Ebbets Field was one of the most famous ballparks in the world, a symbol of Brooklyn. But the man who designed it is totally forgotten. This is his story.
I have probably said this before in comments on your articles. I generally don't know about many of the different people, places, or buildings you write about. But once I start to read one of your posts, the amount of research you do almost makes the stories come to life for me, like watching a movie.
Amazing story, what a great idea for a showcase. Thank you!
I enjoy taking your stories a step further to see what was in store next for the families of the people involved. In this case, more sad turns:
"The break was so complete that he didn't even respond three years later when the couple's only child, Bertram, then fourteen, wrote, pleading for help with his terminally ill mother's medical bills after she had been struck by tuberculosis. Destitute, the boy went to work creosoting railroad ties in upstate New York, where his mother was hospitalized, the situation leaving him unable to persue the college education his fatehr had. Years later, working for the Dime Savings Bank, then one of Brooklyn's foremost institutions, Bertram Van Buskirk took his own son, Douglas, to Ebbet Field's Rotunda, showing him the dedication plaque and pointed to a name. 'That was your grandfather,' he said of the man he never saw again, the man his son never met."
I have probably said this before in comments on your articles. I generally don't know about many of the different people, places, or buildings you write about. But once I start to read one of your posts, the amount of research you do almost makes the stories come to life for me, like watching a movie.
What interesting story!!! I’ve always wanted to know the history of Ebbets Field. I really enjoyed it!
Tom
Amazing story, what a great idea for a showcase. Thank you!
I enjoy taking your stories a step further to see what was in store next for the families of the people involved. In this case, more sad turns:
"The break was so complete that he didn't even respond three years later when the couple's only child, Bertram, then fourteen, wrote, pleading for help with his terminally ill mother's medical bills after she had been struck by tuberculosis. Destitute, the boy went to work creosoting railroad ties in upstate New York, where his mother was hospitalized, the situation leaving him unable to persue the college education his fatehr had. Years later, working for the Dime Savings Bank, then one of Brooklyn's foremost institutions, Bertram Van Buskirk took his own son, Douglas, to Ebbet Field's Rotunda, showing him the dedication plaque and pointed to a name. 'That was your grandfather,' he said of the man he never saw again, the man his son never met."
https://books.google.com/books?id=k2N2EAAAQBAJ&pg=PA116&lpg=PA116&dq=%22Bertram+Van+Buskirk%22&source=bl&ots=wBqoW8ami8&sig=ACfU3U0FuvoR5RT0-SrM0kocYVrPQpbf3Q&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjahtXL48n6AhV6FlkFHUR2BBAQ6AF6BAgTEAM#v=onepage&q=%22Bertram%20Van%20Buskirk%22&f=false
And as it happens, grandson Douglas just passed away three weeks ago:
https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/houstonchronicle/name/douglas-vanbuskirk-obituary?id=36472424
He, at least, seems to have flourished in life, thanks to his good father and in no way because of his notable but odious grandfather.
Wow, what a heartless jerk. So he did move to Michigan after all. Thanks for this update. I'll have to include it. Thanks again!!