ryerson family. The first Ryersons to arrive in North America from Holland were Martin and Annetje Ryerszen who settled in the Wallabout area in the late seventeenth century. Succeeding generations of Ryersons divided the large plot of land, and it was farmed until it was sold off for residential development in the 1830s.

The Clinton Hill neighborhood began as a suburban retreat on the outskirts of the City of Brooklyn, developed as a quiet middle-class residential neighborhood, and at the turn of the century with pockets of partially transformed of great wealth. This period of affluence lasted until the 1920s when the well to do left to Manhattan, and apartment buildings replaced mansions.

With the increased population, more apartment buildings and row houses were built. Housing on this site was demolished to make room for a much needed school.

How did this site become a playground?

The playground was acquired by the City in 1956 and opened to the public in 1961.

This playground is a Jointly Operated Playground (JOP) serving P.S. 11 and the local community. Beginning in 1938, the Board of Education (now the Department of Education) agreed to provide land next to schools where NYC Parks could build and maintain playgrounds that could be used by the school during the day and by the public when school is not in session.

A 1997 renovation to the playground included new play units for toddlers and pre-teens, safety surfacing, fencing, lighting, shade trees, and upgraded game tables. The playground was again rebuilt in 2025 with multigenerational play spaces, a water play area, and new seating.

How did this playground get its name?

Greene Playground takes its name from its location on Greene Avenue, named in 1904, which runs from Fulton Street to Metropolitan Avenue. The source of both names is Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene (1742-1786), for whom Fort Greene Park is named.

After serving as a member of the Rhode Island state legislature, Greene joined the military in 1774. In violating the pacifist ethic of the Quakers, Greene was forced to sever ties with the faith in which he was raised. In 1776 General George Washington directed the Continental Army to build entrenchments from Gowanus Bay to Wallabout Bay to protect Brooklyn from British forces. Major General Greene was called to supervise the construction of Fort Putnam (the original name of Fort Greene), so named for Rufus Putnam (1738-1824), designer of the New York defenses. Though the Americans were defeated in the Battle of Long Island in August 1776 and forced to abandon the fort, their struggle allowed Washington and his forces to escape across Gowanus Creek and the East River.

During his career, Greene assisted Washington in victory at Trenton in 1776 and led a successful retreat and final defeat of the British in the South in 1782. After the war, Greene retired to Mulberry Grove, Georgia.