Latest Articles - Turnstile Tours

The Original Six: Repurposing America’s Naval Shipyards | Episode 245

At the dawn of the nineteenth century, the US Navy established six naval shipyards to build, repair, and outfit the fleet. From the “original six”—Boston, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Portsmouth, Norfolk, and …

Brooklyn Navy Yard
Virtual Programs
Waterfront

Olmsted, Public Health, and Urban Planning with Olmsted-Beil House | Episode 244

Join Turnstile Tours and the Friends of Olmsted-Beil House for a virtual panel discussion to mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of Frederick Law Olmsted’s report for the Staten Island Improvement Commission, …

Prospect Park
Virtual Programs

Elvis Has Left The Country: Pvt. Presley and the Brooklyn Army Terminal | Episode 243

On September 22, 1958, 23-year-old US Army Private Elvis Presley boarded troop transport USS General George M. Randall at the Brooklyn Army Terminal to begin his 17 months of military service in Germany. Though …

Brooklyn Army Terminal
Virtual Programs

Climate Change Conversation with Prospect Park Alliance Forest Ecologist Howard Goldstein | Episode 242

Join the conversation during Climate Week NYC with Prospect Park Alliance‘s Forest Ecologist Howard Goldstein. Howard will share insights on the unique challenges the part faces as the borough’s only …

Prospect Park
Virtual Programs

A Brief History of Wire Rope: Re-Rigging the Peking | Episode 241

Wire rope helped build many New York City landmarks in the nineteenth century, most notably the Brooklyn Bridge, but it quickly became an essential tool in the maritime industry as …

Virtual Programs
Waterfront

Cross Country on a Citi Bike: The True Story of an Adventurous New Yorker | Episode 240

Take a lunch trip from NYC to LA to Tulsa and back with tour guide and travel writer Jeffrey Tanenhaus. In 2015, he took a Citi Bike and pedaled it …

Virtual Programs

Tide Mills: Green Energy from the Colonial Era | Episode 239

In colonial New York, reliable power came from muscles (human and animal), firewood, and tides. From Spuyten Duyvil to Marine Park, Wallabout Bay to Flushing Bay, settlers turned many tidal …

Gowanus
Virtual Programs
Waterfront

Ships of Stone: Concrete Shipbuilding from the World Wars to Today | Episode 236

Concrete may seem like an odd material for shipbuilding, but during World War I, severe shortages of steel led to this innovation. Devised by Norwegian immigrants the Fougner brothers, they …

Virtual Programs
Waterfront
World War I
World War II

Rockaway Ferry Virtual Tour | Episode 235

The fastest way to the beach is on the NYC Ferry, so join us for another virtual boat tour as we cruise the Lower New York Bay. We will pick up …

Virtual Programs
Waterfront

The Civil War and Prospect Park | Episode 234

Did you know that Prospect Park has a piece of Gettysburg’s famed Little Round Top? And one of the oldest statues of Abraham Lincoln in America? While memorials to the …

Prospect Park
Virtual Programs

Behind-the-Scenes Tour of Russ & Daughters’ Appetizing Factory | BCAP at Home

Take a behind-the-scenes virtual tour of Russ & Daughters’ Appetizing Factory at the Brooklyn Navy Yard! We’ll hear the story of how this iconic New York business was started over …

Brooklyn Navy Yard
Inside Industry
Virtual Programs
Waterfront

WCBS 880: NYC tour company grows revenue with new profitable services

Cindy VandenBosch and Andrew Gustafson are the husband and wife duo at the helm of Turnstile Tours. Both of them have decades of experience in history, museums and tourism. Over the past 10 years, they’ve built a diverse portfolio of programs with unique New York stories at historic sites such as the South Street Seaport, the Brooklyn Navy Yard and the Brooklyn Botanical Garden.

Press

Capturing Food Carts with Photographer Maxwell Schiano | Episode 233

Food carts are an iconic image of New York City that most New Yorkers pass every day. Even if they stop to enjoy their food, not many take in the …

Street Vending
Virtual Programs

Famous and Forgotten: Street Names of the Brooklyn Navy Yard | Episode 232

Behind the gates of the Brooklyn Navy Yard lies a network of streets that are a mystery to most New Yorkers. Named for naval heroes, shipyard operations, and even a …

Brooklyn Navy Yard
Virtual Programs
Waterfront
World War II

Ship Spotting at the Brooklyn Navy Yard | BCAP at Home

New York Harbor is bustling with boats every day, making it perfect for ship spotting, a hobby that involves seeing, learning about, and tracking ships as they come and go. …

Brooklyn Navy Yard
Inside Industry
Virtual Programs
Waterfront

Machines and Tools: Printing Technology with Woodside Press | BCAP at Home

How did people print newspapers and books before the age of computers? Join this virtual program to learn about the history of printing technology with Woodside Press at the Brooklyn …

Brooklyn Navy Yard
Inside Industry
Virtual Programs
Waterfront

Typeface collection at Woodside Press at the Brooklyn Navy Yard

Sonic Boom and Bust: Concorde in New York | Episode 230

Earlier this month, Boom Technology announced that United Airlines planned to purchase its Overture supersonic airliner, which they hope to bring into service by the end of the decade. If …

Virtual Programs
Waterfront

Exploring Bush Terminal Park | Episode 229

Built on the footprint of the piers and warehouses of the historic Bush Terminal, Bush Terminal Park provided much-needed green space and waterfront access to the Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood when it …

Brooklyn Army Terminal
Virtual Programs
Waterfront

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Workers walk alongside a large stone dry dock in the Brooklyn Navy Yard with two white tugboats below and a red and white crane on the right.