Brooklyn Webcam – Red Hook’s View of New York Harbor

The Brooklyn Webcam watches New York Harbor from the homeport of the Waterfront Museum, a 1914 wooden railroad barge moored at Pier 44 in Red Hook. It is a pan, tilt and zoom camera, so the scene keeps changing: the Statue of Liberty across the water to the northwest, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge far to the south, the steel arch of the Bayonne Bridge beside the container cranes on the New Jersey shore, and the long red-brick warehouse on the pier next to the barge. Out on the Upper New York Bay, tugs push barges toward the Narrows, the orange Staten Island Ferry passes Liberty Island and yellow water taxis cut across the Red Hook Channel. StreamTime Live has run the camera from this spot since August 2021, and it streams around the clock.

About Red Hook, Brooklyn

Red Hook is a low point of land on the southwest corner of Brooklyn. The Dutch named it Roode Hoek, after the red clay soil and the hook of land projecting into the Upper New York Bay. The neighborhood grew up around its docks. Atlantic Basin was dredged in 1850, and the Red Hook Container Terminal is still the only maritime facility in Brooklyn that handles container ships. Cruise ships berth at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, which opened at Pier 12 on Pioneer Street in 2006, less than 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) north of the camera. Living this close to the bay has a cost: Hurricane Sandy heavily damaged Red Hook in 2012.

The camera’s host is part of that working history. The Waterfront Museum is housed aboard Lehigh Valley Railroad Barge No. 79, an all-wooden barge built in 1914 to shuttle cargo between boxcars in New Jersey and the ships and piers of the Port of New York. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the last covered wooden railroad barge still afloat. David Sharps bought it in 1985, floated and restored it, and had it towed from Edgewater, New Jersey, to Red Hook, its home since 1994.

From Pier 44, Liberty Island lies about 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles) to the northwest, and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge is about 8 kilometers (5 miles) to the south-southwest, where the bay squeezes through the Narrows toward the Atlantic. StreamTime Live describes the camera’s sweep as the Red Hook Channel and the Upper Bay from the Verrazzano Bridge to the mouth of Buttermilk Channel. Container ships bound for the New Jersey terminals cross this stretch between the Narrows and the Bayonne Bridge, sharing it with ferries, tugs and barges.

Weather and Climate in Brooklyn

Winters are cold. January averages 0.9 C (33.7 F) at the Central Park weather station, with nights around -2.3 C (27.9 F), and the city averages 76 centimeters (29.8 inches) of snow a year. Low cloud and rain can hide the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge entirely, the farthest landmark in the sweep. Spring warms slowly, with April averaging 12.1 C (53.7 F).

July averages 25.3 C (77.5 F), with afternoon highs around 29.4 C (84.9 F). October cools to an average of 14.4 C (57.9 F). Rain is spread through the year, about 1,267 millimeters (49.9 inches) in total, and the city sees at least some sunshine on about 234 days. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June to November, and tropical systems occasionally bring heavy rain to the harbor.

Things to Do Near Red Hook

Start with the barge itself. The Waterfront Museum gives free tours to families and individuals during its open hours, so check its website for the current schedule. A short walk away, Louis Valentino Jr. Park and Pier at the foot of Coffey Street looks straight across to the Statue of Liberty, with Governors Island, the Manhattan skyline and Staten Island also in view. In summer, the Red Hook Boaters run free, first-come kayaking sessions there.

Pioneer Works, at 159 Pioneer Street, fills an 1866 building that once housed one of the country’s largest ironworks. The artist Dustin Yellin founded it as a nonprofit in 2012, and its 2,500 square meters (27,000 square feet) under 12-meter (40-foot) ceilings host exhibitions, performances, artist residencies and classes in art and science. To reach the neighborhood by water, NYC Ferry’s South Brooklyn route has stopped in Red Hook since 2017.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more of New York’s waterways and streets, and another busy shipping lane, try these cameras next.

• East River Ferry Webcam
• Baltimore Shipping Channel Webcam
• Coney Island Webcam
• Times Square Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Brooklyn Webcam located?

It is at the homeport of the Waterfront Museum, Pier 44 off Conover Street in Red Hook, on the southwest waterfront of Brooklyn in New York City. It sweeps the Upper New York Bay from the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in the south round to the Statue of Liberty and the mouth of Buttermilk Channel.

What can you see on the Brooklyn Webcam?

The camera moves between several views: the Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, the arch of the Bayonne Bridge with container cranes on the New Jersey shore, and the red-brick warehouse on the pier beside the barge. What is on screen depends on the moment you tune in.

Can you see the Statue of Liberty from this webcam?

Yes, when the camera turns to the northwest. Liberty Island is about 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles) from the barge, and the statue, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, often shares the frame with the orange Staten Island Ferry.

Does this webcam show the Brooklyn Bridge or the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal?

Not the Brooklyn Bridge, which crosses the East River well north of the camera’s range. The Brooklyn Cruise Terminal is less than 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) north of the barge at Pier 12. Ships sailing from it head out through the Upper Bay to the Narrows, so a departing cruise ship can pass through the camera’s views on its way to sea.

What is the weather like in Brooklyn?

Central Park’s 1991 to 2020 averages are 0.9 C (33.7 F) in January, 12.1 C (53.7 F) in April, 25.3 C (77.5 F) in July and 14.4 C (57.9 F) in October.

Can you watch New York Harbor at night on this webcam?

Yes. The stream keeps running after dark, when the camera picks up the lit windows of the warehouse on the pier, the lights of the New Jersey shore across the bay and the navigation lights of passing ships.

What is the Waterfront Museum in Red Hook?

A museum aboard Lehigh Valley Railroad Barge No. 79, a wooden barge from 1914 moored at 290 Conover Street. It runs education, arts and historic preservation programs, and StreamTime Live credits it as the camera’s host.

What is there to do in Red Hook, Brooklyn?

Walk out on Valentino Pier for a head-on view of the Statue of Liberty, tour the Waterfront Museum barge, and see what is on at Pioneer Works on Pioneer Street.

Source: StreamTime Live