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Common Council

About This Item

  • Title: Common Council
  • Date: 15 June 1858
  • Creator(s): Walt Whitman
  • Whitman Archive ID: per.00663
  • Source: Brooklyn Daily Times, 15 June 1858: 2. Our transcription is based on a digital image of a microfilm scan of the original issue. Microfilm of original issue held at Pennsylvania State University Libraries. For a description of the editorial rationale behind our treatment of the journalism, see our statement of editorial policy.
  • Editorial note: This piece is unsigned, as was the case for most of Whitman's journalism. However, this editorial is part of a series of texts that deal with a coherent theme that has been identified by the Whitman Archive journalism team as likely authored by Whitman. This decision is based on a combination of historical and (auto)biographical accounts, similarity to contemporary Whitman writings, a history of scholarly attribution, extant clippings retained by Whitman, computational stylometric analysis, and, in some cases, manuscript evidence in Whitman’s hand.
  • Contributors to digital file: Jeff Hill Conner Lynn Kaylen Michaelis Stephanie Blalock Karie Cobb
  • Cite this page: Whitman, Walt. "Common Council." The Walt Whitman Archive. Gen. ed. Matt Cohen, Ed Folsom, & Kenneth M. Price. Accessed 16 July 2024. <http://www.whitmanarchive.org>.
  • Source File: per.00663.xml (TEI)
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COMMON COUNCIL.

There were several important matters brought up in the Common Council last night; for instance, the proposition of Ald. Pierson1 to authorise the Water Commissioners to construct a closed conduit from Jamaica Creek to Baisely's Pond2 in lieu of the open canal; the resolution of Ald. Wilson,3 directing the City Counsellor to inquire by what authority certain streets have been closed, so as to cut off access on the part of the public to the river, and the resolutions of President Kalbfleisch4 relative to the latest dodge of certain rival ferry speculators to abolish the ferry between South 7th street and Peck Slip. Lack of space prevents us from commenting on these important subjects as they deserve.

Notes:

1. Henry Rufus Pierson (1819–1890) was an Alderman for the Third Ward of Brooklyn from 1858#8211;1860 and President of the Board of Alderman. He was also a member of the New York State Senate from 1866–1867. [back]

2. Baisley's Pond was a major supply reservoir for the Brooklyn Water Works located in what is today the borough of Queens. It was a former mill pond, named after its owner David Baisley, who had sold it to the local water authorities in 1852. It was also occasionally referred to as Baisley's Pond, Jamaica Pond, or Rider's Pond. For a period in 1857, it housed a team of engineers, including Walt's brother Thomas Jefferson Whitman ("Jeff"). [back]

3. Benjamin Wilson (1822–1910) was Alderman of Brooklyn's 13th Ward. [back]

4. Martin Kalbfleisch (1804–1873) was a Brooklyn alderman from 1855–1861, and in May 1858 was elected president of the Brooklyn Common Council. He then served twice as mayor of Brooklyn: from 1862–1864 and again from 1867–1871. In 1863, he was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives. [back]

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