The Brooklyn Cultural Circuit is giving out a free treasure map as a fun way explore some of those places you’ve probably been meaning to see. This project was developed to improve awareness of, and participation in, activities at participating institutions, as well as to promote collaborations between those institutions

The treasures found on the new “Treasure Map,” are:

The Coney Island History Project – 1000 Surf Ave., 718-265-2100

The Coney Island History Project’s treasure is a 100-year-old Ride Ticket emblazoned with The Funny Face logo of George C. Tilyou’s Steeplechase Park (1897-1964). The world famous amusement park was billed as “Coney Island’s Only Funny Place, where 25,000 people laugh at one time.” Now rare and highly collectible, the “George C. Tilyou Combination Badge” was the original pay-one-price ticket. It let visitors enjoy all of Steeplechase’s attractions including the signature horse race ride for just 25 cents. Among the treasures you’ll find at the Coney Island History Project’s exhibition center is an authentic horse from the Steeplechase ride, which gave the park its name.

The Waterfront Museum -290 Conover St., Pier 44, 718-624-4719

The Waterfront Museum’s treasure is the Cash Lockbox from the Driftwood Floating Theatre. “Drifty” as she was affectionately called was a showboat built from an Erie Lackawanna railroad barge in Hoboken in 1954 and operated in New York waters till 1991.

The Transit Museum –
Corner of Boerum and Schermerhorn in Brooklyn Heights,
718-694-1600
The Transit Museum’s treasure is a handhold. Handholds date back to the days of horse-drawn vehicles and have existed in various forms in modes of public transportation ever since. First leather straps were used in train cars but were later replaced by metal (by baked porcelain enamel over metal and then later by stainless steel) as they were more durable and more sanitary. The handhold in their collection was used in subway cars that were in service from the 1950s to the 1980s. You can see several of these cars in the Museum. The reproductions of hand straps in the Museum’s older train cars are made of canvas. The original leather hand straps have not survived over time.

Micro Museum – 123 Smith Street, (718) 797-3116
The Micro Museum’s treasure item is a small hand mirror because MM® reflects modern American artists as they live and work everyday.

The Doll and Toy Museum of NYC -Displays at the Brooklyn Heights and Bay Ridge Public Libraries, 718-243-0820

The Doll and Toy Museum of NYC has touring exhibits and a growing world class toy collection. The Museum has the best collection of toys in Brooklyn. The Museum’s treasure is an old doll that would have been brought over from Germany in the late 1800’s. This porcelain dolls traveled thousands of miles to make it to its new home.

Green-Wood Cemetery – 500 25th St., 718-768-7300

Green-Wood Cemetery’s treasures are a very large Civil War marker and a hand written letter from Frank Morgan (The Wizard from the Wizard of Oz) with corresponding picture. Green-Wood also has its own “treasure map” with over two hundred of the Cemetery’s notable’s (of which Morgan is one) marked/numbered throughout.

Weeksville Heritage Center – 1698 Bergen St. (between Buffalo and Rochester), 718-756-5250
Weeksville Heritage Center’s treasure is a beautiful framed postcard image of their historic houses. The center also presented Thaumatropes. A Thaumatrope is a motion toy that people used in the early 19th century.

Old Stone House –
J.J. Byrne Park, 3rd St. and 5th Ave., 718-768-3195
The Old Stone House knows that history is underfoot everywhere in Brooklyn — even in your own backyard. Their treasure is a 3 lb. cannonball, most likely launched by the British during the Battle of Brooklyn on August 27, 1776, that was recently found in a Brooklyn backyard.

The Brooklyn Cultural Circuit consists of the Coney Island History Project, Doll and Toy Museum of NYC, Green-Wood Cemetery, Micro Museum, New York Transit Museum, Old Stone House, Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge, and Weeksville Heritage Center. The Brooklyn Cultural Circuit is sponsored in part by
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz,
the Brooklyn Tourism & Visitors Center, Seedco, Con Edison, and
the Independence Community Foundation.