Corner of Hancock Street and Jefferson Avenue
Block 3387, Lots 33-37

1200-1206 Bushwick Avenue (2011) Credit: Dianne Pierce O’Brien

1198-1204 Bushwick A venue (2011) Credit: Dianne Pierce O’Brien

1198 Bushwick Avenue (2011) Credit: Dianne Pierce O’Brien

Year Built: 1886-1898
Building Type: Tenements
Architect: Unknown
Builder: Unknown
Original Owner: Unknown

1198-1206 Bushwick Avenue is a row of five three-story tenements located between Jefferson Avenue and Hancock Street, all with projecting bays extending the height of the right side of the front facade and all with main entrances to the left of the front facade at street level. Unfortunately, numbers 1200-1206 are covered in vinyl siding, and all the front facade ornament has been removed at 1202-1206, so it is difficult to determine their original architectural style. The cornice is in tact at both 1198 and 1200, and much of the original ornament remains on the front and side facades of 1198, including a decorative entrance-way, suggesting that it may have been built in the Italianate style. Because of the similarity of the row and the typical development patterns of the area between 1886 and 1898, one can assume that these structures were probably built concurrently as a speculative development venture.

According to the United States Census of 1900, there were multiple mid-sized families living in each tenement. Most families were of German or Irish descent, with multiple generations living in close proximity. The majority of residents had middle or working class professions, such as merchants, bookkeepers, and artists. Most families were renters and none had servants.