Pineapple Street

Fun Fact

Romane

Published on 19/03/2025

This point of interest is available as audio on the tour: Visit New York, Destination: Brooklyn

You’re now walking down Pineapple Street. Before the 19th century, the streets here were actually named after the great aristocratic families who lived in the neighborhood. That was until Lady Middagh came along; she thought all that was rather pretentious, so she decided to remove the original street signs and put up her own. Her inspiration? Fruits. Pineapple Street, Cranberry Street, Orange Street – you name it! The city tried to stop her by taking down the signs, but Lady Middagh was a force to be reckoned with; in the end, the signs were reinstalled. Some streets, however, still bear the names of the powerful families of the time. Among them is the one named after her family. That’s right! She left Middagh Street alone – so much for her crusade against pretentiousness! But hey, there’s still Orange, Cranberry and Pineapple Street that always bring a smile to people’s faces today.