On Arion Place between Broadway and Bushwick Avenue is the hulk of the old Arion Männerchor, Bushwick’s foremost German “singing society,” an organization promoting German culture. It later became a mansion and catering hall, but these days it has been converted to apartments (when I first visited in 1999, the building was in decrepit shape). The building is rich in detail of its musical past with initials at the very top and lyre-shaped ironwork on the fire escapes. Arion was a lyre player in the classic Greek stories, and lyre-ish metalwork can be seen on the fire escapes. The cornerstone reveals an 1886 construction date.
A carved street sign at Arion Place and Broadway reveals that the original name of Arion Place was Wall Street.
10/5/14